MILAN — Moncler Genius is decamping to Shanghai next October.
The brand said Wednesday it has earmarked Oct. 19 to unveil its next round of collaborations, securing a slot at Shanghai Fashion Week, which kicks off on Oct. 9.
Describing the Chinese city and showcase as “the natural scene for an extraordinary celebration of ideas,” Moncler Genius was billed as “a pioneering platform for creativity, reshaping the traditional collaboration model.”
“The concept, that has captured imaginations and fostered cross-pollination from some of the greatest minds across different industries, continues to provide new ways of sharing creativity with the world,” the company said in a statement.
Moncler did not disclose the venue of the Genius event in Shanghai nor the collaborators’ names.
In 2023 the brand hosted its annual Genius format in London under “The Art of Genius” moniker linking with nine collaborators including Alicia Keys, Pharrell Williams, Mercedes-Benz, Palm Angels, Frgmt, Adidas Originals, Salehe Bembury, Roc Nation and Rick Owens.
The brainchild of Moncler chairman and chief executive officer Remo Ruffini, Moncler Genius was introduced in 2018 and has drawn a wide roster of designers and creatives over the years including Richard Quinn and Matthew Williams of 1017 Alyx 9SM; Pierpaolo Piccioli; Simone Rocha; Craig Green; Fragment Hiroshi Fujiwara; Palm Angels’ Francesco Ragazzi, and Jonathan Anderson, as well as Rick Owens with a partnership in a different vein than other Genius tie-ups.
The company has held one Genius event a year since 2018, with the exception of 2022, usually in February, inviting designers to interpret the brand’s signature puffers with their own sensibility.
In 2021, the brand added a new layer to the experience by presenting its collections in September through a digital activation across five cities — New York, Milan, Shanghai, Tokyo and Seoul — and through the vision of 11 designers, in a single show hosted by 15-time Grammy Award winner Keys.
In 2022 the Genius event was temporarily put on hold as the company marked its 70th anniversary, kicking off a 70-day program of global celebrations with a performance in Milan’s landmark Piazza del Duomo at the tail end of the city’s fashion week in September.
With its most recent roving iterations, in London last year and now Shanghai, the company is confirming renewed ambitions for project, which is flanked by the Moncler and Grenoble lines, the latter hinged on ski clothing and technical outerwear.