Titled ‘Always Bonded’, the label’s SS25 show blended traditionalist tailoring with haute craftsmanship—setting a cleaner slate.
IT’S A big moment for Marine Serre. The ready-to-wear line she launched on a whim years ago is arguably one of the most influential brands in its category, spawning imitations up market and down. Surfing on its success, she’s getting into the menswear business by serving up a sartorial luxury affair combined with glamorous femininity and the golden age of Italian cinema.
Blending craftsmanship and Haute Couture sophistication with a tribute to local savoir-faire, it’s safe to say that fit and fabric have always been paramount for Serre. Part of her secret has been returning to the same cuts (read: body-hugging) and motifs (read: moons) season after season; slow expansion, rather than innovation for innovation’s sake, is her motto.
So there was a lot here that looked familiar, but it’s not a bad thing. As the guest designer of Pitti Uomo 106, what felt new in this show were dramatic couture crinolines, paired with a finely-sculpted top adorned with vintage jewellery, followed by two impeccably tailored black men’s suits and a majestic cocktail dress, featuring a contrasting lilac jersey hood drapery and tan mesh patchwork, embodying a classier spirit than her previous outings.
They jibed more with Serre’s own personal style than anything she’s crafted to date, but on the other hand, clothes had a safe audacity that somehow flattened excitement and overall expectations.
This season, Serre switched up her colours and took proportion play to a flirty edge: a camel version of the airbrushed leather total look heralds a new chapter in this journey through vibrant silhouettes, reviving hallmark materials of the brand like upcycled tartan scarves and cotton tote bags; elsewhere, signature silk scarves were ingeniously twisted and encased in mesh fabric.
Regenerated denim is also reimagined, traversing to the Far West with leather embellishments and culminating in exquisite couture offerings. There was no shortage of other novel fabrics either. Serre worked with regenerated textiles, which make their debut with cotton-padded comfort poplin pieces crafted from up-cycled tennis bags, which led to some chic new configurations.
The designer has a good handle on her brand vibe and versatility and seems poised for further growth. The question is: After going full-on with moon motifs and now restraint tailoring, which is the direction to go? It’d be great to see how she’d evolve menswear—but she’s not in a rush and wants to do things her own way, which has worked pretty darn well for her so far.
by Chidozie Obasi