Alessandro Sartori, Artistic Director at Zegna Discusses the Brand’s New Direction

Lindsay Judge   |   04-02-2022

Zegna’s values have always been deeply rooted in quality, craftsmanship and sustainability. The Italian menswear house has since the beginning, found solace in providing something different that considers the elements that men are truly looking for from their wardrobe at any given time.

 

So as the world around us is changing so drastically, it goes without saying that Zegna needed to adapt in order to fulfil the ever-evolving needs of men today. The brand has very recently undergone a re-branding and re-focus of its vision to do just that. It has taken on one single identity renaming itself “Zegna” and dropping the “Ermenegildo” name of the House’s founder. It has developed a new logo and ethos around its collections. This ethos, while still keeping in mind all the elements of heritage, quality and craftsmanship, is also about comfort. Fulfilling the new needs of men today and what they are looking for from fashion. Under the new vision, Alessandro Sartori, Zegna’s Artistic Director recently presented his Fall 2022 collection with a new look and a new way of expressing masculinity through fashion.

 

The Spring/Summer 2022 collection and the recently launched Outdoor capsule also share this vision of comfort and adapting style to be more wearable, less formal and not bound by rules. Here we find out more about the vision of the company moving forward and the creative process behind the latest collections.

 

Spring/Summer 2022

 

Can you share with us your vision and direction for Zegna in 2022? 

Let’s start with the rebranding that the company has recently undergone as we now have a completely different vision. With the new direction, we are now trying to convey the image through one brand: Zegna; with one logo and one story. We developed the Fall/Winter 22 show to be part of the journey. The show itself conveyed the new Zegna branding and image to the world for the first time. We wanted to share the idea of this new wardrobe where outdoor and indoor collide, where “the new set” style is taking the lead. We are matching different styles of tops, bottoms and jackets but in the same colour, together, we are working more with this idea of a uniform that you can compose and decompose to create new looks, where the construction is made from fabrics that don’t have any lining or reinforcement inside. It is about fabric, human work and design. Craft and modernity are colliding into something new: this is the new Zegna brand image.

 

Can you tell us a little about the importance and relevance of the new Zegna logo?

The logo is arising from an interesting story. When the company first began in 1910 its name was simply “Zegna”. It then split into two companies because there were two different visions of the Zegna brothers. Ermenegildo Zegna then took the reins of the company and brought it to what it is today and we have now decided to go back to what the brand was at the beginning and to reinforce the message. The logo itself is also very similar to the initial logo. When we designed it we wanted it to be modern with a link to our heritage but in a very fresh way. It also features the symbol of the Zegna road. This is the road that goes through the Oasi Zegna, built by our founder Ermenegildo Zegna over 110 years ago, before planting half a million trees in the area. This is the vision the brand started with and with our new vision, we wanted to think about new signifiers from our symbolism and that’s how we got to this logo.

 

Spring/Summer 2022

 

We just recently saw the launch of the Fall 22 collection – can you share a few words on this collection and the creative process behind it?

The collection itself is closely linked to the DNA and the craftsmanship of the brand. There is also a historical element with the interesting link between the history of Zegna and the modern images of our modern studio in Milan. Mixing the organic elements of nature with the beautiful clean design of our studio highlights exactly what the collection stands for. Modernity and craft, human work and minimalism, neutral and organic colours with bright colours. It’s a very specific point of view that we like to push since it’s our new image, but it’s also closely linked to our DNA.

 

Can you share with us a little on the Spring/Summer 22 collection – the creative process behind it, the silhouettes, the colour palette etc.?

The summer collection is focused on fresh, organic summer fibres and creating this idea of a new uniform that we discussed. I call it “the new set” and it is about the new ways of wearing pieces together. Short coats, over shirts and jersey jackets, are worn with workwear pants in the finest Italian materials to create this image that we have in mind. There are many contrasts that are part of our way of working towards a new world and our new image. The collection is very fluid, there are a lot of silk fabrics, linen, a lot of beautiful shapes and this lightness or weightlessness which I have never done before.

 

Has the impact of the global pandemic influenced or changed anything about the way you work?

A lot has changed as we are spending more time working in the studio and less time travelling. We have a lot more time to brainstorm to style, to design, to discuss new ideas and concepts etc. There have been a lot of interesting sessions coming out of this time and we have had a lot more focus on the shapes and the construction of the collections. So yes, it has changed because we now spend our time differently.

 

Fall/Winter 2022

 

Who is the Zegna man today? 

The Zegna man is a tribe of different men with different characteristics. He is stylish, but he doesn’t show off, he is devoted to quality and creativity, he loves little secrets and qualitative construction. He loves being part of a community and he loves to share his personal opinion and point of view. The Zegna man is more about embodying these topics or DNA rather than a specific age or geographical location. He could be 25 or 65, he could be from the UK or Japan, but it’s more about his mindset than his physical characteristics.

 

What changes have you seen in the way men dress over the last few years?

There have been many changes. Due to the pandemic, the new vision of men and people, in general, has a lot to do with comfort. Comfort was not previously at the centre of our lives, but today it is the most important thing, together with quality. So yes, the way men dress has totally changed. Everything we do now at Zegna is related to comfort. We don’t have any garment that isn’t comfortable. Even a tuxedo has this point of view!

 

We love the recent outdoor collection – tell us about that and how it fits into Zegna Man’s wardrobe?

This collection represents a chapter in our man’s life. When the Zegna man is buying technical products he is looking for the same quality, but for a different function. So this collection features the same quality but with new constructions, new technical style and new materials. They are pieces that can also complement the pieces he already has in his wardrobe. You don’t necessarily need to dress head-to-toe in an Outdoor collection outfit. Maybe you borrow pieces that you wear in your everyday life and pair them together. This collection is for when it’s raining, snowing when you’re travelling, or you’re walking, anytime you’re going to be in more open-air situations. This is what we thought we were missing from our offering and we are very happy to have worked on this collection.

 

Fall/Winter 2022

 

We know the #UseTheExisting concept is very important to you – can you share a little on where you are at with that currently and the importance of sustainability at the brand in general? 

We started with the #UseTheExisting concept in 2018 with our show in the Central Station of Milan. At that point, we felt we needed to take a strong step forward in recycling with the goal of reducing our waste. Today we have a lot of layers of sustainable practices at the company through our design and creativity. We are talking a lot about the #UseTheExisting fabrics; fabrics that are derived from the waste from previous materials. We are talking about the traceable cashmere that we work with, we are using natural colourants in some of our materials. We are talking about the ACHILLFARM™ wool, which is a selection of wool arriving from our farm in Australia. It comes from sheep that are living in an open air, totally free environment. We are talking about Italian fibres, even some of the fibres we use are from sheep living here in Italy and we create local fabrics with local wool. So there are a lot of layers to sustainability at Zegna, but more than that, we have a very sustainable mindset in our design approach. This is exactly what we like.

 

How important is it to you to keep the concept of “Made in Italy” alive? 

It’s very important. Made in Italy is one of the most interesting concepts in the world, but more than that, at Zegna, we have a unique relationship with our workers, our artisans and our employees. We have a lot of factories and workshops in Italy, and we have partnerships with many others that are not owned by Zegna but with whom we work very closely. It’s an interesting relationship that we build on year after year. Made in Italy is not only the best place to be made in the world, it’s our DNA, our story and history, and it’s also an investment for the future because we work with artisans who are devoted to what they do and see it as a passion.

 

What about the younger generations today, do they want to know more about where their products come from?

I think it’s very important them but more than that I think they want to feel the value of a product through more than just its cost. The quality of what they are buying is something that’s becoming more and more important. Made in Italy will become even more important to the younger generations moving forward.

 

ZEGNA OUTDOOR CAPSULE COLLECTION

 

We always love to have you in the Middle East – and we know you recently opened up a pop-up store here in Dubai – what can you tell us about that and how it has been received so far?

First of all, the pop-up boutique in The Dubai Mall has a very beautiful story because it highlights our partnership with Maserati. It is in a fantastic location and it is doing extremely well. It is enabling us to reach a strong clientele including a lot of people that we have never been in touch with before. It’s working extremely well, almost surprisingly well, because of the number of people, the number of new customers and also the revenue. And it is also creating a unique relationship with the final customers because so many people are stopping there to see what we have and to check what we are doing. So it allows us to create a stronger story with a demographic of people we never thought we would.

 

Secondly, Dubai is one of the cities I love the most in the world, and I’m not just saying that! I am particularly attracted to the new metropolis of the world of which Dubai is one. I am a person who feels better in a big city and I like the feeling of having everything at my disposal, getting from one side to the other very easily and also to be able to drive one hour out of the city and be with nature. Dubai offers all that. Dubai has strong energy and to me, it is very inspiring.

 

What inspires you the most or puts you in a creative state of mind?

Reading, thinking, brainstorming with others, looking at a lot of images and pictures. I look at thousands of images from magazines and books – I am a crazy collector of books! These are the things that I like to do in order to be creative. Of course travelling as well, not so much recently, but it will be back.

 

ZEGNA OUTDOOR CAPSULE COLLECTION

 

What is a message you would send to your customers in the region?

When you build your silhouette remember this sentence of mine: “Try to not only look beautiful and stylish but also to capture the emotion of wearing something for the first time each time you wear it.” There is a strong joy in wearing something for the first time and it is an emotion it is a magical moment. So when you dress yourself remember to touch this magical point that makes you special.

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