Optimism among Pitti companies: the winds of peace are fuelling the recovery
With the US-Iran agreement, the Middle East is expected to make a major comeback from November onwards, but even greater benefits would result from an end to the war in Ukraine, which would reopen the Russian market
There are signs of a recovery in the Italian fashion industry, one of the country’s driving forces, which has stalled over the past two years due to wars, inflation, the energy crisis and pricing policies that have confused consumers and led to a shift in spending habits. From the trade fair Pitti Uomo, which is bringing together the spring-summer 2027 collections of 740 brands – 45 per cent of which are foreign – in Florence until tomorrow, a breath of optimism is emerging. It is still small and tentative, but it is noticeable.
Amid the sweltering heat at the Fortezza da Basso exhibition centre, which is teeming with buyers grappling with the disruption caused by a fault on the Bologna–Florence high-speed rail line, fashion companies are beginning to feel hopeful again. The agreement between the United States and Iran to end the war in the Middle East is seen as a sign: ‘Especially from a psychological point of view,’ emphasises Antonio De Matteis, president of Pitti Immagine (the company organising the fair) and CEO of the high-end brand Kiton, which is presenting the KNT collection – the brand’s experimental laboratory – at Pitti Uomo.
“The effects of the US-Iran agreement will become apparent in a few months’ time,” he adds, “but the deal also sends a positive signal regarding the other ongoing conflict in Ukraine, which has severely damaged the fashion sector. Let’s not forget that the Russian market was worth a great deal, both in terms of sales within that country and the Russian tourists who used to come to shop in Italia – and who are no longer here.” Kiton closed 2025 with turnover up 3% to 230 million euros and recorded a 10.5% increase in the first three months of this year. “We must continue to focus on extensive research and innovation,” adds De Matteis, “and furthermore, the time has come to listen more closely to multi-brand stores, which are crucial because they have a broader view of the market.”
Claudio Marenzi, owner of the high-end brand Herno, also believes that peace in the Middle East will have “the effect of easing the tensions that have built up in the market”, but that “a resolution to the war in Ukraine” would have even more beneficial effects. Herno ended 2025 with 6 per cent growth to €194 million and this year expects to exceed €200 million in revenue, driven by direct retail, which recorded a 15 per cent increase in the first six months: “We haven’t expanded into new markets,” explains Marenzi, “but we have broadened our product categories by adding lighter garments that have added substance: now even the wholesale sector sees Herno as a total-look brand. Furthermore, we have maintained a balance between quality and price that is unique in the entry-to-luxury segment.”
The US-Iran agreement “will get us all back on track”, according to Niccolò Ricci, CEO of the high-end Florentine brand Stefano Ricci, which closed 2025 with a turnover of 217 million (+1 per cent excluding extraordinary items) and an EBITDA of 61 million, and which has recorded a 6 per cent increase in the first five months of this year. “The end of the war in the Middle East means, first and foremost, an injection of positivity,” adds Ricci, who has just opened boutiques in Washington and Rome and is preparing to open one in Mexico City: “The high-end market needs beautiful products that are made to an ever-higher standard; if you look for shortcuts, you’re a loser. We don’t produce second-line ranges, we don’t hold sales, and we constantly strive to improve our quality standards.”
