MILAN, Italy — Marni has renewed its partnership with Swedish outerwear specialist Stutterheim for a second season, following a successful first Autumn/Winter 2017 collection.

"When we first started, for us the inspiration was to merge industrial techniques from Stutterheim with Marni's outrageousness in colour and shape," says Marni creative director Francesco Risso, who succeeded Marni founder Consuelo Castiglioni in October 2016. "[This new] collection allows us to explore new possibilities with shape, colour or pattern bringing us in a vortex of fun, where eccentricity and practicality are completely joined together."

Marni's cocoon-hooded overcoat has been reinterpreted in the six-piece collection: it's the first time Stutterheim has adopted a new shape (previous collaborations with the rapper Jay Z and French photographer Garance Doré stayed true to Stutterheim's signature, boxy cut). Available from December, the three men's versions include yellow and green jackets with contrasting stripes, while the women's coats have a more feminine a-line fit with drawstrings and pockets. Prices range between $790 and $990 — significantly more expensive than Stutterheim's own signature Stockholm coat, which retails for $295.

Marni x Stuterheim Spring/Summer 2018 | Source: Courtesy

“It wasn’t like we took a classic Marni piece and made it in rubberised cotton,” says Alexander Stutterheim, who founded his namesake outerwear label in 2010 and that is now available in over 1,000 retailers worldwide. The contrasting hues and graphic elements found in the first collection reappear, but colours are bolder and more styles have been added this season. “It’s been an equal exchange of ideas and a way to move the aesthetics of both brands ahead while having respect for each other’s heritage.”

Increasingly, luxury labels are looking to the rainwear experts to produce waterproof coats that perform: Mackintosh manufactures raincoats for both Céline and Vetements. The Marni x Stutterheim collection is produced in the same vein and it is a smart business move as, by 2022, the waterproof breathable textiles market is set to reach $2.2 billion in revenue, up 5.1 percent CAGR between 2015 and 2022, according to Global Market Insights.

For Stutterheim collaborating with an established fashion house is part of a strategy to expand the brand’s reach into the luxury sector and harness the interest of new consumers that might not otherwise know the brand. “That’s my ambition. I want to make us more interesting to reach high-end retailers,” says Stutterheim. “The [luxury] audience is very interesting to us."

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