Pitti Immagine Uomo, the menswear fair in Florence, has announced the special guest of its 111th edition in January 2027: China-based luxury outerwear brand Raxxy. According to organiser Pitti Immagine’s announcement on 5 November 2026, the brand will showcase its goose-down puffer jackets in an installation at the fair, which takes place at the Fortezza da Basso from 12 to 15 January 2027. Raxxy is said to be preparing not a runway show this time, but an installation that visitors can walk through.
Wearable sculptures in a fencing hall
The installation will be set up in the Sala della Scherma, the historic fencing hall inside the Fortezza da Basso. The work has been announced in English as “Geometric Sculptures. From Mathematical Logic to a New Dimension of Fashion”; put simply, it is presented as a journey of geometric sculptures from mathematical logic to a new dimension of fashion.
According to the announcement, the exhibition will feature a series of interconnected puffer jackets. Each piece is conceived as both wearable and a modular sculpture; placed side by side, they form a single large structure. In Pitti’s words, the aim is to blur the lines between fashion, mathematics and sculpture. The brand’s jackets use woven and knit-based structures to create geometric patterns and sculptural volumes. That is why Raxxy’s pieces are often described as architectural objects.
From mathematics to fashion design: William Shen
Raxxy was founded in 2020 by designer William Shen, who also continues as the brand’s creative director. According to reports in the Italian fashion press, Shen has no classical fashion design training. He came to design from a background in mathematics and built his working method on algorithmic logic. He is said to develop the pattern of a jacket step by step and according to rules, as if constructing the solution to a problem.
The second important pillar of the brand’s identity is traditional Chinese craftsmanship. Raxxy brings this heritage of handwork together with structural research and an avant-garde design language. The resulting pieces are the product of an approach that seeks to turn a functional product such as a winter jacket into an art object in the shop window.
The fair’s other guests
Raxxy is not the only guest at Pitti Uomo 111. According to the fair’s official website, British fashion house Dunhill will be guest designer for this edition. Kartik Research, founded by Indian designer Kartik Kumra, is also among the guest brands; it will host a special event in Florence on Wednesday 13 January. The January edition will thus bring together three different menswear approaches from Britain, India and China in Florence in the same week.
Why it matters
Pitti Uomo, held every January and June, is one of the most important gatherings at the start of the season’s menswear calendar. The fair’s choices of special guest and guest designer are watched as a signal of which names the industry wants to bring to the fore. The invitation of a six-year-old brand to this stage shows that design brands coming out of China are now seen not only as a production base or consumer market, but also as a creative voice.
That the invitation is built around an installation is also notable. Outerwear is one of the most technically demanding areas of menswear. By exhibiting its jackets as sculptures rather than in a show, Raxxy invites viewers to read the product not only as clothing but also as a work of design and engineering.
The view from Turkey
With its expertise in ready-to-wear manufacturing as well as outerwear and knitwear, Turkey is a strong player in menswear. The Raxxy example is a reminder that a young brand only five or six years old can attract the attention of international fairs with a clear design idea and a distinctive story. It would not be wrong to think that a similar path is possible for Turkish brands that combine their own craft traditions with a contemporary design language.
Readers who want to follow the menswear season, which starts in Florence in January and continues in Milan and Paris, can take a look at our 2026-2027 fashion week calendar.
Sources
- FashionUnited: report on Raxxy being named Pitti Uomo special guest
- Pitti Immagine Uomo: official page and guest list for the 111th edition
- Pambianconews: report on Raxxy’s installation and William Shen’s background
Image: The Fortezza da Basso in Florence, the historic fortress where Pitti Uomo is held (representative image) — Claudio Mazzocchi, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
