White Milano, the contemporary trade show taking place from September 19 to 22, 2024, hosts the creations from South America, protagonists of the Latin American Fashion Awards, a global platform founded by fashion visionaries Constanza Etro and Silvia Argüello. After their victory at the inaugural contest in 2023, this year’s designers are focusing on expanding their businesses and promoting their brands on an international scale. White dedicates a special space to these creatives, allowing them to present their unique and original visions to a broad audience of industry professionals. The winners selected to showcase their work at White are Verdi (Craft Project of the Year, from Colombia), Desserto (Co-winner of the Responsible Project of the Year, from Chile), Daniela Villegas (Accessory Brand of the Year, from Mexico), Luar (Brand of the Year, from the Dominican Republic), and Karoline Vitto (Emerging Designer of the Year, from Brazil).
VERDI
Verdi is a Colombian textile studio that reinterprets tradition to create unique home, fashion, and art pieces by intertwining natural fibers with contemporary materials. The brand's story begins in the Colombian mountains in 1995 with Carlos Vera Dieppa, a pioneer in Latin American textile design who, with the help of a local coffee-sack weaver, develops a unique weaving technique where he intertwines local materials to craft unique fiber-rugs. It is years later, however, when he decides to customize his own looms and add metal threads to these rugs, that his technique becomes a revolutionary legacy. After “Charlie’s” passing in 2010, his son Tomás and his daughter Cristina decide to honor his life and legacy by bringing back his craft. Through a renovated concept, the siblings craft an idea that even today, speaks of Colombia and its heartwarming traditions. They call this idea “Verdi” as an ode to their late father’s last names: Vera Dieppa. Verdi is now a multidimensional textile studio that embodies the very essence of artisanal Latin identity. Through the reinvention of traditional techniques and the utilization of natural fibers, Verdi creates unique fashion pieces that celebrate the rich cultural heritage of Colombia as a testament to the country’s natural beauty, cultural diversity, and the enduring spirit of its people. Verdi Mochila has become an intriguing symbol of Latin American flair carrying the studio’s unwavering belief that exceptional, sustainable craft is today’s ultimate luxury.
DESSERTO
Being conscious of the negative impact that the industries are causing to the environment by using animal and synthetic leather, the lack of sustainable material alternatives available to satisfy an ever-growing industrial demand, we have created Desserto, a sustainable cactus-based biomaterial often distinguished by its great softness at touch and performance for a wide variety of applications while complying with the most rigorous quality and environmental standards of the industry. Desserto, having its headquarters in Guadalajara, México, is celebrating its sixth anniversary in April 2025. Since the official launch, it has received important international awards like the Green Product Award, MCFW Sustainable Fashion Award, Peta Compassionate Business Award, Good Design Award, Innovation Award by Architectural Digest and Samsung, USDA BioPreferred Program Champion, GQ Mens of the Year, and received a special mention as second runner up at the LVMH Innovation Award and favorite in materials category. Desserto is committed to create new sustainable solutions and promoting ethical practices through the industry value chains to help build a better world through the fashion industry.
DANIELA VILLEGAS
Daniela Villegas is a Mexican artist, who creates one-of-a-kind fine jewelry inspired by nature. A passionate observer of Mother Earth, Daniela has an intense curiosity of nature’s nuances and is inspired by lifeforms, conversations, books, and travel. She often combines real, organic elements such as beetles, porcupine quills, feathers, and shells, with 18K gold and precious and semi-precious gemstones, thus manifesting her unique style. Daniela Villegas founded her namesake label in 2008, using cherished memories and events to narrate tales of freedom, joy, evolution, and love of life in every piece of fine jewelry she masterfully creates. The designer resides with her family in Los Angeles, California where all of her unique pieces are hand crafted. Through a deeply personal design lens, Daniela Villegas brings the natural world to life through the insects, animals and folkloric characters which inhabit the designer’s magical universe. Consciously handcrafted by skilled local artisans who bring the designer’s dreams into reality by simultaneously weaving historic techniques and modern innovation through each piece; every product is unique, much like Villegas’s view of the world. Rooted and devoted to the planet and social responsibility, Daniela Villegas is committed to bettering the world through her numerous philanthropic endeavors. Amongst her core values are: originality, atemporality, quality, commitment to the planet, evolution, transparency and the importance of happiness and emotional connection.
LUAR
Luar is the reversed namesake label of Brooklyn, NY-based designer Raul Lopez. Luar has been hailed as one of New York’s most exciting brands and its timely point-of-view has drawn international acclaim. In 2022, Luar won the CFDA Award for American Accessories Designer of the Year. The following year, Luar was a finalist for the LVMH Prize for Young Fashion Designers. Lopez launched Luar in 2011 with a compulsion to create designs based on the low and middle-income communities he grew up among in New York, a perspective that had long been missing from American fashion. The designer’s entrenchment in downtown New York City scenes inspired him to marry visual hallmarks of his Dominican heritage with the fluidity of underground nightlife. The brand considers affordability and accessibility when designing ready-to-wear, accessories and lifestyle goods for all gender identities. Luar has been worn and supported by the likes of Rihanna, Kendrick Lamar, Dua Lipa, Solange Knowles, Bella Hadid, Kylie Jenner, Lourdes Leon, and more.
KAROLINE VITTO
The Brazilian creative director Karoline Vitto accentuates the curves and celebrates the folds, placing the body in the centre of the design process. With a postgraduate degree from Central Saint Martins and a master’s in fashion from the Royal College of Art, the designer works with the juxtaposition of jersey, knitwear, and metal in clean, sensual, and assertive cuts. The designer debuted her first collection at the Fashion East incubator in 2022, during London Fashion Week. After two shows on the platform, she was invited by Dolce&Gabbana to showcase at Milan Fashion Week with full support from the Italian label. She established herself as a global reference in fashion for diverse bodies, being recognised by Vogue Business as the most inclusive brand of all fashion weeks in Winter 23 and Summer 24. A member of renowned lists such as Dazed100 and Vogue 100, the designer has won the Emerging Designer of the Year award at the Latin American Fashion Awards in 2023. Karoline was the first Brazilian female designer to be a semi-finalist for the LVMH Prize (2024) and has dressed names such as Ashley Graham, Precious Lee, Paloma Elsesser, and Kelly Rowland.
White Milano
September 19-22, 2024
Tortona Fashion District
via Tortona 27-54-58 - 20144
Photo: Karoline Vitto SS24
