Thrilling them softly
Famed for its fine cashmere, Italian brand Loro Piana will stop at nothing to provide woollen well-being to its jet set clientele
There's cashmere and then there's Loro Piana cashmere - at least, that's what aficionados of the soft stuff will tell you. Known for its knitwear and high-grade wools, the Italian label has become a byword for luxurious chic, sourcing fine fibres from Peru, Australia, New Zealand and Mongolia for its men's, women's and homeware lines.
When we catch up with Pier Luigi, Loro Piana's chief executive and deputy chairman, in Hong Kong, he has nothing but praise for the city. "We opened our first Asian store here. It was a bit of a trial; I was worried the climate would be too hot for our products," he says. But Hong Kong is a very international place and everybody travels. It's fabulous ... you never finish discovering its potential."
Today, the brand has 16 stores in greater China, five of which are in Hong Kong, and there are plans to expand.
"The climate in China is similar to Italy's so the product is well-perceived. Chinese consumers have cashmere in their DNA."
Cashmere is integral to Loro Piana's DNA. "It's probably one of the oldest textile companies in Italy, it was started in 1812," he explains. "We were one of several families to produce textiles at that time, before the actual brand Loro Piana was founded in 1924. My father took the chairmanship in 1936. My brother and I are the sixth generation doing this."