Modern classic: Max Mara toasts ten years of the Teddy Coat

Max Mara has long been synonymous with excellent outerwear. It was in 1981 that Anne Marie Beretta designed the now-signature ‘101801’ for the Italian house, an elegant, masculine-cut wool overcoat which straddles luxury and pragmatism – a dichotomy which continues to run through Max Mara’s collections today. Treated with due reverence, not a single stitch has been changed since its advent, and it continues to be the house’s bestselling piece today. 

It is not without competition, though. Since Max Mara’s founding in 1951, the house’s various designers have added to Max Mara’s famed outerwear canon; most recently, British creative director of the house Ian Griffiths, who began working at Max Mara after graduating from London‘s Royal College of Art in 1987. His collections have included a multiplicity of outerwear, though it is the Teddy Coat – first shown on the runway in 2013 – which has been elevated to the house’s ‘Icon’ status. This year, Max Mara celebrates its ten-year anniversary with a series of events and pop-ups taking place around the world.

Max Mara: Ten years of the Teddy Coat

Originally inspired by a 1980s design which Griffiths discovered in the Max Mara archive, the cocooning Teddy Coat is generously oversized – the house describes it as ’abundant’ in volume, recalling the extravagance of the era – and is crafted from supersoft ’teddy bear’ fabric which is at once warm, protective and surprisingly lightweight (the trick is a blend of soft wool and alpaca or camel fibres on a silk base). It has been aptly likened to a wearable blanket, though it nonetheless remains instilled with the house’s distinct Italian brand of elegance. As such, it has been a hit with celebrities looking for off-duty attire, among them Katie Holmes, Julia Roberts, Blake Lively, Kim Kardashian and recently Hailey Bieber, who has adopted the style for a new generation.

Festivities began with a celebration of the first ’Teddy Ten’ pop-up in New York’s SoHo district, coinciding with the arrival of fashion week in the city. Clad with the Teddy Coat’s signature fabric, it sets the blueprint for other pop-ups taking place around the world which include a recent opening in Chengdu, China and in London’s Harrods department store, with further events scheduled in cities around the world. Max Mara calls it the ‘great big global fashion adventure’.

Alongside, Max Mara has created an exclusive offering of special-edition pieces inspired by the Teddy Coat – notably, the new ’sparkling’ iteration in camel or white which is crafted with shimmering fibres that feel apt for the arrival of winter and its ensuing festivities. Max Mara is also introducing the ’Mini Teddy Coat’, designed for children aged five to 12, with matching mittens, ear muffs and fluffy hats with teddy ears also available. An array of other products in the teddy fabric – from handbags to bucket hats – are also part of the offering.

Finally, an accompanying tenth-anniversary campaign is lensed by American image-maker Tyler Mitchell and stars Italian supermodel Mariacarla Boscono, running with what Max Mara calls ‘the mantra of every self-respecting icon: “I was, I am, I will be”.’ Another campaign, photographed by Italian photographer Giampaolo Sgura, stars model Arizona Muse and her daughter, who models the ’Mini Teddy’ in the uplifting series of images.

The ’Teddy Ten’ collection is available online and in select retailers and pop-ups world wide. The Harrods pop-up is open until 15 November 2023 and the Teddy Coat is available at harrods.com

maxmara.com