Looking for clues

Can I tell you...about Linea Pelle. Twice a year, I go with my team to Bologna, Italy to attend this trade show. Anybody who is anybody in the accessories business from all over the world ( designers, product development, production, leather tanneries, fabric mills, hardware and ornament suppliers, trend forecasters, last and heel manufacturers, etc.) all converge in Bologna for 3 days looking for clues and tendencies for the next season. The schedule for showing your collections these past few years is so accelerated that I'm usually almost done designing my collection but I go anyway to see if there is that spur of the moment material that might just get added to the collection. I'm a big believer in spontaneity. I also go to see if I'm on track as far as trends go. And yes, I'm on track if you're curious!
The show is huge and if it's your first time, it can be overwhelming.
For both of my girls it was their first time. Imagine going to an area possibly 3 or 4 times the size of the Jacob Javits Convention Center. It's a lot like walking a marathon all day. It's an exhausting show and sometimes we'll catch some people taking power naps or long siestas on benches. In the past I used to stay in Florence and wake up unGodly hours to catch the train to Bologna but these days we stay close to the fair so we can walk to and from our hotel without having to wait forever in a taxi line or hustle to get seats on the train.


Bologna has some really good restaurants that I've come to enjoy coming back to and some cool stores. L'Indie Palais has a really good resident DJ named Roberto. Everytime I go I end up buying several new CDs. He already knows what I like and reserves some for me because he knows I always drop by. Last season he event sent them to me by mail. Another one of my favorites is a men's store called Room. The owner Stefano always gives me a little discount which is almost unheard of in Italy.



It's a nice break for my team to get away from the studio and go on a field trip. We get to do some bonding, shopping, dining and finish the collection while we're at it. It's also fun bumping into friends who work for other accessories labels. It's a reunion of sorts. By the end of the trip I'm usually craving for Asian cuisine. Don't get me wrong, I love pasta but there's nothing like 'pancit' for me.
Next stop....Hong Kong.