Before Succession’s wardrobe put Loro Piana on everyone’s lips as the banner of discreet luxury – that’s what the style of the 1% of the population that doesn’t use logos to show their wealth but wears things that don’t you can afford the remaining 99%-; before Bernard Arnault acquired 80% of the house through LVMH for two billion euros in 2013 (he would buy another 5% later, although Pier Luigi Loro Piana holds the position of vice president), the firm made a jacket for the Italian Olympic equestrian team that participated in Barcelona 92.
Until then (it was officially founded in 1924 by Pietro Loro Piana, but its origins date back to 1812, the date of a document signed by Giacomo Loro Piana) it only made exquisite fabrics for other brands. After the success of that sports garment (today a cult piece in the vintage market) he began to develop the range of products that has made him famous with these materials: sweaters, coats and tailoring with simple, practical and functional designs that they hang labels that can exceed the barrier of 7,000 euros.
The prices, unaffordable for the majority, contrast with a way of doing things that is as simple to explain as it is complicated to imitate. As an example, the case of the very fine vicuña wool. Close relatives of llamas and alpacas, these mammals inhabit regions of the Andes at altitudes above 4,000 meters. In order to produce their fur, in addition to two years, they need to live in freedom on at least one hectare of land. As captive breeding is not possible, poaching proliferated for decades, until in the 1970s the Peruvian government was forced to ban the fiber trade to safeguard the species.
Twenty years later, the country found in Loro Piana the ideal partner to reintroduce it to the market and encourage shepherds to raise animals instead of slaughtering them in search of a quick profit. The brand established a nature reserve, collaborated with local shearers and created a sustainable production system decades before sustainability became a topic of conversation.
The same preservation principle applies to Cashmere and Baby Cashmere (instead of shearing, the fiber is obtained by combing the goats when the weather conditions in Mongolia and northern China soften in May) and their other material. most precious cousin, merino wool from Australia and New Zealand named The Gift of Kings®.
Loro Piana’s determination for the extraordinary has led the house to create its first fully traceable products with a digital system certified by the Aura Blockchain Consortium. Through a QR, customers can discover the entire manufacturing process of the garment, from the farm to the store, and record the time of purchase.
Transparency, essential to approach the ideal of circular fashion, is not a common issue in the universe of luxury, sustained in part by the mystique of secrets. For a firm to share its own, from the origin of the raw material to the manufacturing process, is as rare as coming across a house that is so determined to be at the forefront of the industry and not to submit to its rules (among other things, Loro Piana does not have the figure of a creative director).
For bank account holders who do not collect astronomical figures, there is a principle of the fashion market that is difficult to assimilate: in the decision to purchase luxury products, the price is not decisive. What is important is the brand’s ability to strike a chord with its customer. Few do it with the touch of Loro Piana.
