| Angelo Galasso is a designer and entrepreneur whose career began in an apartment in Rome. As his large collars, special finishes and distinct takes on tradition spread, Angelo Galasso and the Interno 8 brand became one of the biggest names in Italian fashion. After teaming up with Flavio Briatore to create Billionaire Italian Couture, Angelo Galasso has returned with his own brand. The Montebury met with Angelo at his Knightsbridge boutique to discuss Italian confidence, the famous watch cuff and the philosophy of style. |
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Angelo GALASSO
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a PHILOSOPHY of CONFIDENCE
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The Montebury — When did you first discover that you wanted to work in fashion?
Angelo Galasso — I was very young, six years old, but I just felt that I wanted to change something. I didn’t want to keep what my father bought for me but if you dress differently when you live in a little village, everybody thinks you are a crazy man. Nobody can become more important in a little village, because everybody knows each other. So, I just stopped there. I then moved from Rome and started to make clothes only for myself. At that time, I was a banker but I discovered that I didn’t like the job. People started to ask me to make clothes for them and I then decided to open a shop. I then opened another eighty-eight shops, sold out and then came here. I built up Billionaire Italian Couture and then decided to start with my own brand. Thirty-five years in five minutes [laughs]. But, it was a little more complicated than that. |
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“ Men now want more than women, but there is not enough on offer ”
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What is the Italian attitude to clothing?
Angelo Galasso — When we live in Italy, we are really arrogant, because everybody knows everything. Every Italian person is allowed to say that they are a shirtmaker, tailor, builder etc,. we are everything. Basically, we are Latin and like to see nice things and live a ‘dolce vita’. Italian people are strong, and we have passion inside. When someone believes a lot in something, they can arrive where they want. Working in fashion in Italy is the same as working in Finance in London, there are lots of people doing the same job and it is very competitive. Therefore, you must be different, strong and have passion otherwise you are stopped very quickly.
What influenced your unique designs?
Angelo Galasso — I think it is a philosophy. In the beginning, I explained that when I was young I didn’t want to keep the boots that my father gave to me. It is about being different and changing. I started with myself. The high collars for example, it is because my neck is very thin. The high collar gave me more comfort and self-confidence, because otherwise I looked like a giraffe. Also, my father used to give me jackets with very long sleeves, and I didn’t like that, so I cut my jackets in a certain way where the shirt cuff can come out and be seen. The philosophy is about confidence and difference. |
| Angelo Galasso store in Knightsbridge, London. |
You started selling your designs from your apartment in Rome?
Angelo Galasso — I was working as a banker in Rome and it started with one colleague. He asked if I could make a shirt for him like the one I had made for myself. He then asked for shoes etc. More people started to ask me and I thought that it would be good to take the time to do it properly. In the beginning, I didn’t open a shop but I arranged for fifteen women to go around to professional people who worked a lot and organize meetings. They would take their measurements and then deliver the clothes, which were all made to measure. The business expanded and then I opened my first shop.
Why did you go to work for a merchant bank in the first place?
Angelo Galasso — Because I needed money. Sometimes you can’t only chase passion.
Your designs have a big celebrity following. Why are celebrities so important for fashion?
 Angelo Galasso — I think it is about being different. Everybody wants to feel different, but the majority of us are still normal people. When you start to speak about celebrities, they want to be really different. They feel that they are the best, so they really need to become different. Normally, all the stars want something completely different from the classic, traditional style. The Italian style is very traditional, so it is unusual to find something from Italy that is not traditional. I have been in England for ten years and I want to do what people want. I create the product for London.
What is so different about Italian fashion?
Angelo Galasso — It is absolutely for the weather. When I go back to Italy, it is normal to put on something that is more colourful. Everyday is sunny, even if it is cold. The idea for my shirt cuffs that accommodate the watch came from Gianni Agnelli, the former Fiat president. He used to put his watch on top of the cuff. In Italy he was seen as an icon. If Agnelli put his glasses on his head, all Italian people would start to put their glasses on their head. But, it was interesting for me because I didn’t understand why we didn’t create things that were very fashionable but at the same time very practical. People spend a fortune on watches and yet the watch is always under the cuff. They buy them to show them off, so let’s show them off. So, I originally created the watch cuff, which became very famous, for the Italian people. |
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How did you first get involved with Billionaire Italian Couture?
Angelo Galasso — Flavio Briatore started off as a customer of mine. We then decided that there was a niche opportunity for a company like Billionaire Italian Couture. The current collection in Billionaire Italian Couture is my last collection. The partnership I had with Flavio split and I started my own brand. I had to decide whether I wanted my name attached to Billionaire Italian Couture or if I wanted my own name above the shop.
 What do you aim to achieve in the future?
Angelo Galasso — For that, you have to ask my mother. [laughs] We plan to open fifty shops worldwide in all the major cities, with the same aim of made to measure and bespoke. People want to change and don’t want to stay in traditional wear, they want to revisit their wardrobe.
Do you think men have become more traditional?
Angelo Galasso — No. Men now want more than women, but there is not enough on offer. I see more men in the spa than I do women. I started with bespoke twenty five years ago when nobody was doing it. Now, everybody is doing it. I was one of the first, because people look at you in a different way. |
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“ People spend a fortune on watches and yet the watch is always under the cuff ”
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— February 2010
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