pinko

PINKO

PINKO is an Italian family run brand, founded in Fidenza in 1986 by Pietro Negra and his wife Cristina Rubini, who were later flanked by their daughters Cecilia and Caterina. The company, which re-defines the idea of femininity and addresses to an independent and aware of her sensuality woman, gives also attention to sustainability.

ReImagine PINKO
ReImagine PINKO.

Index

  1. PINKO
  2. The origins of the brand
  3. The development of PINKO
  4. Collections and stores
  5. Green and ethical philosophy
  6. PINKO x Treedom: the commitment for environment
  7. The appointment of Patrick McDowell
  8. Projects of growth and listing in Stock Market

PINKO

PINKO originally used to propose an ‘instant fashion’, which means to release flash collections each week, to meet the demands of a continually evolving market. Towards the end of the ’80s, the company directed its strategy along new lines, by introducing the concept of ’semi-planned fashion‘ and a new distribution formula that saw the take-off of PINKO franchising, due to the creation of a distinctive global image and to the presenza in multi brand stores.

Barbara Palvin Pinko SS 2018
Barbara Palvin, PINKO, SS 2018.

The origins of the brand

PINKO, founded in 1986 by Pietro Negra and Cristina Rubini, is a contemporary fashion brand characterized by distinctly Italian features, such as quality and creative savoir-faire. In the best Italian tradition, the daughters of the couple, Cecilia and Caterina, joined the family company and managed, respectively, the communication and the Creative Direction. Attention to modernity, technological innovation, spirit of participation and a global sensibility to style are the elements that shaped the brand’s worldwide success over the years.

Caterina Negra
Caterina Negra.

The development of PINKO

PINKO relies on research and the quality of Italian craftsmanship to create original and extraordinary collections, which also are easy to wear and which includes very elaborate, but accessible, products. Its style was developed thank to many teams of fashion designers, which collaborated under a central supervision: the brand, indeed, recognize in variety one of the main features of present world, so it decided to valorize it both in its creations and in the business management.

naomi Pinko
Naomi Campbell for PINKO.

During the years, PINKO created a determined, feminine, happy and interested in world woman; this model was shaped also thanks to models and photographs who collaborated, such as Alessandra Ambrosio, Naomi Campbell, Elle Macpherson, Carmen Kass, Eva Herzigova, Terry Richardson and Steven Klein.

Collections and stores

During the years, special projects and capsule collections have been developed. They prove a dynamic and attentive to world approach and resulted by the collaboration of fashion designers among the most famous in the international scenes, such as Mark Fast (February 2011), Alessandra Facchinetti (for the Uniqueness Project in September 2012) and Marina Spadafora (who, in February 2013, curated the PINKO Bag project for Ethiopia).

Another capsule collection was developed in collaboration with Coca Cola for 2017 Spring/Summer: the collection, influenced by streetstyle, included sweatshirts and T-shirts in the iconic colors of Coca Cola and three new versions of PINKO Love Bag.

Pinko X Coca Cola
PINKO x Coca Cola.

Green and ethical philosophy

The new headquarters of PINKO, built in 2008, was designed following the idea of ​​a ‘green factory’: characterized by over than 3,500 square meters of hanging gardens and a glass and steel structure that ensures efficient use of lighting and perfect thermal balance, the building is a welcoming environment, where plastic waste is reduced by using of water dispensers.

The company also promotes ecological mobility, by installing in his parking areas charging stations for electric vehicles. PINKO also decided not to produce any more fur garments starting from the Fall-Winter 2016 collection.

PINKO x Treedom: the commitment for environment

In 2018 the brand collaborated with Treedom, a website which allows his customers to plant a tree just by a click, in order to create its own forest: the project includes 10.000 mango, banana, macadamia, African cherry and avocado trees to be planted in Kenya.

The initiative, which also support people living in the areas of tree planting, was promoted by the launch of an exclusive T-shirt realize in biological cotton and sold in a sustainable packaging which encouraged customers to act for change, thanks to captivating slogans.

The founder Pietro Negra, talking about the project, said that the initiative was only the first step toward a wider project by PINKO: a set of relevant social values for young generations, an action plan respectful toward environment and socially responsible.

The appointment of Patrick McDowell

In 2021 Patrick McDowell was appointed new Sustainability Director reflects an additional realization of ho the brand wants to walk to the future: the Re-Imagine projects was an excellent starting point. McDowell accessed to archives and retrieved old fabrics and materials, use in precedent collections, to create something entirely new, without modifying the codes of the brand.

Re-Imagine PINKO

Projects of growth and listing in Stock Market

The COVID-19 pandemic impressed a change in the way of the company, whose turnover passed from 213 millions (in 2019) to 242 millions (2021), registering a trend comparable to big luxury brands’ one. This result allowed PINKO to plan an important growth in the future: the aim is to reach a turnover of 330 million euros in 2023 and a turnover of 500 million euros in 2026. In the long-term, also listing in Stock Market is a solution, which, nowadays, is thought in terms of minority shares: a shareholding of 20/25 %, indeed, would make easier to reach the purposes of 2026.

In order to support the economic growth, the brand decided to reconsider its organization, by strengthening accessories and shoes. So it decided to create a true leather industry, which is today lacking but which is needed, due to the fact that bags represents a third of the complessive earnings. Concerning shoes, instead, a joint venture with Eli Group, company specialized in shoes production and distribution referring to Eccellenze Italiane, was signed: as a result, PINKO Shoes was born, a new company shared by PINKO (51 %) and Eli Group (49 %) and managed by CEO Maurizio Croceri.

Pinko ended 2022 with 28.5 million euros in revenue (up 18% from 2021), and 58 million euros in EBITDA.

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Contacts

Website

Strada Comunale per Fornio 132, 43036, Fidenza (PR), Italy

To read the item in Italian click here.