Fashion – The foreign press continues to shine the spotlight on the world of Italian fashion. While Financial Times surveys the offerings at Milan’s recent shows, emphasizing the designers’ “bid for Gen Z” (June 24 – Fashion in the flesh: real shows return to Milan*), many other articles focus on Marco Gobbetti’s transition from Burberry to its “Italian rival” Ferragamo (Reuters, June 28 – Ferragamo picks Burberry’s Gobbetti as its new chief). In five years, the executive brought the British brand to a “far better position” (New York Times, June 28 – Marco Gobbetti, Burberry’s chief executive, quits to join Ferragamo.*), attracting “younger luxury shoppers” (Financial Times, June 28 – Burberry chief Marco Gobbetti to step down after 5 years at group*) and boosting the group’s market value by a third (Reuters, June 28 – Burberry chief quits to take top job at Ferragamo).
Other lifestyle news is covered, with EssilorLuxottica competing its acquisition of the GrandVision network thanks to an $ 8.7 billion deal (Bloomberg, June 29 – Ray-Ban Owner Goes Ahead With $8.7 Billion GrandVision Deal*), and with the story of VeraLab, the Italian beauty brand that in a few years has become a $ 50 million business with a “cult following” thanks to its “being real about skin problems and aging” (Bloomberg, June 30 – Challenging Young, Thin and Perfect Ignites Beauty Brand*).
Economy – In the economic news, this week’s focus is on the collaboration “for the purposes of expansion” between Caffè Vergnano and Coca Cola HBC, as the bottler of the renowned soft drink has acquired a 30% stake in the Italian brand (Reuters, June 28 – Coca-Cola HBC to acquire 30% stake in Italy’s Caffè Vergnano; Boersen Zeitung, June 29 – Caffè Vergnano holt Coca-Cola als Partner*).
Culture – Several articles are devoted to Italian culture. El País reviews the Spanish edition of Ernesto Ferrero’s, The Best Years in our Life, a book about the “golden age of Italian literature” and of the Einaudi publishing house (June 25 – Ernesto Ferrero: “Un joven escritor no es un pollo de granja”). The Spanish daily also devotes a report to the most “legendary” buildings of Gio Ponti, “the man who laid the groundwork to allow Italian design to conquer the world” (June 27 – Los 15 edificios e interiores más legendarios de Gio Ponti, el hombre que sentó las bases para que el diseño italiano conquistara el mundo).
And while The New York Times continues to cover the exhibition the Met has dedicated to the art and history of the Medici (June 24 – For the Medici, the Last Great Picture Show*), the Lebanese daily L’Orient le jour discusses Giordano Bruno, reviewing the biography that Jacques Arnaud has devoted to the “great Dominican friar” (July 1 – Giordano Bruno, la richesse d’une pensée entre science, foi et vérité…). Textbook publishing is also covered, with Madame Le Figaro interviewing Irene Biemmi, the pedagogical researcher waging a “battle to eliminate sexist stereotypes from manuals” (June 25 – En Italie, les éditeurs de manuels scolaires suppriment les stéréotypes de genre).
Tourism – Numerous tourism-related reports include The Guardian covering the new restoration of the Colosseum, finally open to the public (June 25 – Underground tunnels of Rome’s Colosseum fully opened to public). On the sector’s post-pandemic prospects, The New York Times recounts how a “glamorous” Capri and the “quieter” Procida are preparing, “with joy and trepidation,” for the return of vacationers (June 30 – Capri and Procida: A Tale of Two Islands); the American daily also wonders about the future of tourism flows in a Rome still quite a way from its peaks of the past (June 25 – Alone in the Temporary New Ruins of Rome*). Lastly, The Wall Street Journal attempts to outline Venice’s “new normal,” between the desire for recovery and concerns over the impact of mass tourism (June 27 – Tourists Return, and Venice Wonders: How Many Are Too Many?*).
Sports – There is no shortage of reports devoted to the Azzurri and their victories at the European Football Championships. Several articles cover Italy’s making it to the quarter finals (Le Nouvel Observateur, June 26 – Euro: l’Italie arrache son quart au bout de la nuit, le Danemark épate; Die Zeit, June 27 – Grummeln, Zittern, Fingernägelkauen – Erlösung; L’Orient le Jour, June 28 – L’Italie arrache son quart au bout de la nuit), while Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung pays homage to the national team’s manager, Roberto Mancini, and to his career (June 26 – Bel Ragazzo).
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