Dizionario della moda MAM-E: Enrico Coveri

The eponymous label founded by the late Enrico Coveri, former model and stage designer in Florence is a world of bright colours, sequins and quirk. The maison is known for its clever adaptation and creative translation of a work of art in to a garment.

Origin

 Enrico Coveri born in 1952, was an Italian entrepreneur from Prato. A former model and stage designer, he founded the eponymous fashion house in Florence.

Maison Enrico Coveri’s first collection TOUCHE was presented by the enterpreneur himself in 1972 in Milan.

 

Development

Enrico introduced his creative talent which made him famous in the world of fashion and a representative of customs and taste Made in Italy. His first collection for women was organized in 1977 in Paris and brought him instant success and praise of fashion press and opinion-makers. The menswear collection soon followed in 1981. Sequins become his signature mark and the daily newspaper Le Figaro even wrote: “Sequins are to Coveri what chains are to Chanel”.

The house, which launched several collections for women, men and children, as well as a range of jeans, added cosmetics to their offer in 1981. Their first fragrance for women was launched soon after that – in 1982 under the name Paillettes (sequins), and their first fragrance for men followed in 1983, Enrico Coveri pour Homme. In Venice, at Palazzo Moretti, Coveri also threw one of the most extravagant masked balls. In 1984 the collection You Young Coveri, created for young audience, was released. One of the most important awards the creator received was the Grande Mèdaille de Vermail in 1987 in Paris. Enrico also received the title of Commendatore della Repubblica, what made him the only person ever to receive this accolade under the age of 35. In 1988, the house entered Japanese market with Itochu. And the following year in 1989, Enrico was named ‘Commendatore della Repubblica Italiana’.

The founder, passed away prematurely in 1990 and an exhibition was held in Prato in 1991 in his memory. After Enrico Coveri’s death, his sister Silvana succeeded him. She was familiar with the job, because she was in the managing personnel for a long time and assisted the designer in his work. Francesco Martini Coveri, Silvana’s son and the most talented of Enrico’s nephews, also started to be active in fashion design, by becoming Creative Director of You Young Coveri and in 1996, he was appointed the artistic director of the maison.

Enrico Coveri created costumes for ‘Il grande Gatsby’ ballet in two acts by Andre Prokovsky, at Teatro alla Scala in 2002. In 2004 for the first time in Italy a street was dedicated to a fashion designer/stylist. The street was named Piazzale Enrico Coveri in Prato. The same year Francesco Martini Coveri won the “Designer of the Year Award” in Miami. That year, he opened in Florence, inside Palazzo Coveri, an exhibition at “Galleria del Palazzo”. The space is a proposed multi-disciplinary location, a cultural reference point for the city, which offers a curious and interesting overview of the modern and contemporary art scene. In 2009 the Maison designed the official uniforms for football club Inter Milan that then famously went on to win Serie A championship, Italian Cup and UEFA Champions League. The next year, the house designed costumes for the musical ‘Cats’ directed by Saverio Marconi.

The city of Prato paid tribute to the late founder of the house in 2012, by staging at the new headquarters of the Chamber of Commerce, the COVERI STORY exhibition. From Prato to Made in Italy. An articulated exhibition itinerary in which the designer’s life and career are traced through photos that portray him with the testimonials of his collections, the images of advertising campaigns and works of art that have always inspired his concept in fashion. In 2013, Francesco Coveri received the ‘Look of the Year Award’ in Taormina (Sicily). Maison Enrico Coveri created the costumes for Lorella Cuccarini and the entire body of dance that performed in “Grease” (including clothes for Amadeus, Giampiero Ingrassia and Mal) and “La notte vola” video that was part of the album “Nemicamatissima” shown at the exhibition in the Royal Palace of Venaria “Jungle The animal imagination in fashion” in 2017.

Enrico Coveri Style

Coveri is a world full of bright colours and sequins. The elegance of the lines and shapes, the brightness of the colours, the attention given to the details and the particularity of the materials and fabrics made Enrico Coveri’s style immediately clear just after the launch of the brand’s first collection.

Always fascinated and inspired by arts, Coveri transferred in his creations a hint of his favourite painters’ style: from Matisse to Chagall or Mirò. His garments were for Coveri as canvas for these painters. Brushstrokes of colour, extreme care for the details, perfection achieved through the different materials is what dominates the Coveri style.

Finances

 In January 2015, the United Brands Company that owns some important international brands like Carrera Footwear and Sergio Tacchini, obtained the licence for the sale of footwear and clothing under the Enrico Coveri Sportswear brand.

The turnover of the company has been steady and in-fact on a growth spectrum. In 2014, the company’s turnover was around 20 million euros, in 2015 it rose to 28 million euros, in 2016 it reached about 31 million euros and last year, in 2017 it closed with 33 million euros. The company’s turnover target for 2018 and 2019 are 35 million and 41 million euros respectively.

Current Situation

 Francesco Martini Coveri remains to be the creative head of the house. Has been a versatile figure for the brand for many years now, having many interests and passions, from music to photography and cinema: he writes the soundtracks for his own shows, he’s the author of many Coveri’s advertisement campaigns as well.

Under the direction of Francesco Martini Coveri and his mother Silvana, the Coveri group has reached every part of the globe having opened shops and boutiques all over the world. Apart from the woman, man and young collection, the brand, groups together kids’ lines, accessories, jewellery, home accessories and much more.