Simone Rocha takes centre stage in Florence with debut menswear show

Simone Rocha closed Pitti Uomo, the menswear fair in Florence that acts as a curtain raiser to the season, with her first standalone menswear runway show. The Dublin-born designer took over Teatro della Pergola, a 17th-century opera house in the heart of the city, considered the oldest in Italy, to unveil her spring-summer 2027 collection. Rocha follows in the footsteps of Giorgio Armani, Raf Simons  and fellow London-based designers Martine Rose and S.S Daley in the prestigious guest designer slot at the Florentine event. “What’s exciting about this” she revealed backstage “ has been showing another part of my world, they are connected but [the Simone Rocha man] stands on his own two feet”

For her debut menswear show Rocha took inspiration from her host city, using references from E.M Forster’s novel A Room With A View, famously set in Florence, marrying it with her instantly recognisable dark-feminine aesthetic. The audience were seated both in the auditorium and around the periphery of the stage – the raised curtain uniting backstage and front of house as a whole. “I wanted to bring people onto the stage so the spotlight is on us but we’re in a more undone space” Rocha explained. 

The show opened with a black tailored double-breasted short suit that riffed on a black-tie tuxedo subverted through Rocha’s lens, worn with a halterneck waistcoat and no shirt. “The interesting thing about menswear is the codes and the details and how I carve out space for myself in this,” she said after the show, explaining that the tailored pieces were “broken down in my own way”. Kilt shapes were integrated into a pleated short and carved out the back into an apron. Backstage, Rocha said there was no muse for the show – it was a collection of character studies including “the painter,” and “the performer,” who wore aprons edged in broderie anglaise or rendered in tulle. 

Models carried bouquets of locally grown cornflowers – a theme throughout the collection that took inspiration from the Merchant Ivory adaptation of E.M Forster’s novel. The blue blooms, a symbol of Italian romance and nature, appear throughout the film and similarly became a token of this collection, appearing as fresh bunches strapped to leather Gladstone bags, hand-beaded onto ties and abstract versions manipulated into pockets on voluminous navy satin sportswear bomber jackets. The influence of the film’s Oscar-winning Edwardian-style costumes by Jenny Beaven and John Bright was evident in the ribbon trimmed chemise tops, lace detail organza tanks and the cotton bloomer shorts. Elsewhere rugby jerseys provided a pop of colour in royal purple and red ruffled-ribbon stripes. Shorts were abundant in satin, gingham and leather. Rocha first showed a handful of menswear looks as part of her S/S23 collection, having soft-launched the concept in 2021 as part of her sell-out designer collaboration with H&M. This outing confirmed her status as an established name on the scene. 

Additionally during Pitti Uomo: South Korean designer Jiyong Kim, who was an LVMH semi-finalist in 2024, showed his SS27 collection at Fortezza da Basso, a 16th-century fort, the historic home of the menswear fair. Japanese designer Kei Ninomiya unveiled his punk-inspired DSM collection – the first label under the Dover Street Market banner. Copenhagen-based brand Sunflower, founded by Ulrik Pedersen, marked the 20th anniversary of Copenhagen Fashion Week and Pitti Immagine’s long-standing commitment to Nordic design with a show at Maggio Musicale Fiorentino. Titled No Soundtrack, the show featured a live improvised performance by Danish musicians August Rosenbaum and Jakob Littauer. The clothes drew inspiration from Rolling Stones’ Keith Richards, including neat cropped leather jackets alongside double denim, flowing silk shirts in pink and bluebell, and cowboy boots – the brand’s first foray into footwear.