Last Wednesday, Ciro Paone, founder and president of Italian clothing brand Kiton, died at the age of 88 at his home in Naples, ending his farewell ceremony on October 29.
Born in Naples in 1933, Ciro Paone's family has been in the fabric business for generations, Ciro Paone himself founded the Kiton brand in 1968 (Ciro Paone's own company of the same name was founded in 1956), originally a small workshop of 40 tailors, and kiton is now the world's top ready-to-wear and custom clothing brand.
Kiton's official Instagram pays tribute to what Ciro Paone once said
The name "Kiton" comes from "chiton", which is the clothing of the ancient Greeks, which embodies the admiration for nature (the ancient Greek clothing style itself has also had a huge impact on modern clothing and clothing brands), and Kiton is the condensation of Ciro Paone's handmade clothing and pursuit of quality, which also makes Kiton one of the best men's wear brands on the market (although the brand also has a women's clothing line, but men's clothing has established the brand's current position).
Kiton currently operates in 73 countries and territories, but has only 54 stores in total (and not many in mainland China). The company employs 800 people (more than 55% are tailors and craftsmen) and has 5 factories all in Italy. Because of the emphasis on full handmade clothing, Kiton's production is not high and labor-intensive, coupled with Kiton's exclusive alpaca and cashmere and other fabrics, which makes Kiton products really expensive.
Many of Kiton's fabrics are exclusively available
Although more often, when people talk about Italian menswear, it is easier to mention Zegna or Armani, and the "real luxury" such as Brioni, Kiton, and CANALI belong to a niche group, but this may not be a problem in Ciro Paone's view, for more than 50 years Kiton insisted on creating clothing in the traditional Italian manufacturing way, and only a few people can own and appreciate Kiton's products and brand insistence.
Ciro Paone's seriousness about his identity as a "tailor" is also reflected in the fact that in 2000 he launched a tailoring school program dedicated to training the next generation of tailors and craftsmen (although the enrollment is global, the school mainly gives priority to local 16- and 21-year-old students in Naples). The program continues to this day, with eventual students staying at Kiton or going to other clothing companies – a program that goes beyond commercial companies and more of a tradition for Italy.
Ciro Paone was awarded the Order of the Knights of labor of the Italian Republic (Cavaliere del Lavoro). And in Ciro Paone's own words, "The thing I'm most proud of is finding decency for the tailoring industry." ”