INTERVIEW
Surrey’s Premier Lifestyle Magazine
Watch word for style
Menswear designer Angelo Galasso is a creative force, once hidden in the world of banking, a force which may never have seen the light of day as Andrew Peters discovered when he met up with the fashion icon.
Angelo Galasso
In 2014 ‘The Godfather of Italian style’ was a description attributed to Angelo Galasso by GQ magazine. From humble beginnings to international recognition and success, Angelo is the complete antithesis of the perceptions some would associate with an Italian Godfather. His warm and friendly persona greeted me in his Knightsbridge store on a very cold and dreary winter’s day. He laughed as I asked him what he was doing in London on such a day, answering: “I love London, it’s my home and has been very good to me.”
As with many things in life, Angelo’s chosen path may never have happened, as growing up in southern Italy his parents wanted him to have a secure future. They pushed him to work in one of the professions: law, finance, or medicine. Sure enough, he ended up in banking where his creative spirit remained mostly hidden, coming to light after his father’s death. Only then did Angelo feel able to pursue his true calling and what he regarded as a game soon turned into a passion.
Q Angelo, you began customising your clothes at a young age. What was the reason for doing this and did it help to develop your sense of design and style?
A I was born in Francavilla Fontana in Puglia. To keep me off the streets when I was a growing lad, my parents used to take me to the workshops of a number of local tailors and artisans. In an age without mobile phones, I could be found easily. So I began to absorb the two characteristic elements of my land: tradition and a spirit of observation. These experiences gave me a talent for transforming tradition into innovative, creating bespoke suits that make whoever wears them truly unique.
Q How would you define style?
A I have a classic style with a vision to the future.
Q Your ethos is tradition in evolution. Can you explain this?
A I envisage tradition in evolution as a new breed of man enjoying a service that reinvents the tradition of classic tailoring – steeped in Italian craftsmanship and the unbridled creativity of the couture house, reviving a world of exclusive and unique garments with just one client in mind.
As with many things in life, Angelo’s chosen path may never have happened, as growing up in southern Italy his parents wanted him to have a secure future. They pushed him to work in one of the professions: law, finance, or medicine. Sure enough, he ended up in banking where his creative spirit remained mostly hidden, coming to light after his father’s death. Only then did Angelo feel able to pursue his true calling and what he regarded as a game soon turned into a passion.
Q Angelo, you began customising your clothes at a young age. What was the reason for doing this and did it help to develop your sense of design and style?
A I was born in Francavilla Fontana in Puglia. To keep me off the streets when I was a growing lad, my parents used to take me to the workshops of a number of local tailors and artisans. In an age without mobile phones, I could be found easily. So I began to absorb the two characteristic elements of my land: tradition and a spirit of observation. These experiences gave me a talent for transforming tradition into innovative, creating bespoke suits that make whoever wears them truly unique.
Q How would you define style?
A I have a classic style with a vision to the future.
Q Your ethos is tradition in evolution. Can you explain this?
A I envisage tradition in evolution as a new breed of man enjoying a service that reinvents the tradition of classic tailoring – steeped in Italian craftsmanship and the unbridled creativity of the couture house, reviving a world of exclusive and unique garments with just one client in mind.
Angelo pictured with guests at the launch of his Spring Summer 17 collection Photo copyright Marek Borysiewicz
Profile: Angelo Galasso
In the beginning, it was a game, then it became a passion, now it is fashion. These few, short sentences capture how Angelo Galasso, born in Francavilla Fontana, in the Puglia region of Italy, has achieved international success thanks to his unique style.Growing up in a typical large middle class Italian family, Angelo’s father encouraged him to make friends with local artisans, where he became familiar with fabrics, colours, shapes, and proportions. It was then Angelo understood the immense value of these trades, passed down generation after generation. Those artisans helped him to find the way to express himself through a unique and personal style, breaking the rules of fashion.
He moved to Rome with his family, where he soon developed a completely new style, and in 1990 launched Interno 8, a groundbreaking shirt collection that rewrote the rules of traditional tailoring. By the mid 1990s, Interno 8 had become a phenomenal success, with 80 stores across Italy.
It was at this time Angelo created the exclusive Polso Orologio (watch cuff) shirt, inspired by former Fiat president, Gianni Agnelli. Angelo’s creation was showcased at the Design Museum in London, leading the Financial Times to dub him ‘The Da Vinci of Shirts’.
In 2000, Angelo’s desire to explore new horizons led him to London. Another successful choice, as demonstrated by high-profile clients such as Al Pacino, Sir Paul McCartney, Roger Moore, David Beckham, P. Diddy, Michael Caine, Simon and Yasmin Le Bon, Rod Stewart, Beyoncé and Jay-Z.
His innate curiosity – which the creative director had been nurturing ever since the old days in the town workshops – made Angelo understand the market was expecting something new. In 2005, he launched the brand Billionaire Italian Couture. This innovative and original concept allowed him to open boutiques worldwide and establish himself as one of the most talented designers on the international fashion scene.
In 2009, The ANGELO GALASSO brand opened its first House in Knightsbridge with a collection that rewrote the codes of men’s style with subtle yet radical innovations, once reserved for the world of women’s haute couture.
The Milan House opened in 2011, soon followed by the New York House in 2012 in the Edwardian room at The Plaza Hotel. Shortly afterwards, ANGELO GALASSO expanded to Moscow and, that same year, the Angelo Galasso Foundation was launched in collaboration with the Moscow State Historical Museum.
In 2013, Angelo was voted, for the second year running, one of Britain’s Best Dressed Men by GQ, and in Spring 2013 he launched Unico, the exclusive made-to-measure service that meets every modern gentleman’s requirement.
Q What was your first fashion venture?
A When I was fourteen years old, in the city where I was born. There I customised clothing from neighbouring companies. My first venture was myself.
Q Is everything you produce Fatto in Italia?
A Tutto fatto Italia! It would be impossible for me to create my menswear, from the smallest detail to the very best high-end, in another place. Italians are the only ones with the history and the hand to do it.
Q What was the inspiration behind your groundbreaking Polso Orologio (watch cuff) shirt in the 90s?
A Gianni Agnelli, former Fiat owner, was forced to wear his watch over his shirt cuff due to an allergy. My shirt combined elegant style with practicality and it was born naturally.
Q Were you surprised the shirt was regarded as a work of art when it was exhibited at the Design Museum in London in 2004?
A Yes, I was very surprised. My son visited the museum with his school and told me that my shirt was there. It was a big surprise and I’m really proud.
Q What did this particular shirt design do for you as a menswear designer?
A It created a sort of trademark for me along with the philosophy that my menswear was classic, but with a nod to the future.
Q How did you react to the Financial Times naming you in 2002 ‘The Da Vinci of Shirts’?
A I think there are no words to explain such a great compliment. With a parallel like that I leave my reaction to your imagination.
A When I was fourteen years old, in the city where I was born. There I customised clothing from neighbouring companies. My first venture was myself.
Q Is everything you produce Fatto in Italia?
A Tutto fatto Italia! It would be impossible for me to create my menswear, from the smallest detail to the very best high-end, in another place. Italians are the only ones with the history and the hand to do it.
Q What was the inspiration behind your groundbreaking Polso Orologio (watch cuff) shirt in the 90s?
A Gianni Agnelli, former Fiat owner, was forced to wear his watch over his shirt cuff due to an allergy. My shirt combined elegant style with practicality and it was born naturally.
Q Were you surprised the shirt was regarded as a work of art when it was exhibited at the Design Museum in London in 2004?
A Yes, I was very surprised. My son visited the museum with his school and told me that my shirt was there. It was a big surprise and I’m really proud.
Q What did this particular shirt design do for you as a menswear designer?
A It created a sort of trademark for me along with the philosophy that my menswear was classic, but with a nod to the future.
Q How did you react to the Financial Times naming you in 2002 ‘The Da Vinci of Shirts’?
A I think there are no words to explain such a great compliment. With a parallel like that I leave my reaction to your imagination.
Q When did you come to London and why?
A I came to London because it is a modern city, it is where the miniskirt was born. Here there is the freedom to do everything:
I needed to make the brand international.
Q If you didn’t live in London, where would you live?
A If we are speaking about a city, I would say London, and after that London again, and if I have to say a third name, I would say London again. If we are talking about a location for a holiday, I would say Toscana or Caraibi, or maybe Formentera, not Ibiza. If not, it’s another London.
Q How do you decide what to wear?
A From my mood, I’m always positive, even if I live in a cloudy city. I am extravagant, but always with a particular piece: perhaps the shoes or the glasses... As the famous Italian actor Vittorio Gassman said: “You can just have one extravagant piece, more is not classy.”
Q You created your own watch range. What was the reason for this?
A I love design, and I love all that is crafted from zero. From my watches to the glasses, I try to design everything.
Q Menswear fashion is continuing to show steady growth. What lies in the future for you?
A I think my collections give great support and a boost to male fashion. Many others appear to follow my designs and thanks to that new generations look for more extravagant and glamorous pieces, as with women’s fashion.
Q If you weren’t a menswear designer, what would you be?
A Probably an architect, I like to design and everything is about building.
Q What three words would you say sum up your fashion house?
A Solidifiers of thoughts. Sometimes you want to create, but you don’t dare, but when you dream, you give shape to the thoughts. So I have solidified the thoughts of others.
A I came to London because it is a modern city, it is where the miniskirt was born. Here there is the freedom to do everything:
I needed to make the brand international.
Q If you didn’t live in London, where would you live?
A If we are speaking about a city, I would say London, and after that London again, and if I have to say a third name, I would say London again. If we are talking about a location for a holiday, I would say Toscana or Caraibi, or maybe Formentera, not Ibiza. If not, it’s another London.
Q How do you decide what to wear?
A From my mood, I’m always positive, even if I live in a cloudy city. I am extravagant, but always with a particular piece: perhaps the shoes or the glasses... As the famous Italian actor Vittorio Gassman said: “You can just have one extravagant piece, more is not classy.”
Q You created your own watch range. What was the reason for this?
A I love design, and I love all that is crafted from zero. From my watches to the glasses, I try to design everything.
Q Menswear fashion is continuing to show steady growth. What lies in the future for you?
A I think my collections give great support and a boost to male fashion. Many others appear to follow my designs and thanks to that new generations look for more extravagant and glamorous pieces, as with women’s fashion.
Q If you weren’t a menswear designer, what would you be?
A Probably an architect, I like to design and everything is about building.
Q What three words would you say sum up your fashion house?
A Solidifiers of thoughts. Sometimes you want to create, but you don’t dare, but when you dream, you give shape to the thoughts. So I have solidified the thoughts of others.
essence info
Website: www.angelogalasso.comAngelo Galasso Stores
Las Vegas: The Venetian, The Palazzo Resort Hotel Casino, 3355 Las Vegas Boulevard South, Las Vegas, NV 89109
London: 8-10 Hans Road, London SW3 1RX T
Telephone: +44 (0)207 584 3978
Milan: Via Montenapoleone 21/A, 20121 Milan
Telephone: +39 02 255 466 33
Moscow: Bolshaya Dmitrovka 20/1,107021 Moscow
Telephone: +7 495 650 4517
“Angelo is one of the most important innovators of his generation.”
Sir Roger Moore