Fausto Puglisi’s Chic Emanuel Ungaro Trunk Show And Dinner

Receiving some prime real estate in the windows of Saks Fifth Avenues’s flagship location is a reason to celebrate. Last eve, Fausto Puglisi was in town to celebrate the arrival of his latest Emanuel Ungaro collection. His Spring 2015 wares dressed up the windows, and he was pre-selling his Fall 2015 collection to a select group of customers upstairs in the store. Fabiola Beracasa Beckman was the glowing (and pregnant) co-host of this chic trunk show chez Saks; naturally she was bedecked in a colorful Ungaro design.

Following the shopping event, Puglisi and his chic crew trekked downtown to Austrian eatery, Wallsé, where a celebratory dinner took place. Conversation in Italian flowed as freely as the wine did, among a crowd that included Jamie Bochert, Derek Blasberg, Riley Montana, Karla Martinez de Salas, Marina Larroude, Michael Carl, and Eugenia Gonzalez. The dinner started late in the evening, and Puglisi talked to your Daily just before the clock struck midnight. He dished on the importance of trunk shows and what’s on his current playlist.

Are trunk shows a big part of the business for Emanuel Ungaro and your namesake line?
Yeah, it’s like I’m divided between Emanuel Ungaro and my personal collection. For example, now I’m in Saks Fifth Avenue for Ungaro, but I did Fausto at Bergdorf Goodman last time. Tomorrow, I’m going to Toronto for Fausto at Holt Renfrew and I’m very excited because I’ve never been there before! Saks was great; the windows were amazing. And the response from customers was great. They thought the collection was very gorgeous. I’m so happy to be here in New York.

What kind of feedback do you get from customers at a trunk show?
Well, I get a lot of “Oh my God, I love it!” Which is fantastic because I love to have that kind of energy, whether it comes from women or men. I love excitement. Fashion is amazing right now: Beautiful things are everywhere, from lower priced lines to couture. For a designer like me, when I do something new, I have to create excitement for my customers.

Your two lines are very different. Do you ever mix up references between the two, or are they totally separate entities?
They’re totally separate. It’s like they’re two totally different cars, but cars that I love. Ungaro is like driving in a Rolls-Royce at a safe speed, and Fausto is like driving a Ferrari at 300 miles per hour with the music blasting. And boom! I can crash in that car because I take my own risks. Meanwhile, Ungaro has this incredible DNA, an incredible history, and an incredible touch. Of course, I try to translate that by thinking about what women and girls today want. But even with all the DNA in Ungaro, I still like to take risks, which all starts when I look back at the archives.

Speaking of the archives, which house signatures did you use in your latest Emauel Ungaro collection?
Ungaro never used black. Well, he mixed the black around with other colors. Since my first collection at Ungaro, I’ve used a lot of colors, but this time I wanted to celebrate black as a color. I wanted to celebrate the polka dots, which is a typical signature of Ungaro in a black and white. From there, I played with texture with shiny and matte fabrics, as well as with sequins and embroidery.

What influences you creatively?
Oh my God, everything! I love music, I love life and I’m not a snobbish person in this way. I like simple people; I like a farmer as much as I like a queen. I like royalty and rock ‘n’ roll. I like people that have strong points of view; even the normal people in the streets fascinate me. I’m fascinated with the pop culture, and rock stars. I’m fascinated with tradition, but I’m also looking for something new at all times, like music.

What kind of music do you listen to while designing?
I’m not afraid to say that I adore Madonna and Lady Gaga. I love Nicki Minaj and I love Rihanna. But I also like classical music, opera, Prince, Elton John, and Guns N’ Roses. I adore AC/DC and I adore Nirvana. In all honesty, I love everything.