Remember twisting and turning a kaleidoscope to see all of the magical designs, shapes, and colors when you were a kid? Imagine recreating those peculiar patterns onto knitwear, cottons and silks, to fit anyone’s sense of style. The Missoni brand is distinctive for its bizarre and colorful designs that have been worn by people of all ages, genders, shapes, and sizes for almost sixty-five years.
An Italian couple named Ottavio and Rosita Missoni started a knitwear shop near Rosita’s village in 1953 with the dreams of making it big in the fashion industry. With the support of Anna Piaggi, fashion editor, and collaborations with French stylist Emmanuelle Khanh they were able to launch the Missoni brand in 1958 in Milan. The Missoni brand is now comparable to some of the world’s leading fashion and design labels like: Versace, Dolce & Gabbana, and Fendi. The same year the Missoni brand was launched, the couple’s third child, Angela Missoni, was born. Angela, now an adult, is the couple's youngest child. She just celebrated her twentieth anniversary in September as creative director for Missoni, after coming on board in 1997. The New York Times interviewed Angela in Milan, Italy while celebrating her major milestone.