Zegna bets on US market as Italian menswear seeks growth beyond Europe

Zegna, the Italian menswear house based in the Lombard foothills, will stage a significant runway presentation in Los Angeles on Friday, according to the Business of Fashion. The move reflects a broader strategy among luxury brands — Dior, Gucci, Louis Vuitton and others have similarly shifted focus toward the US market — as the sector contends with a prolonged slowdown in Europe and Asia.

The US remains a bright spot for luxury consumption, and Zegna's decision to mount a major show there signals confidence in American demand for high-end menswear. The label has performed relatively well in recent quarters, making it a relative outlier in a sector-wide downturn that has pressured competitors and reshaped spending patterns among wealthy consumers.

For Lombardy, Zegna's expansion strategy underscores a wider reality: Milan-based fashion and luxury firms are increasingly dependent on North American markets to offset weakness elsewhere. The region's fashion and design industries, which form a cornerstone of its global reputation, face headwinds that make geographic diversification essential to maintaining growth.