The trousers specialist Schera GmbH is undergoing a generational change. In Großwallstadt, the brothers David and Tobias Schellenberger take over for their parents Ralf and Brigitte Schellenberger, who are handing over more and more of their tasks. The next generation also brings a breath of fresh air – its own unisex line is already the group’s first recognizable step behind the women’s brands Raffaello Rossi and Seductive.
The brothers share management of the company. While David Schellenberger, who has been part of the management since mid-2020, is responsible for IT, human resources, accounting, project management and warehouse logistics, his younger brother Tobias Schellenberger is responsible for marketing, sales and design.
“My brother and I are a dream team because we complement each other perfectly,” said Tobias Schellenberger to FashionUnited. “He has skills that I lack, and the same applies vice versa.”
After increasingly handing over responsibility to his sons, Ralf Schellenberger is currently focusing on a new logistics hall. At 5,000 square meters, this will be larger than the previous logistics center. “We are currently bursting at the seams because the last few years have seen very positive developments for us,” says Tobias Schellenberger, explaining the need for the new building.
Brigitte Schellenberger, who particularly concentrated on the design of the Raffaello Rossi brand, is now leaving the creation to another creative person. For about a year she has been receiving support from Ilka Böhnhardt, who came from the Rottendorfer S.Oliver Group, where she worked for the Comma brand. Since the SS24 collection, the brand’s design has also borne Böhm’s signature. Schellenberger receives support from Holger Vogel in product management. The product manager came in April from the sports goods manufacturer Cavallo Albert Sahle GmbH & Co. KG, where he was product manager for the Cavallo and Pamela Henson brands. At Schera, he is responsible for the denim sector. For the second brand Seductive, the company is working with external designer Catrin Schanz.
Rossi: From capsule to brand
The change at Schera becomes really clear when you look at the new Rossi line, which is initially – at least also – aimed at men as a unisex brand.
Tobias Schellenberger has had the idea for a long time to design a collection that he can wear himself and that follows the unisex approach, he explains. The plans were delayed a bit due to the pandemic and then got rolling about a year and a half ago.
During a conversation “among friends” with the trend expert Julian Daynov, which was about the project, Schellenberger spontaneously decided to bring the Berliner by choice, who also works with the Bielefeld clothing supplier Seidensticker on the progressive Studio Seidensticker line, on board. The collaboration resulted in a six-part capsule for SS23, which was released under the label ‘Rossi by Raffaello Rossi’. This received an almost overwhelmingly positive response for the company from trading partners such as Anita Hass and Wirschke. The project was then expanded into an independent brand that dispensed with the addition of ‘by Raffaello Rossi’.
Rossi on course for internationalization
With these new brands under the Schera GmbH umbrella, Rossi was also introduced to an international audience this year, first at the Italian men’s fashion trade fair Pitti Uomo in July and then with its own showroom in New York during the September edition of Fashion Week. Of course, the brand also wants to grow globally, after it is already present in the domestic market as well as in the other two DACH countries, Switzerland and Austria. In addition to the USA, Rossi also wants to reach markets in Europe such as the Netherlands and Scandinavia, but the young brand already has its first interested parties in Japan.
“Retailers know when they order a pair of trousers from us that they look like the sample, will not be delivered late and simply fit,” said Tobias Schellenberger. “The retailers simply have a certain level of trust in us because they know that we have been making trousers for over 25 years and have done so very successfully.”
In addition to existing customers such as Breuninger in Stuttgart, Wagener in Baden Baden and Panta Rhei in Zurich, Rossi has also convinced retailers such as August Pfüller in Frankfurt am Main, Namazian in Hamburg and Mainglück in Würzburg this season.
Especially in Germany, also due to the group’s existing contacts, the products are offered more often by pure women’s fashion retailers than by retailers that only offer menswear. The reason for this is also the more classic orientation of men’s fashion, where wider trouser legs are not yet very popular. Men currently make up 25 percent of Rossi customers in brick-and-mortar retail, and five percent more in its own online shop.
Rossi relies on a small product selection, which has been increased from six to twelve core models. These can be adjusted in color and material depending on the season, so that versions with pinstripes or with elements of cargo trousers are available.