Brioni

Brioni was founded in Rome in 1945 and staged, in 1952, what is generally credited as the first men's runway show — announcing that tailoring could be fashion, not merely service. Its 'Roman style' softened the structured English silhouette into something more sculpted and glamorous, dressing film stars and statesmen through the postwar decades and famously outfitting James Bond for a long run of films. Production remains in Penne, in Abruzzo, where the house runs its own tailoring school — a suit passes through many hours of handwork before it carries the label. The bespoke service, su misura, is the summit: measured in Rome or its flagships, cut in Penne. Ready-to-wear carries the same DNA in softer form. For the full experience, commission a suit and see why Roman tailoring remains a distinct dialect from Naples or Savile Row.

Allow several fittings and a season's patience for the full bespoke; the ready-made suits, cut on the same Roman block, are the faster route to the silhouette.