MAX MARA

Max Mara is an Italian fashion house owned by the private company Max Mara Fashion Group, headquartered in Reggio Emilia, Italy. The company specializes in the design, production, and sale of women's clothing, particularly outerwear, and has become a global benchmark. Founded in 1951 by Achille Maramotti in Reggio Emilia, the fashion house began under the name Confezioni Maramotti with the goal of introducing American industrial processes into the European tailoring culture, thus creating Italian prêt-à-porter. In 1957, the company expanded and moved to a new headquarters designed by industrial architect Eugenio Salvarani, changing its name to Max Mara: "Max" as a superlative, and "Mara" as a diminutive of the founder's surname. Achille Maramotti chose the men's coat as an iconic piece for the women's wardrobe, and in the 1960s, Max Mara established its creative studio to research modes of expression and customization for outerwear. In the 1970s and 1980s, international designers such as Anne-Marie Beretta, Emmanuelle Khanh, Karl Lagerfeld, Jean-Charles de Castelbajac, Narciso Rodriguez, Proenza Schouler, as well as fashion photographers like Richard Avedon, Arthur Elgort, Steven Meisel, Sarah Moon, Max Vadukul, Mario Sorrenti, David Sims, and Craig McDean, began collaborating with Max Mara. During the same years, Max Mara produced the Manuela coat, made of pure camel hair with a lapel collar and side pockets, featuring a wrap closure and belt, which is now recognized as a signature outerwear piece of the fashion house. In 1981, French designer Anne-Marie Beretta designed the 101801 coat, the camel-colored wool and cashmere outerwear piece that identifies the Max Mara brand, inspired by the men's Ulster coat. The "puntino," a stitch from men's tailored suits, is the most noticeable feature of the model. In 2012, Max Mara received the "Brand Heritage Award" from the international association "Fashion Group International" during the “FGI’s 29th Annual Night. In 2013, the brand presented the Teddy Bear coat on the Autumn/Winter runway, made of alpaca wool and silk with a fur effect, inspiring a series of imitations. In 2015, the brand collaborated with the Renzo Piano Building Workshop to create the Whitney Bag on the occasion of the opening of the new Whitney Museum of American Art in New York's Meatpacking District. With a wide range of clothing, accessories, bags, and footwear, Max Mara offers elegant and timeless style options for modern women.