Pitti Uomo was held in Italy, January 10 to 13, 2023. This edition featured 789 exhibitors compared to nearly 1,200 in 2019, but the mood was still optimistic.

This men’s wear show remains the benchmark for trade shows thanks to its striving for excellence, the selection it offers to buyers, and the balance it strikes between established labels and new names. This is the only trade show that was held again as soon as the pandemic ended, first online, then physically.

Russian and Chinese visitors were still missing, but there was a strong buyer presence from Europe, Southeast Asia and the US. Italy remains one of Europe’s leading fashion countries.

Italian men’swear revenues in 2022 were up 20 per cent over 2021 and also higher than the revenue generated in 2019. Growth was fostered by average price increases, but also and primarily by exports, which recorded double-digit increases across the board, even if there remain issues with Russia and China.

Between January 2022 and September 2022, Italian ready-to-wear sales to the US jumped by 70 per cent, those to South Korea by 40 per cent, to France and Austria by 31 per cent, to Spain by 29 per cent and to Germany by 24 per cent.