Dolce & Gabbana leaned heavily into the art of theatrical misdirection on the second day of Milan fashion week as it aimed to draw attention away from its debt issues, catwalk controversies and management reshuffles.
On the catwalk its signature “molto sexy” Italian aesthetic that comes served with a generous scoop of la dolce vita was in full swing. This was Euro summer on steroids. There were clingy muscle vests and micro shorts that made short shorts look modest while some models simply went topless. Jeans came ripped, shredded or smothered in sparkling jewels while T-shirts featured everything from giant prints of Sicilian lemons and ancient amphitheatres to a mosaic depiction of Christ.
The SS27 show was its first menswear collection since its disastrous all-white casting earlier this year, which joined the brand’s long list of previous controversies. It also marked the brand’s first show since Stefano Gabbana stepped down as chair.
In March it was announced the designer had tendered his resignation last December as chair of the company he co-founded with his then partner Domenico Dolce in 1985. In January as part of the reshuffle the former Gucci chief executive Stefano Cantino was appointed co-chief executive working alongside Alfonso Dolce, a brother of Domenico. Gabbana’s role as co-creative director remains unaffected.
In a turbulent luxury market, the fashion house has found itself left trying to navigate a £391m debt pile. This week there were reports that, as part of negotiations with creditors, the brand is considering a potential sale and leaseback of several properties it owns in the city. While the brand continues to dominate the red carpets during award season (Colman Domingo, Patrick Schwarzenegger and Ryan Gosling are fans) a wider luxury slump has left the brand struggling. Saturday’s show was a reminder to its fans of what it does best – excess.
Later in the day, the British leader of menswear Paul Smith who has been showing in Milan since 2025 also homed in on his speciality – suiting. Backstage Smith credited the suit’s resurgence to young people not wanting to dress like gen X. “A lot of our customers grew up with their dads wearing hoodies during the pandemic,” Smith said. “Those kids are now 18-25 years old and don’t want to look like their dad. They want to smarten up.”
The designer pointed to Harry Styles who has shifted from flamboyant on-stage outfits to pared-back tailoring and ties for his latest Together Together tour as embodying the trend. Smith, who turns 80 next month, said his younger team had dug out 80s and late 90s catwalk tailoring references from his Nottingham-based archive, which is home to more than 5,000 of his pieces.
“The suit in many people’s heads means formality or funerals or weddings,” Smith said. “A lot of what we try to do is show how it can be more relaxed so we roll the cuffs up, or pop the collar up or style the shirts untucked.” On the catwalk there were also unbuttoned waistcoats and, at times, shirts too offering a glimpse of flesh.
Smith who still works in his Albemarle Street store in London on Saturday afternoons, described his suits as “being a bit different” and having “perceived value” pointing to pad stitching that ensures the fabric curves around the body, lightweight fabrics that don’t crease easily and quirky details such as crocodile eye buttons and lapel pins riffing on everything from teaspoons to sardines.