Bal Harbour

CO U R T E S Y O F B R U N E L LO C U C I N E L L I Camilla, 41, the eldest, has been at the company for 20 years, and is the co-head and creative director of womenswear collections. Camilla is too shy to brag about the accomplishments of her tenure: for instance, the consistency of her collections helped position the brand at the epi- center of quiet luxury's rise. Luckily, her sister, Carolina, 32, the brand's co-president and co-creative director, is happy to do it for her—having had a front-row seat during her own 14 years at the brand. She praises Camilla's ability to invent even within the brand's stringent guidelines. "Imagine having to create a new collection of a thousand pieces every year, knowing that no matter what you create, it has to adhere to a light color palette, rely solely on clean lines, and never flash a logo," Carolina says. "It's not easy. Our collections have to resonate around the world." What Brunello Cucinelli looks like season to season is just a part of the larger question the sisters must answer as the second generation. Because how exactly does one innovate within a house founded on preserving traditional ways of work, no matter the cost? How does one find ways to evolve without compromising the high, self-imposed stan- dards of a brand synonymous with that hardwon excellence? For Camilla, the answer has been to throw herself into fieldwork. So when she and her sister are not working with the team in Solomeo (the Italian hamlet where she was raised, and which Brunello has transformed with his business and largesse), they are on the road—traveling the world to professionally people-watch. "We enjoy the research part of the job very much," Camilla says, "We travel very willingly any where: In Asia, we visit Korea and Japan in order to research what is worn on the street. The same goes for Europe and the United States. In America, women's clothing is unlike what you find in any other market. We try to take inspiration from the world, and then we bring the idea here, and try to make it Cucinelli." In other words, the Cucinelli sisters must master every tongue without losing their accent. A strong narrative is an essential ingredient in the Cucinelli recipe for success. And not surprisingly, the brand wields language with the same precision and eye for detail evident in its textile production. Storytelling is the first thing you'll encounter on their website. In the world of Brunello Cucinelli, shopping takes a back seat to education. If you are going to invest in products and the brand's lifestyle, they want you to know why. It is ultimately the brand's story that converts onlookers into devotees. Each piece of Brunello Cucinelli is a fraction of a larger ethos of fighting against global e˜ciency's panoptic greed with human excellence. It is Camilla and Carolina's job to e™ectively bring this narrative to its future clientele, on all the new platforms they will frequent. The story of Brunello Cucinelli in 2023 was one of growth. In a year t hat ma ny ot her lu x ur y bra nds slumped a nd st umbled, Br unel lo Cucinelli triumphed: The brand ended 2023 with a record 1.14 billion euros in revenue, surpassing its 1-billion euro sales target five years ahead of schedule. They are expanding their footprint with the founda- tion of a new workshop, 75 craftsmen strong, and with plans to employ up to about 350 specia list cra f tspeople, in Penne, a sma ll town in Abruzzo known for the supremacy of its tailors. IN THE WORLD OF BRUNELLO CUCINELLI, SHOPPING TAKES A BACK SEAT TO EDUCATION. IF YOU ARE GOING TO INVEST IN PRODUCTS AND THE BRAND'S LIFESTYLE, THEY WANT YOU TO KNOW WHY. The picturesque town of Solomeo, in the Umbria region of Italy, has been the longtime home—and heart—of Brunello Cucinelli. The Church of Saint Bartholomew in Solomeo 168 BAL HARBOUR

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