Alongside Dolce & Gabbana and Fendi, the second day of men’s runway shows for Spring/Summer 2025 was full of surprises. Several designers revisited the codes of the men’s wardrobe, bringing a breath of fresh air to the Milan catwalks, with original creations ranging from JordanLuca’s quirky punk couture silhouettes to Neil Barrett‘s smart, everyday chic and Emporio Armani’s free, nonchalant style.
JordanLuca struck a major blow, waking up a Milan Fashion Week that seemed to be dozing off on the wave of rather classic and sober summer collections. The models looked great in their iroquois or Liberty spiked punk crests, their biker shorts and skin-tight leotards, and their boots or ankle boots with curved stiletto heels.
This bravura look was underlined by the squared shoulders of the extra-large jackets, with the pointy, oversized collars of some of the polo shirts. Or by making a statement with an unexpected Chanel tweed bomber, shiny 3D-printed jeans or a stiff, starched Marcel knit whose shoulders lifted off the body as if in levitation.
Englishman Jordan Bowen and Italian Luca Marchetto – the creative duo behind this couture streetwear label founded in London in 2018 – are having a field day, continuing to renew and enrich their register of playful finds from season to season. This time, they’ve drawn inspiration from the world of dance, creating daring ballerina pumps with very pointed toes and studded soles.
For women, tutus in tulle and other materials marked the waist, merging with suit jackets that extended into dresses, while big bows pulled the front of the garment towards the back, bursting open to reveal the bust. Large squares of latex or silk were draped over the body to make sensual dresses.
As far as business is concerned, the brand has managed to stay in line with the previous season, despite “a dramatic moment for the market,” thanks above all to the viral success of its pissed-jeans with pee-stain effect. “What has changed is that we now have lots of private orders for celebrities,” says Luca Marchetto.
Neil Barrett returned to a wiser style, but one that was no less sophisticated, with a series of finds that were as playful as they were functional. As is so often the case with Barrett, it’s all about construction, attention to detail and the careful choice of materials, which this season were drawn from the feminine and eveningwear worlds. “These fabrics bring a different light to the clothes,” explains the English designer, who swaped nylon for taffeta to create windbreakers and ultra-light sensual mini-shorts. He used silk for shiny trousers, moire for jackets, duchess for sweatshirts and cashmere for knitwear, tank tops and cosy jumpers.
He continues to search for solutions to make life easier for his customers, helping them “to dress well, with style and without effort.” He made ingenious two-in-one pieces, with a white t-shirt peeking out from a knitted fabric, waistcoat, jacket or shirt. Of particular note is a shirt, whose traditional vertical stripes faded downwards as if worn by the sun. He also used postichoke pockets on anoraks, sweaters and shirts for a touch of class. Finally, to lighten the top pieces, he fitted them with sleeve grips to make it easier to adjust the length of the sleeves and shorten them in warmer weather.
In the end, Neil Barrett delivered a clean, elegant collection of well-cut essential pieces, defining a fresh, modern new silhouette. “With these details borrowed from the world of fashion, I want to elevate the everyday wardrobe. These are seemingly simple details, but they are carefully thought out and make a difference,’ notes the designer.
At Emporio, Giorgio Armani‘s young line, whose show brought the second day of Milan to a close with panache, we found the same minimalism and attention to detail, but in a fundamentally different spirit. The ensemble was far less urban, with a focus on a warm summer in contact with nature. The eye was drawn towards the horizon, sweeping across the vast meadows of the Camargue. It even reached out to the dunes and plains of the desert. The collection seemed to have been designed to fit perfectly into these majestic landscapes crossed by wild horses, which galloped in image all around the catwalk.
The models adopted a relaxed, country style, with linen suits sometimes embroidered with fine flowers and ears of wheat, openwork knitwear, necklaces made from mineral stones, picnic bags and baskets made from woven raffia, and straw hats. They looked to the equestrian world, slipping their trousers into gardian boots, sometimes fitted with hunter’s straps, with leather pieces and suede jackets.
The clothes glided over the skin with softness and lightness. Loose-fitting collarless shirts closed just at the waist, where they crossed loosely, leaving the chest exposed, as in these V-neck pullovers with their plunging necklines. The high waist of trousers is turned inside out, as if they were too wide and tightened by an improvised belt. Oversized, unstructured jackets were worn close to the skin, accentuating the nonchalant look.
An oriental thread run through the collection, with loose-fitting, lightweight trousers zipped up or tightened at the calf, zouave-style, small fez-style hats, a series of collarless safari jackets with large pockets revised in looser proportions, while for evening wear, men wore tops encrusted with sequins and stones or small embroidered Mao collar jackets. The palette was neutral, with all the nuances of earth, sand and nature. Large sunflowers were embroidered into a cardigan, a reference to Cézanne and the landscapes of Provence.
For the grand finale, the décor changed completely, with horses giving way to large fields of lavender, while mauve and violet tones dominated the final looks. Elegant women in flowery dresses came forward, accompanied by muscular fellows dressed only in leather shorts and braces, each carrying large baskets filled with lavender. Giorgio Armani, accompanied by his niece Silvana Armani and his right-hand man Leo Dell‘Orco, had only to come out to the applause.
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