appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

hooksArticlePageFloatingButtonConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Jacqueline Tsang

When the No_Code project launched in 2018, Tod’s fans were surprised at the unconventional direction the luxury brand seemed to be taking. The project reached out to innovative talents and visionaries in a move to bring its consumers a different take on luxury: the blending of technology and craftsmanship. 
In an exclusive interview with STYLE, the brand’s men’s collection “Visionary” Michele Lupi tells us about his own hybrid take on luxury having embraced both the media and brand perspectives, why exactly No_Code resonates with today’s consumer, and what exactly Elon Musk has to do with it. 
Menswear tips for mild weather


 











 View this post on Instagram























A post shared by Tod’s No_Code (@todsno_code)



You’ve been with Tod’s for more than two years now as its men’s collections Visionary. What does the word “visionary” mean to you and how have you accomplished that with Tod’s? 
First, the title “Visionary” was a way to make a difference and surprise those who were waiting to understand why a newspaper editor was joining Tod’s. At the beginning, Diego Della Valle called me and said, “I’d like to give you a romantic title”, and so he did. Now my main task is to develop cultural projects for the positioning of the brand: being a company known worldwide for its craftsmanship and for developing handmade products, my task is also to investigate what kind of relationship we can have with technology.
Bottega Veneta’s Salon 01 collection


 











 View this post on Instagram























A post shared by Tod’s No_Code (@todsno_code)



You came from a media and publishing background, having worked on the Italian edition of Rolling Stone, GQ Italia, Icon and Flair, to name a few. How has that experience shaped the way you work on the fashion and luxury side?
Primarily, there is Diego Della Valle’s awareness that companies like Tod’s are all turning into media companies that produce content. The thing that strikes me is this: so many journalists are worried about their future, because they don’t know yet how much demand there will be in the years to come for people who can create high quality content. Companies are the media of the future. But then the ethical question of freedom of the press has to be understood.
Hermès unveils signature men’s fragrance H24


 











 View this post on Instagram























A post shared by Tod’s No_Code (@todsno_code)



Your father is Italo Lupi, the famous architect and designer. Your accomplishments are undoubtedly your own, but would you say that the artistic and design backdrop to your childhood influenced you or shaped your interests in any way? 
Good question. Absolutely. When I was editing newspapers, I was perfectly aware of what advantage I had absorbed, even involuntarily, from having grown up in a world that allowed me to have an artistic and aesthetic sensitivity. And above all, it allowed me to travel a lot as a child. The most important inheritance, however, is perhaps being curious: a person, if he is very curious, ages more slowly than others, because curiosity allows him to always discover and adapt to new things, and this keeps you in step with the times. To be open to others, to be curious. That’s it. I think curiosity is everything in a man, but you must be careful: it can get you into trouble!
Milan Fashion Week 2021, wrapped
How would you describe the philosophy and ethos of No_Code to the modern consumer?


 











 View this post on Instagram























A post shared by Tod’s No_Code (@todsno_code)



“Hybrid” is the word that sums it all up: if until a few years ago “analogue” defined the old world and “digital” the new one, now things have changed. Everything will soon come down to the balance that can be struck between analogue and digital, and perhaps we really are entering a post-digital era. The analogue no longer has something to do with nostalgia, but only with passions and life. 
Prada reimagines cold weather wear for autumn/winter 2021
What was the inspiration behind the No_Code Silicon Valley Book Project? How does it embody the No_Code spirit and speak to today’s luxury consumers?
The word “hybrid” comes back here: with the No_Code project we are questioning the relationship between craftsmanship and technology. Silicon Valley has a similar DNA, a “hybrid” character, because it is the result of the fusion between the Californian hippy counterculture of the 60s and 70s, and the world of technology. 

When we noticed this similarity, we were immediately curious to find out what the real Silicon Valley was: where do they live? How do they dress, what cars do they drive? We know very little about Silicon Valley.
How Dior gave fairy tales a feminist rewrite for Paris Fashion Week
Why did you choose Silicon Valley in particular? Why not somewhere in Italy, perhaps, or even Seoul or Shanghai, if tech and modernity were the focus?


 











 View this post on Instagram























A post shared by Tod’s No_Code (@todsno_code)



Precisely because of this “hybrid” character I described above. We didn’t want a place that was only technological. We were looking for something that could represent the hybrid society of the future, that could help us understand the changes taking place. 


 











 View this post on Instagram























A post shared by Tod’s No_Code (@todsno_code)



Of course, in this case we cannot avoid thinking of Seoul or Shanghai, but we will get there: Tod’s No_Code project is a serious and long project. Silicon Valley is an idea as well as a place. Everyone has a piece of Silicon Valley in their pocket, thanks to smartphones. Silicon Valley is now a global reality.
5 times Elon Musk proved he’s the world’s biggest eccentric
In your opinion, what are some famous names that truly exemplify the No_Code spirit?
The Asian man par excellence can only be our designer Yong Bae-seok, who is originally from Seoul and has an industrial/car design background.


 











 View this post on Instagram























A post shared by Michele Lupi (@michelelupi)



As for the Western name, Elon Musk immediately comes to mind, because he says intelligent and very unconventional things.
Want more stories like this? Sign up here. Follow STYLE on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter. 


How to Style like Off Campus star Belmont Cameli, with Brunello Cucinelli and Cartier

How Chinese first lady Peng Liyuan is a symbol of China’s fashion soft power

Milan Fashion Week: Fendi and Jil Sander spring/summer 2027 bring sheer glamour and distorted tailoring

Style Edit: De Beers Group CEO Al Cook on natural diamonds, Desert hues and traceable luxury

Fashion

Exclusive: Tod’s ‘Visionary’ Michele Lupi on why Elon Musk exemplifies the spirit of the brand’s No_Code shoe collection, and why ‘Silicon Valley is now a global reality’

Michele Lupi and Tod’s No_Code sneakers. Photo: @michelelupi, @todsno_code/Instagram

Silicon Valley is a fusion of the Californian hippy counterculture and the world of technology, according to Lupi. Photo: Tod’s

What celebrities are onto the NFT art trend? Twitter’s Jack Dorsey sold his first tweet for millions and Tesla CEO Elon Musk nearly auctioned a techno song – his girlfriend Grimes has already made millions, after all

Rob Gronkowski, Lindsay Lohan, and Mark Cuban are all riding the NFT train. Photos: @gronk/Instagram, @guypewsey; @marc_oconnell/Twitter

NFL player Rob Gronkowski is just one of many celebrities getting into crypto art. Photo: Reuters

Tesla CEO Elon Musk. Photo: Austin American-Statesman/TNS

Singer Shawn Mendes. Photo: ABC/AFP 

Best of K-pop fashion: BTS served seven stellar Louis Vuitton looks at the Grammys while Blackpink’s Rosé flaunted a Saint Laurent mini dress for On the Ground shows

Stylish stars: Son Ye-jin, Jun Ji-hyun and Rosé. Photos: Alexander McQueen, @maisonvalentino; @roses_are_rosie/Instagram

Son Ye-jin, Valentino Di.va. Photo: @maisonvalentino/Instagram

Jun Ji-hyun for Alexander McQueen’s spring/summer 2021 collection. Photo: Alexander McQueen

BTS in Louis Vuitton at the Grammys. Photo: @louisvuitton/Instagram

Rosé for her solo stage On the Ground. Photo: @roses_are_rosie/Instagram

Daft Punk at the Louvre: Louis Vuitton closed Paris Fashion Week with a virtual runway show of its art-inspired, futuristic autumn/winter 2021 collection

Due to Covid-19, Louis Vuitton opted for a virtual show for Paris Fashion Week, held at the Louvre Museum on March 10, 2021. Photo: Louis Vuitton

A model presents a creation from Louis Vuitton’s autumn/winter 2021 collection at Paris Fashion Week on March 10, 2021. Photo: Louis Vuitton

Beeple’s US$69 million NFT art sale: what brands can learn about pricing luxury goods beyond all expectations from this once-in-a-lifetime Christie’s auction

Beeple’s NFT artwork Everydays: The First 5000 Days recently sold for an incredible US$69 million in an online Christie’s auction after an initial listing of US$1,000 – what can we learn from this unprecedented art sale? Photo: Reuters

Beeple’s Everydays: The First 5,000 Days sold for US$69.4 million in an online auction on March 11, positioning the artist among the top three most valuable living artists, Christie’s said via Twitter. Photo: Christies via AP

A detail shot from Beeple’s Everydays: the First 5000 Days digital collage. Photo: Reuters

Another detail shot from Beeple’s Everydays: the First 5000 Days digital collage. Photo: Reuters

A multicolour limited edition Nigel Peake Hermès sold at auction in 2019. Photo: Sotheby’s

David Hockney’s Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures) is the most expensive artwork ever sold by a living artist, for US$90 million – this work was displayed in Hong Kong a year later, in 2019. Photo: Simon Song

Is this blinged-out Sony PlayStation 5 really worth US$2 million? Russian luxury brand Caviar’s Golden Rock version, launched for Lunar New Year, is a true objet d’art

Caviar’s “Golden Rock” PlayStation 5. Photo: PlayStation

Caviar’s PlayStation 5. Photo: PlayStation

Magazines

Style

Luxury


Under the direction of Italian journalist-turned-Tod’s-Visionary Michele Lupi, the No_Code concept has shown the world a new side to the luxury fashion brand 
Tod’s chairman Diego Della Valle opted to give Lupi a ‘romantic’ title when he joined the company, and he’s been merging technology and craftsmanship ever since



Tod’s men’s collection ‘Visionary’ Michele Lupi tells STYLE why we may be now be entering a post-digital era, and why his curiosity has kept him young
