New Delhi, June 14 -- FLORENCE - The menswear season began this week not with a runway, but with a question. At the Fortezza da Basso - Florence's Medici-era fortress that houses Pitti Uomo every June - more than 720 brands spread across five exhibition halls while the fashion industry quietly asked itself whether what it was about to see reflected genuine creative conviction or the calculated spectacle of houses shoring up market position in a difficult year.

The answer, this season, may be yes to both.

Men's Fashion Month - its annual circuit of Florence for Pitti Uomo 110, Milan Fashion Week Men's from June 19 to 23, and Paris Fashion Week Men's from June 23 to 28 - is presenting Spring/Summer 2027 collections against a persistently ...