soloio

soloio is a Colombian brand with a Spanish heart and an Italian soul. It was founded by the married couple Alejandra Brizio and Fernando Durbán. Alejandra is Italian-Argentine; she met her future Spanish husband in Italy, where she was studying design. Their first project was a small company making and selling men's ties. In the early 1990s, the tie was the only part of a man's wardrobe where a bold colour was permitted. Long before colourful socks became a fashion trend, ties were Alejandra and Fernando's playground for creative experimentation.

In 1994, the couple opened their first store in Madrid, and soon almost every wardrobe in the city had at least one of their ties. In 2005, they renamed the brand soloio and expanded into a full men's collection: shirts, blazers, Neapolitan trousers, swim trunks, oversized jackets, espadrilles (the traditional Spanish canvas shoe with a jute sole), loafers, sandals and accessories. Later they added a women's line: dresses, shirts, tops, swimsuits, bikinis and pareos. And in 2012, Fernando - who handles finances and expansion - decided to enter the Latin American market and opened the first store in Bogotá.

Each soloio collection is its own story with its own theme: Nautilus - the ocean depths, Vasari - Renaissance art, Suzani - Central Asian ornaments, Spicy & Poisonous - wild nature in all its toxic beauty: peppers, frogs, octopuses, pufferfish, skulls. Some prints come from unexpected sources: naturalistic illustrations by 19th-century Austrian artists ended up on swim trunks, while a jacquard pattern featuring a heron migrated onto shirts and waistcoats.

The brand's design approach goes beyond the ordinary. Colours are created with natural dyes, producing shades that are nearly impossible to replicate. Garments are made in Italian artisan workshops, with silk and linen sourced from Italy and organic cotton from Portugal.

In Colombia, soloio has four stores: two in Bogotá and two in the historic centre of Cartagena de Indias. In the courtyard of one of the Cartagena stores - the one on Calle Arzobispado - there's a charming bistro with an open-air terrace.

soloio positions itself as accessible luxury: prices are above average, but customers know what they're paying for - exclusivity and the quality of handcrafted work.