MILAN — Stone Island hasn’t given up on China. On the contrary, it is reinforcing its commitment to that market.

“China, despite the fact that it has had some challenges with the economy, it is nevertheless absolutely a region that is a foundation for the future,” said Stone Island’s chief executive officer Robert Triefus. “We can be confident that as the cycle turns, as cycles always do, it will regain the momentum that it once had, and see new participants and new customers coming into the market.”

Accordingly, Stone Island has opened a flagship in Hangzhou, within the In77 Hangzhou Hubin Yintai complex, and is set to reopen on July 1 its store in Hong Kong, relocated in Harbour City at Level 2, Gateway Arcade. Both have been fully redesigned in line with the brand’s global retail concept in partnership with Rem Koolhaas’ OMA/AMO studio.

The Hangzhou store spans almost 4,000 square feet over two floors and carries the brand’s full offering, including the Stone Island Ghost, Marina and Stellina capsule collections.

“Stone Island is, relatively speaking, a brand that is new to the [Chinese] market, and so it is very interesting for us to be able to bring our story, which, in this current climate, is much appreciated because the Chinese customer is very sophisticated today, wanting to be informed about product, materials and so on,” said Triefus.

Stone Island entered China in 2004, within Shanghai’s Three on the Bund palace.

Throughout the Hangzhou unit, materiality is crucial to the design concept, which has been led by Samir Bantal of OMA/AMO. Cork is the key element and it has been burned, sand-blasted and coated, “creating very interesting textures,” Triefus explained. The resulting dark, structured material has functional properties, both absorbing sound and working against humidity.

“The store very much expresses materiality, therefore representing the essence of Stone Island because the research of materials is a key part of our product development,” said Triefus.

On the ground floor the perimeter wall is clad in burned, sand-blasted and coated cork, revealing a staircase showcasing material experimentation with blue oxidized metal, echoing the principles first applied in the brand’s flagship in Munich, which opened two years ago.

“In addition, we’ve continued to engage young designers in elements of the store, from the lighting to the furniture. It shows how we value our community who help to bring the Stone Island experience to life in our stores,” continued the executive.

The Hangzhou banner integrates unique design contributions including Tim Hooijmans’ custom lighting system that runs across the ceiling; the minimalist anodized aluminum display table designed by Johan Viladrich; Markus Toll’s Supersedia steel bench, and the custom glass vitrine designed by Phil Procter to host pieces from the Stone Island archive.

Through the large storefront window stands a digital display system known as the Chandelier, which, suspended from the ceiling, can tilt, rise and descend, or serve as an illuminated display feature.

The second floor incorporates key Stone Island design elements, including cork walls with round niches, corrugated sand-sprayed changing rooms, rammed earth walls, and perforated metal walls with display niches.

Triefus said that as the store concept, which was launched in 2022, is rolled out, it is optimized.

“You learn from the stores that you’ve opened, how the customer is experiencing the elements that go into the concept, whether it’s the fixtures and fittings or the journey that they take when they go into the store. The stores that we’ve opened in China have all opened in the last 18 months and therefore they represent the most finessed versions of the concept.”

Stone Island was founded in 1982 in Ravarino, Italy, by Massimo Osti with a focus on material research, innovation, and functionality, and it has become a symbol of textile innovation. In Europe in particular, it’s a brand that is known for outerwear and knitwear, said Triefus, but, since the entry into China has been more recent, “we are perceived immediately as a brand that can offer a total look. Accessories are also performing well.”

In addition, he said “the other very interesting element is that, on average around the world, 20 percent of our customers are represented by females, but this segment in China skews even upward of 30, 35 percent. So we have a very dynamic customer base of women who are enjoying wearing the brand in a unisex way.”

Triefus believes Stone Island has “an authoritative place within the men’s category” and said that, given Rivetti’s “original vision of practicality” of the brand, “in the current economic climate, not just in China but globally, where customers are looking for more long-term functionality and value in what they’re buying, I think we play very well into that. For men, we continue to offer that, and the women that are wearing Stone Island represent some of those values of self-confidence and self-expression. The brand plays that part within their personality, in their wardrobe.”

As of 2025, Stone Island’s retail presence in China includes stores in Beijing Taikoo Li Sanlitun; Taikoo Li Chengdui; Ningbo Hankyu; Nanjing Deji; Shanghai Taikoo Li Qiantan; Shanghai iapm; Shanghai the Reel; Shenzhen MixCity, and Hong Kong Harbour City, as well as outlet locations at Shanghai Florentia Village and Tianjin Florentia Village. Macau is represented by the Galaxy Macau store, opened in September 2024. 

In December 2020, Moncler said it was taking over Sportswear Company SpA, owner of the Stone Island brand, in a deal valued at 1.15 billion euros. “One of the first strategic actions was to take back the distribution where it was not under direct control,” first in Korea and Japan, followed by China in the Asia Pacific area, recalled Triefus, who joined Stone Island from Gucci in 2023.

The integration of Greater China operations into Stone Island’s direct management was completed in March 2024, concluding the partnership with the former distributor Hangzhou Xin Yi, Translatio and I.T., rationalizing its store network, and opening a regional office in Shanghai.

While declining to disclose the amount spent on the two most recent stores in China, Triefus said “our priority at the moment is to optimize the footprint that we have, so the fact that China is receiving a disproportionate amount of investment because we have renovated or we’re opening the new concept stores faster in China than in any other region, shows the importance of China in the long-term strategy.”

Triefus has been streamlining the brand’s wholesale channel globally “in order to make sure that we have the right partners.” But he underscored it remains “extremely important” to the brand, “both in terms of driving growth, but also for visibility in markets where clearly we have limited resources for opening direct-to-consumer.”

Stone Island has also been renovating its stores with its wholesale partners, and in Beijing has just introduced the store concept with SKP, “making sure that the customer experience in the wholesale channel is comparable to the customer experience in our DTC channel,” he said.  

For “a seamless and most contemporary experience,” Stone Island is also on the WeChat Mini Programs.

Being part of the Moncler Group is helping Stone Island to secure the right locations, Triefus admitted. “Sometimes that can be because Moncler itself has found a new, larger location, and we are then able to take a historic Moncler location, as for example, in Vienna.”

In the first quarter of 2025, revenues in the Asia region, which includes Japan, mainland China and South Korea, reached 31.2 million euros, up 14 percent, mainly driven by strong performances in Japan and mainland China. Stone Island sales in the period amounted to 107.3 million euros.

In terms of pricing, Triefus said “we operate in parallel with Moncler, making sure that geo-pricing is proactively managed to ensure that our customers in every market feel that they are being treated appropriately and we are proactive to manage differentials in terms of tariffs. Like everyone, we are watching the space carefully as it’s extremely difficult to reach any conclusions at this moment.”