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INTRODUCING SUNNEI The Italian brand thriving on playfulness
Milan-based fashion brand Sunnei refreshes the international design landscape with clever runway concepts, witty slogans, and vibrant colours. Its rapid rise proves that not taking yourself too seriously is exactly what fashion needs today.
By Julia Carevic
22 March 2024 · 3 min read
Rules in fashion are overrated, and Sunnei agrees, with one exception: always expect the unexpected. In 2020, the Italian fashion brand created a video of 3D animated characters dressed in its SS21 collection, dancing the ‘Macarena’. For its AW23 show, the brand’s team modelled the collection and, one by one, walked down the runway before turning their backs to the audience and jumping off the stage to crowd surf. Half a year later, for the SS24 show, the audience was given scoring paddles to judge the looks. Critics who voted with one or zero points ended up in a video captioned ‘You thought we weren’t watching’ on the brand’s Instagram account shortly after.
DRESS THE SUNNEI WAY
Needless to say, Loris Messina and Simone Rizzo, who founded Sunnei in 2015 without any previous training in fashion design, know how to create memorable moments. However, the performances never take the centre stage. Instead, they remain a supporting act, shining the spotlight on well-crafted, contemporary collections and helping to shape a brand that breathes creativity.
Messina’s and Rizzo’s approach to fashion is one of playfulness with a dash of irony, which permeates all areas of the brand, from the humorous runway and social media concepts to the garments and the styling. But don’t confuse playfulness with kitsch; you won’t find puffy sleeves or expansive tulle pieces within Sunnei’s collections. Instead, the brand keeps it simple and translates playfulness into refined details, oversized silhouettes, bold colour-blocking stripes, and witty slogans, best seen within the ‘I Hate Fashion’ long sleeve (an internet favourite), block striped polo shirts, alien-like, studded 1000CHIODIi shoes, and ‘Everyday I wear Sunnei’ tees.
For its SS24 collection, now landing on Zalando, the brand explores different shapes, going from extra tight to oversized, see-through knitwear, cutouts, colourful prints, and, of course, its signature pattern stripes. The latter can be seen on jeans cuffs, classic shirts and tees, and the renowned MAGLIAUNITA polo shirts. Elsewhere, garments feature multi-coloured prints of hands holding a heart with an arrow, a reinterpretation of an old-school pop motif.
All featured pieces are easy to wear, yet leave room for experimentation and having fun, which is another layer of Sunnei’s refreshing approach. Through the styling, seen from runway shows and lookbooks to social media, Sunnei encourages the wearer to dismiss every rule they’ve ever heard about putting together an outfit. The brand is big on proportion play and matching contrasting garments. Oversized shirts and hoodies are paired with baggy pants and tight skirts, colours and patterns clash, and midi dresses and shorts are worn over pants.
MIX AND MATCH
Statement pieces become staples in a collection designed to be remixed according to your mood.
MIX AND MATCH
Statement pieces become staples in a collection designed to be remixed according to your mood.
FRESH SUNNEI FAVOURITES
It’s play without pomp, via wearable pieces that'll slip easily into regular rotation.
FRESH SUNNEI FAVOURITES
It’s play without pomp, via wearable pieces that'll slip easily into regular rotation.
Rizzo and Messina take pride in not taking themselves too seriously, which comes off as a bold move when your brand is based in a fashion capital like Milan, where everything involving fashion is indeed taken very seriously. But it’s also one of the main reasons for the brand’s rapid rise and ongoing success. You may never know what's going to happen next in the world of Sunnei — for example, models walking down a runway to a soundtrack that captured what were supposedly their thoughts, which, BTW, happened at the brand’s most recent AW24 show — but you can always count on it involving fun collections and experiences that will make you smile.
Explore the brand
Founded in 2015, Milan-based brand Sunnei is known for its unconventional and playful approach to fashion.STORIES, SERVED FRESH
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