Exports are growing again. At Florence’s Fortezza da Basso, the quality of the clothes will have to give buyers a solid reason to place an order.
The next edition of Pitti Uomo, taking place in Florence from January 12 to 15, 2027, provides an opportunity to assess the state of Italian menswear before brands and buyers meet. In the first seven months of 2026, exports reached €5.4 billion, up 0.9%. A return to growth, but hardly a reason to celebrate. For anyone putting a collection together, the question remains practical: what convinces a buyer to place an order today?
The Istat figures, reported by Confindustria Moda and presented ahead of Pitti Uomo, offer some clues. Exports to France and the United States are rising, China is up 6.7%, while Germany and the United Kingdom are declining. There is little point, then, in treating the market as a single audience. Spending power, tastes and the occasions people dress for all vary. A coat offered in Shanghai needs to make as convincing a case as one destined for Paris, though the reasons may not be the same.
The differences between product categories are also significant. Leather apparel is up 25.1%; shirts are down 3.7%, and knitwear has slipped 0.5%. It would be premature to read this as a new hierarchy of the wardrobe: these are monetary values, which must also be considered in the light of prices and the mix of products sold. They do, however, point to areas that deserve a closer look before falling back on the convenient explanation that “nothing is selling.”
Imports are down 6.5%. That helps the trade balance, but buying less from abroad does not, in itself, prove that Italian consumers have started spending again. Caution remains evident in stores, in buyers’ orders and in companies’ decisions.
That is why Antonio De Matteis’s call to bring the discussion back to the product makes sense to me. Quality needs to be explained, however. With a jacket, what matters is the fabric, the construction, the way it moves with the body; with a coat, weight and drape can say more than an advertising campaign. That is where the price has to justify itself.
According to De Matteis, applications to take part in the next edition are up 25% from a year earlier. That willingness to act deserves attention. Then the work shifts to the stands: showing how a garment is built, letting buyers try it on, explaining a particular technique. And listening to the objections of those who will have to sell it.
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