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After absolutely no kicking and screaming, Fok-Yan Leung, owner of the popular menswear site Styleforum, happily traveled across the pond to attend the Pitti Immagine Uomo 83 trade show. We asked him a few questions about the event, so stop reading this part and get to the good stuff.

1) First off, what is Pitti Immagine Uomo?

Held every winter (and summer) at the Fortezza de Basso in Florence, (Firenze if you are bourgeois), Pitti Immagine Uomo is the original and largest menswear trade show in the world. Its purpose is for brands to showcase their wares and set the tone for the rest of the selling season. Shows are held two seasons ahead from when the goods hit the retail floor – so in January 2013, we are seeing what will be in stores in Fall 2013. The brands run the gauntlet from military and outdoors inspired brands like Nigel Cabourn, to the top Neapolitan tailors like Kiton. It’s massive. Thousands of brands, more participants (buyers and vendors), and, of course, tons of media, both offline and online.

2) What was the coolest thing you saw?

I am always blown away by the unexpected. This year, there were some amazing leather goods, like the vibrantly colored handmade backpacks by Japanese brand Ohba. They apparently have some connection to the Japanese Royal family, and started by making school satchels. Anyway, very cool.

3) What do you think is the biggest trend that is going to catch on in 2013?

I think unstructured, jersey jackets are going to continue to be strong. It’s not exactly a new trend, but a lot of brands seem to be making them, and the basic concept carries over to all sorts of styles: from the Italian dandy look to more “street” urban looks to those “dark designer” looks.

4) What was THE party this year at the Pitti show?

By the end of the day, most people are completely knackered, so I suppose the best party I had was dinner at Trattoria Armando, which serves really spot on Tuscan food. The place was packed with people there from Pitti the first night I went, so I’m going to cheat and say that was THE party.

5) Who was the most random celeb you spotted?

I don’t know about random, but I did see Valentino. Does that count? I also saw a lot of people who are famous on the internet. That’s a weird thing to say.

6) If you had a blank check to buy anything you saw, what would it be?

If I could buy anything at all, I’d get a full get up, accessories included, like these stylings from Kiton. I don’t dress up much, and when I do, I generally prefer the cleaner lines of something like Tom Ford. But when you go to Pitti Uomo, you start to think, “Hmmm… maybe I should start wearing slim, barely structured suits and layer like a crazy person.” This way, I’ll be ready when I get that itch. Then I’d come home after lunch and get back into my jeans.

To read more thoughts and see pictures from this year’s Pitti Immagine Uomo, go here!