Bottega Veneta 2018 Resort Collection

Considerations about the weather and different consumer behavior were top of mind for Bottega Veneta creative director Tomas Maier in designing the brand’s cruise collection. “It’s totally changed now. Women like to see clothes in season — when it’s cold they want a coat — and they shop in a different way compared with the past. You see it on daily store results,” said Maier during a walk-through in Milan. “They have different priorities and time is luxury number one for everyone.”

As the months progress, from the early deliveries of the cruise season in October until the later ones in December, so does the weight and colors of clothes change from, say, a ribbed turtleneck sweater in lilac worn with a suede skirt suit in a contrasting rusty color, to lighter tech duchesse skirts or a studded poplin dress with a full circle skirt fit for the festive season, for parties and “going away,” Maier opined. “The darker and shorter the days, women want something uplifting, colorful and appealing, if nature can’t give it to them.”

To wit, Maier opted for unusual combinations and variations of colors and “a bit of eccentricity,” he said, but also monochromatic designs, as in a sleeveless fuchsia dress.