Anthony Thomas Melillo (ATM), is a luxurious lifestyle and sportswear brand founded and designed by Tony Melillo. Launching his namesake label in 2012 with a collection of “perfect t-shirts,” the brand has since evolved towards an extended range of selections with the “fit & feel” of his revered shirts. Made with the finest cotton and cashmere of Peru, Tony has revolutionized comfort in clothing.
Yesterday, Flaunt attended the ATM Spring/Summer 2019 presentation. Whether it was a leopard jumpsuit, striped sweater, or tie-dye hoodie, ATM kept a centralized focus on the movement, quality, and silhouette of their garments. We sat down with Tony to discuss all things SS19 and brand evolution:
**Having launched in 2012 with the perfect t-shirt, how has your brand evolved towards a lifestyle and sportswear brand?**
We launched with the perfect tee, and I always keep that in the back of my head. Our customer wants to be able to mix it and have that perfect pant or a perfect sweater. I think the most important thing for us is trying to keep a relaxed and elegant feeling. If it’s not relaxed and elegant or doesn’t have a “fit & feel” then it shouldn’t be in the collection. It was just a matter of time, in terms of evolving to a lifestyle brand. It was essential to get the t-shirt launch to be successful and have people wanting more. As the collection grew, it continued to be items that people thought felt great. Overall, it had organic growth.
**Let’s talk fabrics; How have you perfected the textures and weights of your garments over the years?**
It’s key because the drape of a garment is one of the most important things. I always say “fit & feel.” We like to keep a vibe that’s relaxed and elegant, but also has a sex appeal. For instance, a t-shirt; what do you do so it’s not shaped like a box. Some brands want the look to be stiff or sheer, but the thought is that our fabric needs to drape nicely without revealing too much and that’s how we gauge a perfect material. We develop a lot of the fabrics; 40% of the collection is done in Peru, so we make a lot of the cotton from scratch. Our gauge is lighter than a typical sweater in the contemporary world. So for instance, we do a sweater in 12-gauge 248ths cashmere; This is very technical and may not make sense to some, but it means that these sweaters are more year-round than what the next guy is doing, which is a bit heavier and denser. That’s why our clothes are very transitional, but we still have seasons of course.
**What inspired you throughout the creative process of this collection?**
I looked at a bunch of things and made an inspiration board. A friend of mine had just bought a black sailboat, and it wasn’t about the fact that it was black or a sailboat, but watching the movement of the sail, reminded me of the way our clothes move so well. So it related back to ATM way, the way it drapes.
**Describe some of the themes associated with the collection.**
We don’t go by “I went to Europe and Morocco, saw these rocks, and I want to make a collection that looks like them.” I think it’s more of the fact that we’re doing spring. Spring has to have some beautiful shades, along with things somewhat trending, and then mix that with our beautiful fabrics. We focus on silhouettes that we feel strongly about and ones we work best with. We do great field jackets, so we’ll evolve that by maybe applying gold snaps rather than silver, and put frayed edges on it. We’re never really wishing on a trend. We’re following trends and color forecasts, but we’re evolving to create better and more of what we do best. If it’s t-shirts, we think what’s the next. Every year we launch a new shirt, and this year it’s the boy tee.
**You like to connect with your customers on a personal level to focus on their needs each season. What do you think the needs of your customers are like for spring 2019?**
A lot of it comes from being in the stores. We have one here \[West Village\] and one in the Hamptons, where I live as well, so I’m always in there trying to understand their needs. For example, they love leopard, but they wanted leopard in a different print for next season, so we did the leopard in a more subtle print, rather than the one we did for spring 2018. Our new silk skirt with an elastic waistband is cool; It’s a chic silk skirt that looks like an old voyage skirt from the 80s, but it has the pull on waistband allowing it to be comfortable. Our customers come in, and they tell me things, which is what I relate to. I make what I want to make, but bring that into the package.
To see more by ATM click [here](https://atmcollection.com/?gclid=CjwKCAjwoMPcBRAWEiwAiAqZhwSYN1Dbdh4ezRMvvwsBE17FnC-zzACWi1s4UAm5h3B1imAssJqRtBoCr9MQAvD_BwE).
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Interview conducted and written by: Morgan Vickery
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