While everyone’s aware of the tailoring history in Italy, there are a few youth-orientated brands emerging from the area. One such brand is Camo, recently nominated for Pitti Uomo’s ‘Who Is On Next?’ award.
Based in the Biella region of North Western Italy, Camo was founded by Stefano Ughetti in 2007. The brand name is short for camouflage, with Ughetti stating that the brand “is all about choosing materials that carry a specific aim and purpose, ‘camouflaging’ us”.
Ughetti’s own background is primarily in home design, having attending Vaglio Rubens technical institute and working for interior design companies Arazzo snc and Viceversa Edizioni Design Spa. It was only after this experience that he moved into menswear, stating in an interview with DDN Free that it gave him a ‘knowledge of the aesthetic, technical and administrative’ aspects of design.
Like a fair few brands featured here, Camo was originally placed as a streetwear brand - although this was always an incongruent description of the brand. Their springboard collection was the autumn/winter 2009 ‘Waves’ collection, which saw them introduced to a large number of blogs and risk-taking stores, including the likes of Swedish menswear boutique Caliroots.
They also benefitted from some fortunate product placement, with one of the jumpers making an appearance on seminal street style blog The Sartorialist. It was this initial attention that led to them being stocked in the likes of Topman’s premium brands section, eventually moving away from the streetwear label they’d been tagged with.
They make all of their clothes in Italy, with the clothes being produced in Piedmont, Lombardy and the Aosta Valley respectively. In an interview with Style Salvage, Ughetti said that “it’s very very difficult to find local fabrics & manufacturers and once I found [them], it is difficult convincing them to work for you! After doing that the road was much easier to follow.”
DDN Free also asked Ughetti about his approach to the ongoing recession, to which he answered “I think the crisis is an opportunity and that is also a time when people gather to reflect. That does not necessarily mean they will buy only cheaper, but give more attention something that lasts more than one season. That’s why a high quality, durable and fashionable product is worthwhile.”
