Pitti Uomo Sees Fall In British Buyers

The number of British and Irish buyers at Pitti Uomo in Florence dipped last week as some casualwear retailers chose to make Bread & Butter in Berlin the only stop on their European show calendar.

The lower turnout was also linked to a strike by Italian air traffic controllers on Thursday, the first day of Pitti, which caused the cancellation of many flights.

The number of British buyers fell by 12.4 per cent to 869 from 993 last January. Irish attendance dropped from 118 to 82, according to organizer Pitti imagine. Overall there were 2,137 visitors, an increase of 0.4 per cent.

Menswear retailers happy to see the back of a tough 2003 were disappointed to find no strong trends for autumn 04. Although there was a move to more luxury and design detail at the top end of the market, for better-end retailers and for casualwear buyers there was little new to inspire them or their consumers.