Ivan Carvalho is walking me through a crowded room the Fortezza da Basso in Florence, Italy, and pointing out everything from small-batch sunglasses by Poente to leather bags by Ideal & Co. “The grandfather had a tannery in central Portugal,” Carvalho explains. “It’s vegetable-tanned leather; there’s no chemical dyes in the tanning process. They can do a lot of personalization.”

If someone asked you to rattle off a list of global fashion centers, Portugal probably wouldn’t immediately jump to mind. But maybe it should. Because while the country doesn’t boast the roster of labels enjoyed by the western world’s big four cities (Paris, Milan, London, and New York), it does enjoy a deep well of talent and heritage when it comes to craftsmanship. And now, a new breed of relatively young labels is rising up to bridge the gap between making for someone else and making a name for Portuguese fashion.

A bag by Ideal & Co. Astra Marina Cabras

An especially potent combination of technical know-how and fresh perspectives is exactly why the Iberian nation deserves a spot on you radar—and why it was chosen for the spotlight at Pitti Uomo this January. “A lot of these companies that you see here are companies that, for two or three generations, were already producing fabrics or footwear for other brands,” says Carvalho, who put together Pitti Uomo's Guest Nation Portugal showcase.



That tendency towards smaller, specialized production is one of the things that makes Portugal appealing not just for big brands looking for a respite from multi-thousand unit orders in the far east, but customers looking for something a little different. “They have a tradition and they have magnificent skills in crafting,” says Lapo Cianchi, the director of communications for Pitti Imagine, the company that runs Pitti Uomo.

A cross-sectioned boot from Labuta. Astra Marina Cabras

“But we discovered the possibility of new creativity as well. So we wanted to pick up some young brands that, in our opinion, are able to better express this new wave of Portuguese fashion. Maybe they could be considered a sort of avant garde for the flourishing of real fashion from Portugal.”

The question, then, isn’t, “Why Portugal?”—we know the answer: The people make some damn good clothes, shoes, and accessories—but, “Why now?” And maybe even then, it’s less about a specific moment and more about the world finally taking notice. João Xavier is the commercial director for Labuta, a brand that prides itself on handmade quality and Portuguese craftsmanship. When I ask him about this particular moment in his—and his compatriots’—profession, he’s a little perplexed.



More boots by Labuta. Astra Marina Cabras

“I don’t have a particular explanation for why we started doing this now,” he says. “We actually started three, four years ago, so it’s not brand new.” But, he explains, it’s less about when each particular company started investing not just in making for others but for itself. Portuguese fashion has, it seems, hit critical mass. “It’s not just us. There are other people doing good things, with heritage and feeling. That’s the thing.”

Jonathan Evans Jonathan Evans is the style director of Esquire, covering all things fashion, grooming, accessories, and, of course, sneakers.

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