One hundred years of Italian styling and glamour. An important anniversary which Lancia is celebrating by intensifying its involvement with the world of fashion by presenting the Lancia shoe by Sabelt at its new Milan concept store Sempione Sei, a venue that captures and proposes the very latest trends from all over the world. On this occasion, the European Fashion Awards presented the finalists and officially appointed the Lancia Ypsilon Moda Milano as “fashion car” of the 2006 edition of the celebrated fashion competition.

THE LANCIA SHOE BY SALBELT

This absolutely unique model is born out of the attention to detail, the masterful manufacturing technology and love of luxury and quality that have always distinguished Sabelt. A shoe inspired by rallying, but perfect in town too, a shoe that reflects the refined spirit of this supreme manufacturer of motor cars and its glorious past in the world of racing. Footwear that could not better encapsulate the values shared by two historic brands like Lancia and Sabelt. The new calfskin shoe is proposed in a single colour variant, classic Lancia blue, with bright notes of colour in the heel to evoke the colours of the Lancia Martini Racing team that Sabelt sponsored in the ‘80s and ‘90s.

“Our relationship with the Fiat Group, and in particular with Lancia, has continued from generation to generation and always finds new ways to assert itself”, says Gregorio Marsiaj, Head of the Sabelt Fashion Division. “The automotive world forms the cornerstone of our history. Right from our company’s beginnings, our technological research effort has focused on the development of components and accessories for racing, and now it has found in footwear an elegantly topical new field of application”.

“Sabelt’s competence and quality have produced a shoe that interprets the DNA of the Lancia brand: indubitable class and style underlined by an attractively young impact”, confirms Olivier François, Lancia brand manager. “In this important year, in which we celebrate 100 years of Italian styling, we want to be present in the worlds that have made Italy famous throughout the world: fashion, cinema and design." The new Lancia by Sabelt will be distributed through the world’s most select boutiques at a price of € 240.00.

THE FINALS OF EUROPEAN FASHION AWARDS  2006

The shoe made its debut during the presentation of the final stages of EFA 2006, an appointment where the protagonists were the talented young people who will be responsible for future fashion. This year’s 13 finalists came from all over Europe and belonged to the most important schools of fashion. The jury that selected them included important names from the fashion world such as Andrea Battilla (Director of IED), Patrick de Muynch (director of the Flanders Fashion Institute), Mario Boselli (President of the National Chamber of Fashion), Mario Matos Ribeiro(President of Moda Lisboa), Roberto Santaniello (Director of the Representative Office of the European Commission in Milan) and is chaired by Charlotte Rovito, creator and president of the European Fashion Awards, and by Valerie Steele, curator of the New York Fashion Museum.

The winner of the 2006 edition of EFA got the chance to drive a Lancia Ypsilon and the prize was the first pair of the new Lancia shoes. “It is a real honour for me to preside over a jury that includes such important names”, says Valerie Steele.
 

“I am a firm believer in this event, just as I am a firm believer that young stylists of proven talent should be given the chance to enter the real world of fashion," she added. “For us it is particularly important to support the creativity of young people - expressing itself in the present case through fashion – because it represents the future”, said Olivier François, Lancia Brand chief. “Lancia is proud to support EFA in offering concrete possibilities to tomorrow’s stylists." The association with fashion continued during the fashion parades, with the Lancia Ypsilon as the official car for the models.

PROGRAMME OF THE FINALS OF EFA 2006

The programme of the finals of EFA 2006 included numerous appointments at Rimini during the weekend of 12 and 13 May, when the winner was announced. Lancia was there in support of the young and of the world of fashion with live events and performances which animated the Romagna coast.

Things got started on last Friday (12 May) with a speed dating session between stylists and companies, including Lancia. Proceedings continued from 5 to 7 pm at the piazza Antica Pescheria, with RAP & ART, an event where music and maxi denim canvases were the protagonists of a live performance in which young street artists were called on to invent new expressive languages using denim as their source of inspiration. On this occasion, Lancia made available to young writers three Ypsilon models whose bodies were reinterpreted through the original, creative language of street style. Saturday 13 May was the day of the Grand Final: in the morning, in the provincial Council Room, a conference was held on the subject “Italian fashion and the global challenge”. From 9.30 pm, at the Rimini Fair, “The latest in creative talent” fashion parade was held: on stage a Lancia Ypsilon Fashion Car literally got the festive proceedings going. The evening was presented by Natasha Stefanenko, someone who has long had ties with the world of fashion.