Top Old Money Brands: Brunello Cucinelli, Loro Piana, Lanificio Colombo, Kiton, Hermes, Ralph Lauren

Introduction

In the previous article, Best Quiet Luxury Brands, we explored the distinction between "old money" and "quiet luxury." Now, let me introduce six top old money brands that stand out in my opinion.

Old money brands typically cost double that of quiet luxury brands, positioning them at the pinnacle of luxury. For example, a basic cashmere sweater from these brands is priced between $1,500 and $8,000 USD. Items beyond this range are often bespoke or haute couture.

I’ve also included a few brands missing from the previous article that don’t quite fit the old money category:

• Menswear:
• Zegna and Agnona fall slightly short in price and lean toward casual styles. Zegna, akin to Dunhill and Canali, emphasizes men’s business attire. While more expensive than quiet luxury brands like Lemaire and Studio Nicholson, Zegna’s focus remains on formality and business wear.
• Agnona, acquired by Zegna in 1999 to diversify its women’s line, began as a textile supplier specializing in high-quality wool and later expanded to cashmere, alpaca, and vicuña fabrics.
• Additionally, I’ve added Cortana and Lorena Antoniazzi, which were excluded from the quiet luxury list. These brands exemplify the contrast between old money and quiet luxury: old money brands cost at least twice as much, featuring exceptional design and superior materials.

Loro Piana

Loro Piana embodies old money sophistication, rivaling Hermès in prestige. However, unlike Hermès, Loro Piana maintains an understated presence. It avoids celebrity endorsements, refrains from advertising, and opts for clothing designs free of conspicuous logos. Instead, the brand aligns itself with refined events such as sailing regattas, horse races, and vintage car shows.

The modern iteration of Loro Piana was founded by Pietro Loro Piana on April 24, 1924. Acquired by the LVMH Group in 2013, it has since emerged as the world's largest cashmere manufacturer and leading wool buyer.

Recently, Loro Piana faced backlash in the fashion industry for reportedly lowering the wages of South American farm workers—a move attributed to its LVMH ownership. As highlighted in the article Beijing’s Middle Class Loves These Six Cashmere Brands (with Old Money and Quiet Luxury Style Guide), the focus on South America pertains to vicuña, a material even more luxurious than cashmere and finer than mulberry silk.

If you’re shopping at Loro Piana, vicuña is a must-try. Among the stores I’ve visited specializing in cashmere, only Loro Piana offers vicuña. In contrast, brands like Colombo and Brunello Cucinelli primarily feature cashmere. However, Loro Piana’s customer service—particularly at locations like China World Trade Center and SKP—feels aloof compared to the friendlier service at Colombo and Brunello Cucinelli, which is one reason I often favor Brunello Cucinelli.

Loro Piana’s lookbooks showcase a warm palette, including shades like beige, white, camel, coffee, teal, and cashmere. These hues complement their luxurious materials, creating a premium, old money aesthetic even in basic traditional designs.

Interestingly, Silicon Valley elites often gravitate toward Loro Piana’s simple, logo-free base layers, appreciating its subtle refinement and premium quality.

Brunello Cucinelli

Brunello Cucinelli, born in 1953, is an Italian entrepreneur who founded his namesake brand in 1985. He established the company headquarters in the picturesque Solomeo Castle near Perugia, where many of the brand's handmade garments are crafted. Below is a picture of the Solomeo village at sunset.

Unlike most commercial brands, Brunello Cucinelli’s headquarters is unique, reflecting its artisanal roots. I personally prefer brands where founders remain actively involved in management, rather than those dominated by commercialization or heavy capitalization. This connection is one of the reasons we favor Brunello Cucinelli (BC) over Loro Piana. Brunello Cucinelli himself sets exceptionally high standards for quality:

• Cashmere: Sourced from the finest goats in Inner Mongolia and Mongolia, BC selects the best fibers from the neck and belly areas, which are hand-collected and hand-dyed with natural plant dyes.
• Craftsmanship: Each piece is handmade by Italy's most skilled artisans, making every cashmere garment a unique collectible.
• Materials: BC uses only the best Egyptian long-staple cotton for fabrics, Austrian white goose down for down products (collected naturally), and applies traditional tanning and production methods that prioritize craftsmanship over mass production. Their focus on raw materials rivals that of Hermès.

Interestingly, BC chose Chengdu as its domestic headquarters rather than Shanghai's luxury hubs like Nanjing West Road or Huaihai Road, further emphasizing its thoughtful and deliberate brand approach.

Another reason we love BC is its distinctively Italian, Mediterranean old-money aesthetic, particularly in trousers. Both men’s and women’s pants often feature a loose fit at the top with a tapering cut, creating a unique silhouette.

Women’s Wear: BC often incorporates intricate beadwork, using beads on shoes, zippers, and side seams, or mixing cashmere with sequins and mesh designs for an elevated look.

Cashmere: While not as soft as Loro Piana’s, BC’s cashmere is highly durable and resistant to pilling, reminiscent of the lasting quality of vintage cashmere.

In terms of lookbooks, Loro Piana offers more basic styles and an exceptional fall/winter collection with accurate colors. However, BC stands out with its Italian gentleman’s flair (think a polished Naples aesthetic), and its menswear truly shines when purchased as a complete set, including shoes, to capture the brand’s essence. Additionally, BC’s spring/summer collections surpass Loro Piana’s.

Brunello Cucinelli perfectly matches my personal aesthetic, being the only brand where I adore nearly every piece for both men and women. Its relaxed yet effortlessly cool style feels more approachable than the elite and sharp aesthetics of many quiet luxury brands I’ve previously introduced.

Lanificio Colombo

Founded in 1967 by Luigi Colombo, Lanificio Colombo is a pinnacle of luxury textiles and craftsmanship. In the 1960s, Colombo pioneered “double-sided cashmere” technology, a breakthrough that set the foundation for the brand’s excellence. During the 1970s, the second generation, Giancarlo Colombo, expanded the brand’s legacy by sourcing rare and exceptional fibers from around the world. As a fabric enthusiast, I’m particularly drawn to this focus and plan to explore their stores extensively this winter.

Here are the rare fibers Colombo specializes in:

• Vicuña: Colombo sources fibers from the smallest camelids, with an average diameter of just 12–13 microns. Vicuña is naturally reddish-brown, with rare instances of white.
• Kid Wool: Colombo selects kid wool from merino sheep, with ultra-fine fibers measuring 12.8 microns.
• Kid Cashmere: This is sourced from under-one-year-old Hircus goats through a harmless combing process in late spring. The fibers are exceptionally fine, about 13 microns in diameter.
• Yangir: Sourced from Siberian mountain goats, yangir fibers are golden and measure approximately 13.5 microns.
• Guanaco: Colombo selects fibers from South American guanacos, ranging between 13.5 and 14.5 microns. These fibers are collected every two years.
• Cashmere: Colombo’s cashmere comes from Hircus goats, with fibers around 15 microns, combed from the roots of their coarse hair.

Under its current leader, the third-generation Roberto Colombo, the brand continues to innovate. Notably, Colombo developed the “water ripple” fabric, a hallmark material for their coats and scarves.

Despite its rich heritage, Colombo only entered the Chinese market in 2021. As a result, it remains less well-known compared to brands like Loro Piana and Brunello Cucinelli, and its product range is more specialized. For example, when I visited Colombo’s Financial Street location in January, the selection focused solely on cashmere. However, their attention to detail is remarkable—even their fitting room slippers were Maison Margiela’s classic German trainer slippers, a luxurious and memorable touch.

For those seeking rare fibers and meticulous craftsmanship, Colombo offers an unmatched experience that blends innovation with tradition.

Kiton

Though I'm not a suit expert, I know that Kiton is often hailed as the Hermès of the suit world, surpassing even Dunhill and Canali in exclusivity. I once tried on a purple Kiton suit at Lane Crawford, and even for someone who rarely wears suits, the exceptional quality was palpable—it easily rivaled Celine's Prince of Wales check suit.

Kiton primarily offers menswear and boasts notable clients like Putin.

If you're seeking suits more luxurious than Kiton's offerings, bespoke options are the next step. The ultimate destination for such tailoring is London's Savile Row, reminiscent of the elegance seen in "Kingsman."

Ciro Paone was born in 1933 into a Neapolitan family that had been trading fabrics for five generations. In 1968, he founded Kiton, a handmade bespoke suit brand, expanding a small workshop of 40 tailors into a globally renowned manufacturer of ready-to-wear and bespoke clothing.

For nearly 50 years, Ciro Paone and the Kiton brand upheld the principles of quality and the uniqueness of handcrafted products. In 2001, Kiton established the Kiton Tailoring School to train more young tailors in high-end bespoke clothing, ensuring that ancient yet innovative sewing techniques are passed down.

The founder passed away in 2021.

Hermès

Hermès stands as a beacon of noble taste and craftsmanship in an industry increasingly dominated by commercialized conglomerates. A luxury book I read highlighted Hermès as one of the few brands that have preserved its heritage and spirit, resisting the trend toward mass production.

For instance, while other brands rely on synthetic fragrances for cost efficiency, Hermès maintains its own rose fields and sources the finest raw materials globally to produce essential oils, upholding unparalleled quality.

Origins and Evolution

Thierry Hermès, born in Krefeld, Germany, in 1801, founded Hermès in France after fleeing for personal reasons. Originally a high-end harness maker, Hermès gained international acclaim by winning first place at the 1867 World Leather Exhibition. In 1879, Thierry’s sons expanded the brand’s offerings, diversifying into leather goods, silk products, ready-to-wear, shoes, belts, hats, gloves, jewelry, watches, perfumes, cosmetics, and even furniture.

The brand’s iconic transformation occurred under its third-generation successor, Émile Hermès. Witnessing the rise of automobiles during World War I, Émile foresaw the decline of the carriage era and made a pivotal decision to shift focus from saddles to handbags. By applying the meticulous craftsmanship of saddle-making to leather goods, Hermès maintained its signature precision and texture, securing its reputation as a supplier for European royalty.

Bags and Beyond

Hermès bags, such as the Birkin and Kelly, epitomize old money style, far surpassing brands like Bottega Veneta, Fendi, or Louis Vuitton in refinement. These other leather-centric brands, while prestigious, lack the distinctive taste and legacy of Hermès, which has always intertwined craftsmanship with elegance.

Fashion and Fabrics

Despite its dominance in leather goods, I’ve never been captivated by Hermès’ ready-to-wear collections. While the quality is indisputable, I gravitate toward brands like Loro Piana, which excel in high-end textiles such as cashmere and vicuña, rather than leather. Hermès’ expertise shines in its bags rather than in apparel or fabrics. For those seeking the pinnacle of handbag luxury, Hermès is unmatched.

Ralph Lauren

Ralph Lauren, born into a working-class family, launched Polo Ralph Lauren in 1968, creating a brand synonymous with American elegance. Among its lines, the Purple Label represents high-end luxury, while the RRL line, introduced in 1993, appeals to Americana enthusiasts, particularly those aged 40 and above.

Distinctive Appeal

Ralph Lauren stands out among these six brands for its unique approach. While not as minimalist as Italian designs, its use of colors and patterns evokes a high-end American retro aesthetic. This Vanity Fair feature highlights iconic Ralph Lauren outfits from the 90s, which perfectly capture the brand’s vintage sophistication.

Where Brunello Cucinelli epitomizes Italian old money, Ralph Lauren is undeniably the standard-bearer of American old money, reflecting the charm of the 80s and 90s.

Iconic Pieces

One of Ralph Lauren’s most recognizable items is the classic cable-knit cashmere sweater, available in both sweater and cardigan styles. This timeless design has inspired countless imitations and remains a staple in the brand's collections. During a visit to the Summer Palace, I noticed girls wearing this iconic piece, underscoring its widespread appeal.

Below is an example of the cotton version, though Ralph Lauren also offers variations in wool and cashmere blends.

Pricing and Style

Ralph Lauren is relatively affordable compared to European luxury brands, making it more accessible for those seeking an authentic American vintage style. While I admire the brand’s nostalgic and quintessentially American designs, I wouldn’t personally purchase their clothing. American brands, including Ralph Lauren, tend to prioritize style over the meticulous craftsmanship and attention to detail that Italian brands like Brunello Cucinelli offer.

Ralph Lauren earns its place here for its representation of American old money and its ability to capture the essence of an era through its iconic designs.

Conclusion

These six old money brands—Loro Piana, Brunello Cucinelli, Lanificio Colombo, Kiton, Hermès, and Ralph Lauren—each offer something uniquely remarkable:

• Loro Piana stands out with its understated elegance and expertise in high-end fabrics like cashmere and vicuña.
• Brunello Cucinelli captures relaxed luxury with its Mediterranean old-money aesthetic and intricate craftsmanship.
• Lanificio Colombo excels in rare and innovative fabrics, particularly in its luxurious coats.
• Kiton sets the gold standard in bespoke and ready-to-wear suits, epitomizing meticulous tailoring.
• Hermès embodies timeless sophistication, especially in its iconic leather goods.
• Ralph Lauren evokes vintage American old-money charm, blending retro appeal with classic Americana style.

Together, these brands represent the essence of old money style, offering a variety of approaches to elegance, quality, and enduring craftsmanship.