Speak English with a very light Mediterranean accent, we could say. Rodrigo Bazan has Argentine origins, but has lived between the United States and Europe for many years: until 2016 he was CEO of Alexander Wang, then he moved on to the helm of Thom Browne. Two brands and companies that bear the name of their respective founders, but the similarities end there. The second has always been closely linked to Italy and the artisan culture of the textile-fashion of our country and since 2018 the brand has the Zegna group as its majority shareholder, which almost four years ago acquired 85% of Thom Browne, with the remaining 15% remained with the designer. At the time, the group was unlisted and there was no need to provide details of the deal, but analysts valued Thom Browne at over $ 500 million. Today the figure would be much higher: in 2021 revenues grew by 47% to 263 million euros, contributing significantly to the rebound of Zegna, whose total turnover in 2021 grew by 27% to 1.2 billion.
How do you explain such strong growth in 2021?
The reasons are many, but linked by a common thread, the ability of Thom, as creative director, to remain faithful and coherent to the spirit that has always inspired the collections, marked by total quality, as the Japanese would say. 2020 was also difficult for us, but at the same time it allowed us to focus even more on the details of each project, as well as on medium and long-term visions and strategies. Investing in women’s collections is an excellent example.
A few months ago the second Thom Browne store opened in Milan. There are not many brands with two boutiques in the fashion district.
The single-brand store in via Gesù will remain dedicated to men’s collections, the one in via Sant’Andrea to women. Thom Browne’s first women’s collection was presented in Paris in 2014 and hasn’t stopped growing ever since. The style recalls that of man for tailoring, the choice of fine fabrics and generally used in men’s collections and for the attention to detail, craftsmanship and of course made in Italy. On all these elements Thom sprinkles, so to speak, his inspiration and contemporary, surprising collections are born from the most classic ingredients, at times a irreverent thread. In any case, they are unique in the panorama of global luxury.