Simone Rocha is set to present her first standalone menswear runway at Pitti Uomo this week in Florence. The designer, who began showing menswear in 2022, said she now feels ready for it to stand alone. Pitti Uomo opens its trade-focused menswear season mid-June.
Rocha told Vogue’s Luke Leitch in March that her menswear had previously been tied to womenswear collections. “Now I feel ready for it to stand on its own and be its own proposition,” she said.
Pitti Uomo has invited guest designers since the 1990s to stage shows alongside its exhibitions. Lapo Cianchi, the event’s director of communications and events, noted in 2022 that the shows help distinguish Pitti from a standard trade fair.
Past guest designers include Raf Simons, Vivienne Westwood, Maison Margiela, Dries Van Noten and Yohji Yamamoto. This season’s lineup also features Kei Ninomiya of Dover Street Market and Jiyong Kim.
