MILAN – Stylish, bucolic, cinematic are all adjectives befitting the long-lasting Vespa scooter, however dad or mum firm Piaggio Group is now betting that there’s extra to their distinctive two-wheel model to be leveraged.
Catapulted to world fame by Audrey Hepburn using on the again of Gregory Peck’s scooter within the 1953 iconic film “Roman Vacation,” Vespa is plotting a way of life push, which by the way begins from a vogue assortment.
Referred to as “The Empty Area,” the life-style mission “was born out of totally acknowledging that Vespa just isn’t solely a mobility model however a way of life one,” stated Davide Zanolini, government vp of selling and communication of Piaggio Group, in an interview.
“On the opposite finish we’ve got noticed and mirrored on at this time’s youth, on how the ‘Uber technology’ is veering away from conventional mobility and makes use of public transports, Uber or Lyft to maneuver round. It triggered us to suppose how Vespa might be their life buddy by way of different means than a automobile,” he stated.
Zanolini described the brand new platform as a hotbed for experimentation — and for risk-taking — an “empty area that we need to fill with experiences and adventures that aren’t associated to mobility whereas considerably partaking with it.”
The Vespa Summer season Edit marketing campaign by Johnny Dufort.
Johnny Dufort/Courtesy of Vespa
“We don’t need to set boundaries. Let’s simply say that Vespa is moving into ‘self-expression’,” he added. “Vespa is undoubtedly acknowledged globally as an emblem of Made in Italy. The danger related to this notion is to be stereotyped and banalized. Quite the opposite, Vespa has all the time been perceived as modern and completely relaxed within the current,” he contended.
The primary chapter debuting Wednesday includes a collection of Vespa-branded vogue items, together with denims, bomber jackets bearing the signature V emblem, tracksuits, tank tops and even a pantsuit with drawstring pants. Referred to as “Summer season Edit,” it consists of males’s and girls’s items, gadgets labeled as genderless, which have been photographed by British photographer Johnny Dufort in an irreverent marketing campaign that includes horses.
Vespa had orchestrated collaborations within the vogue area earlier than, linking up with Emporio Armani in 2016; sneaker guru Sean Wotherspoon in 2020, and Dior in 2021. Zanolini highlighted that different collaborations have included Walt Disney final 12 months and Justin Bieber in 2022, signaling Vespa’s legitimacy throughout a number of industries.
“We’re not aiming to change into a vogue model; this business doesn’t want a brand new model to be increasing its footprints. We simply need vogue to be one of many languages we use to telegraph our world,” he stated. “It’s about tapping into a brand new viewers,” he added.
“We all know it’s not going to be straightforward, however we additionally know that thousands and thousands of individuals have loved Vespa and we’re assured we will make individuals benefit from the model by way of completely different views, too,” Zanolini stated.
As vogue is the primary of many adjoining life-style industries Vespa is tapping into, the model recruited an skilled group of designers to again the inventive studio, who’re in ongoing conversations with moped designers. “We’ve to construct a credibility on this area… to change into a well-known model on this section, too,” Zanolini acknowledged.
The Vespa Summer season Edit marketing campaign by Johnny Dufort.
Johnny Dufort/Courtesy of Vespa
The prevailing Vespa merchandising assortment for two-wheel fanatics will stay in place and proceed to be distributed by way of the normal community of moped sellers.
The brand new lifestyle-leaning vogue line, quite the opposite, is hitting “The Empty Area” web site on Wednesday with costs starting from 90 euros for silk bandanas to 2,900 euros for lambskin outerwear. Zanolini stated that wholesale operations are being assessed and put in place.
Marking the brand new division’s debut and additional reinforcing its experiential element, Vespa is debuting “By The Sea,” a takeover of a seashore resort in Paraggi, in Italy’s seaside area of Liguria.