Elegance is at home in Capri: we know the Origen project

The duo of Carlo Boccuccia and Gonzalo Gomez chose the island for the opening of their second store

The history of Capri and that of fashion have had several points of contact over time. The most significant was certainly the Mare Moda Capri event, born in 1967 and which has become one of the most popular in Italian fashion.

An extraordinary event that, in the golden years, brought together the world of international fashion, and which transformed the island into a huge catwalk. There were many fashion shows organized in exceptional settings: from the Grand Hotel Quisisana to the Certosa di San Giacomo, from Anacapri to Marina Piccola. Mare Moda Capri ended in 1978, but has left its memory in the memory of those who participated in it and of the island as a whole. Even if the time of that great event is now far away, the style and taste for elegance in Capri have never ceased to exist; today we hear the testimony of Carlo Boccuccia who, together with his partner and friend Gonzalo Gomez, founded the Origen brand, choosing our island for the opening of a new store.

When and how was the idea of Origen born?

“Before creating Origen I had other brands; I have been working in this sector for 12 years now. In 2019 I decided to launch a new brand, together with my partner Gonzalo Gomez. The basic idea was to want to fill a gap: that of men’s clothing, which is always overshadowed.  Our characteristic is to work only with natural fabrics, such as linen, cotton and cashmere. From the point of view of the collections, we are mainly oriented to summer, and also for this reason we have decided to open the store in Capri, after the one in Ponza: we believe that the typical lightheartedness enjoyed during the holidays is the ideal mood for treat yourself to a new elegant and original garment. In addition to men’s clothing, we also produce accessories such as bags, backpacks, made with exclusively made in Italy leathers”.

What inspires you every day for the creation of your garments?

“The sea and nature are certainly great sources of inspiration for us.

Our choice to be linked to the islands also derives from this, precisely because, in designing our collections, we want to create models that give comfort to the wearer, that allow you to experience the sea and nature, but always with style and elegance.

The brand is currently very much in line with this historical moment in fashion, in which the desire to take a step back has arisen, paying more attention to the issues that revolve around sustainability.

This desire for a return to nature is also reflected in the creation of the clothes, and many big brands make extensive use of natural motifs inspired by flora and fauna. We were born explicitly as an eco-sustainable brand: we use materials such as recycled plastic, organic cotton, in short, materials that respect the environment”.

The choice to open stores on the island is therefore linked both to the precise target you are targeting and to the style that pervades your creations;  but why, among the many, just Capri?

“It all started from the island of Ponza, where we opened the first store, because since I was a child, being Roman, I used to go there with my family by boat in the summer; it is an island where you can breathe a particular air, an explosion of the wildest nature, and it has given great inspiration to the birth of the brand.

One of the reasons why we later chose Capri is because my partner knows it well;  moreover, despite being a Roman, I have always had a great love for this island.  Finally we created a costume model, called Sami, which is inspired by the 60s, years in which, as we know, fashion in Capri was at its peak.

For all these reasons there are many connections between us and the island”.

What type of customers do you target?

“The majority of our clientele is certainly Italian, but there is also a large slice of foreign clients, particularly in Switzerland, France and Germany. It is a clientele that reaches us essentially thanks to the ability to purchase our products through online channels;  thanks to the store here on the island, however, our works have been appreciated by many American tourists, who are fascinated by the brand and we hope they will make it known overseas”.

What will your future projects be?

“We are working on the creation of new garments produced with one of the materials that most characterizes us, the Terry Cotton, that is a sponged cotton with which we have made our most iconic garments. Soon we will be launching a collection of trousers and shirts completely in this very fresh and comfortable fabric. This project is actually placed in continuity with our mission to use eco-sustainable materials, natural organic and hypoallergenic fabrics.

From the point of view of new openings, we would like to start exploring the American market by opening a store there next year”.

Edited by Stefano D’Alessandro