The Italian brand Barena Venezia appoints Davide Zara, son of the founder Sandro Zara, into the management and thus introduces a new chapter for the family company. A possible highlight could be the opening of the brand’s first flagship store.
Davide Zara has been working as a Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) in the company since the beginning of the year, said Barena Venezia. Before that, he gained more than 14 years of experience at the Zegna Group and the associated brands Tom Ford and Zegna. At the Italian fashion group, he was most recently responsible for North America as Senior Director of Wholesale and Made to Measure. Now he is part of the family company to promote the next phase of global expansion.
Barena relies on expansion
“Barena is more than one brand – it is the legacy of our family. The independence and the family character of the company are a conscious decision that enables us to remain loyal to our values,” said his sister Francesca Zara, who held the creative direction. “Davide’s arrival brings fresh energy and commercial expertise that will help us expand globally and at the same time preserve our essence.”
For Zegan, the new CCO has spent some time in the United States, which is helpful for Barena’s growth strategy, since the country is one of the most important markets for the brand alongside the United Kingdom and Italy, explains Davide Zara in an interview. But the Scandinavian countries and Germany with 15 point-of-sales-including Andreas Murkudis, Bungalow and Lodenfrey-are also important markets. The brand is represented in over 20 countries worldwide.
In the United Kingdom, people work particularly closely with luxury dealers such as Liberty and Harrods. The CCO reveals that the Harrod Department of Harrod’s London Department of Harrod is also to open its own area of the brand in November, which has not yet been operating its own physical stores. But the company is also working on that that is currently looking for the right location. For the first flagship, either an Italian city or New York is being considered.
Simple and elegant workwear for the summer
The family company Barena Venezia was founded in 1993 by Sandro Zara and is closely linked to Venetian culture and craftsmanship. Over the years, a workwear-inspired collection has emerged an extensive and minimalistic ready-to-wear range for women and men. The focus is on the “anti-suit”, a two-part that can be a counter-design to the classic suit made of over-shirt and jogging pants or bomber jacket and cargo pants.
The collections are fully produced in Italy and the fabrics from Italian suppliers: inside, some of which were developed especially for and in close cooperation with the brand. Barena’s collections are initiated with the creation of the fabrics and not with the design of the actual product.
“We are doing differently due to our knowledge and tradition in the field of fabrics,” said Davide Zara. “We are characterized by the fact that we work with exclusive fabrics in Italy and rely on our craft tradition. This is also based on our in -house archive with 28,000 pieces that inspires us significantly.”
For Spring/Summer 2026, the focus is particularly on the “Tropical Wool” fabric, from which the majority of the collection-including an overs shirt, a blazer, a bomber jacket and cargo pants-was manufactured. The wool material is versatile due to its ease and is also well suited for the summer months. In terms of color, the brand focuses particularly on tones such as sage green and light brown, as has already been seen on many brands on the Pitti Uomo.
At the men’s fashion fair, the brand, which was particularly present at its beginnings in Florence, is no longer represented with its own stand. In the meantime, she is completely on her showroom during the Paris men’s fashion week, where she also shows her new collections for the FS26 season.