“The womenswear we showcased at last month’s event was inspired by a rather discontent debutante,” explained Simone Rocha. “We included a selection of menswear pieces—about 10 in total—but what you see here represents the complete collection. It serves as a counterpart, almost like the romantic interest of the woman. I aimed to evoke the same essence, naïveté, and a touch of ironic sophistication.”
This vision materialized in the form of a gabardine trench and a shorter jacket crafted from the same fabric, featuring a sashed detail designed for a young man preparing to present flowers at a girl’s house on prom night. The transparent jackets, often adorned with floral patterns, were intended to imitate the wrapping of an inexpensive bouquet. Rocha’s teenage dance theme provided a playful twist on traditional Irish and British school uniform elements: standout pieces included PE shorts and ruffle-trimmed cotton-collared rugby shirts made from taffeta, some embellished with pressed-flower decorations, along with more shorts and reimagined tailoring in coated cotton.
A poplin shirt was accented with broderie anglaise frills resembling the material of a bag featured in the womenswear collection, with many menswear items showcasing similar decorative elements as their womenswear counterparts. “I wanted both categories to interact,” Rocha emphasized, and they certainly did: One could picture this boy sharing a kiss with that girl at the bus stop on their way home, reminiscing about nights spent listening to The Cure on vinyl while journaling. Yet, in her absence, he appeared to embody an overly performative masculinity: a flamboyant Simone de Beauvoir-reading admirer of Simone Rocha, partial to vintage point-and-shoot cameras and activism.
A broader perspective was offered through pieces Rocha described as influenced by her Hong Kong background. These were workwear-inspired garments in undyed denim, washed indigo, and a delightfully saccharine pink silk-satin quilt that, while less prominent in this show-focused lookbook, held substantial appeal on the hanger. Drawing inspiration from the uniforms of HK postal workers, the innovative arrangement of pockets, patches, and rivets on their strikingly belted high-hem jackets brought a refreshing twist to the familiar workwear genre. The jeans featured decorative carpenter loops without the typical brush pockets, rendering them distinctively unique.
Rocha has long since shed her status as a debutante in this field. We’ve been witnessing these collections evolving over several seasons now, both in showrooms and as curated side-stories during the womenswear showcases. Before long, we can expect her charming menswear to unveil its very own, standout runway prom. Andiamo!
