Philipp Plein delivered another fashion extravaganza this season.
The German designer installed a boxing ring in the middle of the former Versace theater in Milan’s Piazza Vetra, where two heavyweight boxers went at it throughout the show. It opened with a live performance by hip-hop legend Snoop Dogg, who also entertained guests at the show’s after party.
The production wasn’t the only thing that smacked of opulence. Backstage beforehand, Plein boasted that he had spent nearly 1 million euros, or about $1.16 million at current exchange, to manufacture the collection. Considering the materials on display, that figure is credible: in a crescendo of luxury, he worked leather, shearling, fur, lizard, python skins and tons of crocodile for a lineup that summarized Plein’s eccentric take on streetwear.
“This is something nobody has done before,” he said, referring to how he used upscale materials for casual pieces, including hockey shirts, trucker pants, bombers and parkas, mainly worked in a color palette of black and white, sometimes interrupted by pops of military green and burgundy. To highlight the street connotation of the lineup, the models came accessorized with knee pads and helmets, including a horned and studded one.
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The over-the-top collection definitely targets a very specific type of bold, big spender but perfectly reflected Plein’s fashion and business vision — a man who likes to define himself as “a money machine.”