For Salvatore Ferragamo’s Pre-Fall 2025 collection, Maximilian Davis draws inspiration from the Caribbean and West Africa: a palette adopted from postcards of Caribbean landscapes, discovered in eighties tourist brochures.

“I feel like, today, people are dressing for sense of comfort: they want things to feel relaxed and immediate and easy to wear,” explains Davis. “And that way of thinking is something I wanted to bring into the wardrobe for this collection.”

Vivid blues mix with earthen tones, and natural, tropical touches appear discreetly omnipresent: sun-stained palm fronds abstracted into graphic prints, or raffia fringing applied as a trim to leather sandals. Silk and cotton knitwear appears tie-dyed – “the emblem of summer holidays,” says Davis – while organic shapes are inset as details in rouched dresses and graphic sandals.

Elsewhere, the glamour of the seventies is re-interpreted with contemporary ease: “that way of dressing was so elegant, but at the same time so free,” notes Davis. The insouciant sensuality of scarf-dressing is translated into shimmering satin mini-dresses or foulards pieced together to create skirts and shirts; slinky cady gowns with plunging necklines appear gloriously fluid. The tailored silhouette of the era is deliberately deconstructed and relaxed, while elevated viscose wool shorts and trousers are constructed with elasticated waistbands.

In homage to the era, the iconic Hug bag is rendered in suede embossed to resemble corduroy, or studded in silver, while slouching knee-high boots and nappa platform sandals evolve familiar forms with freshly luxurious appeal. Butterfly bow heels adapt archival femininity into the modern day, and a sleek point-toe pump is decorated with a graphic galvanized Gancio.

In menswear, the degradé Tramezza patina of leather jackets and men’s brogues and loafers pays subtle homage to classic techniques, while the utilitarian aesthetics appear through Hug backpacks with Gancio hardware and a shoulder bag iteration.