Marco Baldassari’s confident philosophy and unstructured jackets are elevating California style
Words by ANDREW BARKER
Marco Baldassari has built ELEVENTY on an Italian philosophy that transcends fashion: sprezzatura, the art of appearing effortlessly composed. As a cofounder and the creative director, he embodies the brand’s quiet confidence, creating clothes that whisper refinement rather than shout luxury. “There are two kinds of wealthy people,” he says. “The ones who arrive in a Lamborghini, and the ones who don’t want to show off. We are the brand for the second group.”
Inspired by Giorgio Armani and Ralph Lauren, Baldassari founded Eleventy in Milan in 2007 with a single men’s jacket and polo. Today the brand stands at the forefront of modern Italian tailoring for men and women, known for its unstructured jackets handmade in Italy using Zegna and Loro Piana fabrics in proprietary colors and designs. The result: a fluid silhouette and a youthful, natural look. For fall/winter, there are soft-shouldered topcoats for evenings out, cashmere sweaters, and padded gilets for weekends in the mountains. “Our goal,” Baldassari says, “is to make people look young and cool — not through trends, but through confidence.” Each piece is designed to move between meetings, dinners, and departures — winter whites included.
“Our goal is to make people look cool — not through trends, but through confidence.”
That understated sophistication — available in 18 standalone stores worldwide — has found a natural home in California, with boutiques in Beverly Hills and Costa Mesa. “California is a casual, chic life,” Baldassari says. “People care about balance, about wellness. It’s very close to the Italian way of living.” Indeed, both cultures share a love of sunlight, the great outdoors, and dressing up without pretense.
For Baldassari, luxury is never about excess; instead, it’s about intention. “Our idea of luxury is respect,” he says. “Respect for time, for craftsmanship, for how you feel in what you wear.” He is more than Eleventy’s founder — he is its living expression: elegance without effort, confidence without ego, and the rare ability to turn the simple into the sublime. eleventymilano.com.
Feature image: Baldassari takes a run through Beverly Hills. PHOTO: Rainer Hosch.
This story originally appeared in the Winter 2025 issue of C Magazine.
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