In the market of second lines, many have been sacrificed. Instead, Emporio Armani and Miu Miu were able to resist and have demonstrated themselves to be capable of evolving into brands with a proper stylistic and commercial autonomy. Nowadays, they are no longer simple derivations, but can be considered as recognized protagonists of the fashion system. Exactly as perfectly oiled machines. Sometimes, two out of a thousand make it. They were actually able to do so
di Domenico Casoria e Massimiliano Viti
Miu Miu, at the peak of style
From being a younger sister to becoming the favourite child, Miu Miu isn’t just the less exclusive derivation of Prada. Rebellious and unconventional, nonconformist and irreverent, it was founded in 1993 from the mind of Miuccia Prada, who was apparently inspired by the rebellious girls she met in the streets during the 1978 movements. A brand sewed onto her own skin, so much so that it recalls the nickname she was given when she was a child. During the years the youngest of the family has been able to successfully reinvent itself without betraying its specifically elusive and multidimensional nature.
With the aim of relying on retro-style collections, with sometimes a certain punk flavour, between the bourgeois bon ton and teenage irony, clearly distant from the conventional codes. Nowadays, Miu Miu isn’t a brand that settles for simply trying to follow trends: it anticipates and twists them, by treating them with a much more personal approach. The styling, work by Lotta Volkova, represents the true creative battlefield: a game of contrasts in which a Victorian shirt can coexist with a leather miniskirt. But what today has affirmed itself as an accomplished brand, in 1993 was born as a second line. A second line capable of building its own language.
Actually, it is precisely the styling that turned Miu Miu into a protagonist of a new way of perceiving fashion: no longer total look, but visual narratives that are built brick by brick. It is no coincidence that the brand has climbed Lyst’s rankings, establishing itself among the most globally researched and desired brands. It is thanks to a vision which is not limited to the product, but that aims to its specific transformation into a brand new language. Without even considering the fact that Miu Miu’s revenue has reached over 1,2 billion dollars during 2024. A goal destined to be overcome this year. So, an absolute protagonist that holds the power to dictate the rhythm of contemporary fashion. Miu Miu doesn’t live anymore in the shadow of Prada (maybe it never did): it earned its own space, audience and, most importantly, its tone.
The Emporio Armani experiment
“Emporio Armani was founded in 1981, definitely ahead of its time. I’ve imagined this line as a way of experimenting, by capturing new trends and proposing a democratic fashion. Emporio is a brand strictly attached to contemporaneity” said Giorgio Armani in a GQ interview, back in 2021. The brand still currently belongs to a restricted group of second lines which have been able to survive. In addition to Emporio Armani, the most youthful and accessible, and that now has complete independence, inside the Armani group there are other second lines such as Armani Exchange, a trademark registered in 1991 that proposes a modern design and takes inspiration from the urban-chic style and the streetwear culture. Its target audience is represented by individuals between 16 and 26 years old.
And, since 2004, there is EA7, specialized in sportswear and leisurewear. For 35 years, from 1981 to 2016 , there was even Armani Jeans, which was later incorporated into Armani Exchange. And Armani Junior (1982-2018), the line whose target was between 3 months and 16 years of age, that lastly merged into Emporio Armani. Giorgio Armani has been a true king in terms of management of diffusion lines, and this has earned him a long-lasting success, especially where most of the fashion and luxury companies ultimately failed. Why? Because he managed to precisely and carefully avoid overlappings, both in aesthetic and distributive terms. Every second line didn’t exist simply as a “younger sister” of the main brand, with lowest prices as a distinctive trait, but they’ve always had a defined identity and own-brand stores.
The customers of the diffusion line
The group has maintained a strict and direct control on the brand’s image, avoiding the licensing and, as a consequence, avoiding possible trademark dilution issues. Then, simultaneously, this approach aimed at granting an aesthetic coherence among the various lines. At last, even if it isn’t a negligible aspect, Armani’s diffusion lines have always been extremely capable of intercepting and conveying the specific needs of the market. Like in the 1980s, when the “paninari” and the yuppies gathered in Piazza San Babila in Milan, near the first Emporio Armani store, which was located in Via Durini. The customers of diffusion lines were, and are, young people, sports enthusiasts and, much more generally, price-conscious consumers who wanted, at the same time, to be able to belong to the Armani universe.
Photos Miu Miu and Emporio Armani
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