Stone Island’s Carlo Rivetti Knows When You Make Great Product, ‘Sooner Or Later, The World Will Arrive’

Stone Island is many things to many people. A status symbol. A subcultural badge. An insider nod. But no matter whether it’s a vintage collector from China or a hip-hop star from the States, “there is something in common,” explains owner Carlo Rivetti. Since 1982, the Italian brand has built a cult fandom, sparking subcultural obsessions everywhere from Milan to England to China, all while remaining remarkably consistent in its approach. Though innovation is a pillar of its ethos, it’s an insular kind of innovation, focused not on larger market trends but on what Rivetti and his team can do to keep pushing the brand’s products forward. “I always say, the world will move, we will go our way, and sooner or later the world will arrive,” Rivetti explains. While he’s sometimes baffled by the subcultures that have adopted the label over the years—he’s still not sure why Stone Island became such a big deal with English football hooligans—he understands that resolutely doing your own thing, and doing it very well, means that eventually new pockets of fans will discover and appreciate your work. Read more at Esquire.