Borbonese 1910 revamping in Milan; opening in Paris next week

By

Godfrey Deeny

Published
Feb 23, 2019

Each season in Milan they find a venerable brand to revive, and this season one giving a very good impression of a sturdy renewal is Borbonese 1910.

After falling asleep at the wheel for several decades, the house re-emerged this weekend with a clever presentation in Teatro Manzoni, a wonderfully iconic Milanese cinema.
 
Next step will be the opening of a brand new boutique at 32 rue Boissy-d’Anglas during Paris Fashion Week.

"In order to be at the center of the fashion universe, we had to be present with a well-located store in Paris," explained CEO Alessandro Pescara, who joined the company last April.
 
He’s also is in talks to open pop-ups in Printemps and Galeries Lafayette.

 
Borbonese 1910 is perhaps most famous for its signature leather, Occhio di Pernice, or Partridge Eye, seen in archive photos of multiple bags and even a snazzy sports car interior illuminated in the cinema lobby. 
 
Like the executive Pescara, Borbonese was born in Turin, though it’s heyday was three decades ago in Milan. The brand keeps its design and marketing team in Milan, though its production facilities are near Bologna. Borbonese is now owned by the Italian Mambrini family.
 
"It’s Milanese bourgeois glamor with a twist," said svelte Candela Pelizza, the cool Italian influencer with half a million followers whom Pescara has hired as digital director.
 

Albeit presented in an absurdly dark setting, the collection looked impressive: snug power shoulder suits with pencil skirts worn over Occhio di Pernice leggings. Think reviving Dallas in Lombardy. Arcadia imagery blouses, mannish shirts and handkerchief dresses; great natural-print down coats and some natty footwear, courtesy of a collab’ with Moon Boot.
 
"We wanted to revive the hot spirit of 80s Milan; and the Golden Age of the fashion quadrilateral of this city, with a new retro moda for the digital era,” said designer Dorian Tarantini, as the cast marched along the back-lit runway.