Vix and Bianca Brandolini swimwear collection bows in Manhattan

The skies in lower Manhattan may have been cool and grey on Tuesday. Still, things were steaming up on the Gansevoort Hotel rooftop, thanks to a new collaboration between Vix Swimwear and Bianca Brandolini, brimming with classy Brazilian sex appeal.

The duo, along with Moda Operandi, gathered friends, influencers, and fans such as Lauren Santo Domingo, Francisco Costa, Aerin Lauder, Derek Blasberg, Adam Lippes, Eugenie Niarchos, Vladimir Restoin, Natalie Lim Suarez, Dylana Lim Suarez and Ivy Getty, for a midday Rio de Janeiro-inspired fete to celebrate the partnership. FashionNetwork.com spoke with Vix founder, Paula Hermanny, and the Venetian Brazilian French model and socialite about the female-led tie-up.

The capsule collection features an expansive range of beachwear, including 14 swimwear options, four cover-ups, and 16 versatile items like dresses, blouses, skirts, and a jumpsuit designed to elevate a resort wardrobe. It will be sold exclusively for one month on Moda Operandi before opening up to Vix’s other distribution channels, such as Vix stores, its online site, and various retail accounts.

Taking a break from the festive event space—where a samba band serenaded guests drinking coconut water from branded fresh coconuts and Mojitos while enjoying Brazilian delicacies and chocolate who received custom-embroidered scarves on the spot—Hermanny sat near the pool, branded with the partnership name, to discuss the partnership.

“This was the first time to co-design a collection. In the past, we collaborated with resorts such as the Aman and the Nikki Beach Clubs, but Vix designed it,” Hermanny said, adding, “I wanted to work with someone who was already a client, and we saw Bianca was a fan of the brand for over ten years. We saw her posts, but we didn’t know each other. However, she has the same lifestyle as the brand,” she added.

Brandolini’s mother is Brazilian; her father is Italian and spends time in Rio. She has an apartment in Ipanema, and Vix has a store there, according to Hermanny. (In total, there are 22 stores in Brazil, and the brand is headquartered between San Diego and Rio de Janeiro and has approximately 800 employees).

Hermanny said Brandolini instantly said yes, and after a September dinner, two visits to Brazil between November and January, and various online meetings, a collection was born.
“It was a natural process; she already likes the brand and only wanted to work with us. She was involved in choosing colors and fabrics and went to the archives to choose things she liked to help design the collection,” Hermanny explained.

Vix is known for its gold-plated hardware, embroidery, unique cuts, fabrics, coordinating resort wear, and swimwear-centric accessories.

“She picked everything she liked and put it together; Bianca was really focused on fit, too,” she added.

Indeed, Brandolini told FashionNetwork.com that she seriously considered the different types of cuts to accommodate all bodies.

“I follow what I like but try to think of all the different body shapes; we have Brazilian bottom bikinis with little coverage to fuller high-waisted briefs, but also the same for the tops; I am not big chested, but we have things for more endowed girls. You can mix and match tops and bottoms, too, which is nice,” Brandolini said.

She had dabbled in swimwear almost a decade ago when she collaborated with Osklen, including swim and resort pieces.

It’s a natural fit for Brandolini, who has never met a beach or sunshine she didn’t like, with a lifestyle to back it up.

“My idea is to wear a bathing suit to the beach in the morning. Then maybe I go to Lunch, so I decide to put on a shirt, and then you spend your day out, and next decide to go for aperitivo, you add the skirt; it’s all in your bag as you go,” she said.

The buzz around the collection will fuel Vix’s ambitions with retail expansion in the U.S. Currently, they have one U.S. store in Coral Gables, Florida, but they plan to open a handful in the next year or so. While Los Angeles and New York are on the list, Hermanny is also focused on further expansion in the Sunshine State.

“We want to open more in Florida. It’s the lifestyle there; it’s year-round, and the weather is good. Perhaps in the Miami Design District or Tampa and a few more in the state,” she said. “We also just opened our first international store outside of Brazil and the U.S. in St.Tropez this summer;  we will see how it goes,” she continued.

Hermanny’s focus on women working together expands beyond this latest initiative. Two years ago, she launched Casa Vix, a vocational training program to elevate women’s lives in her Brazilian community to become seamstresses in more, a move inspired by her grandmothers, who were a seamstress and a model. Preserving skills and craftsmanship locally has been a push in the industry, especially since the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We have 500 workers in Brazil and are offering training for women [though anyone can apply] where we teach them how to sew swimwear, do the embroidery, or handcraft the hardware but also how to make a resume, interview for jobs or open a small business. So far, the program has graduated 72 women; some of whom we employ, and others go on to start their own things,” Hermanny explained.

As summer is just starting in the Northern Hemisphere, there will be plenty of opportunities to sport Vix’s offerings. Brandolini is prepping to spend her time in the Greek Isles.

“I love Italy, of course, but in Greece, I go to little remote islands; there are so many. The sea is a dream and so fresh. Italy is the best, but it’s crowded in the summer, so I would like to go in September or October,” she said.

In both cases, she will be sporting her new collection in various spots in the world. But no matter where they are, Vix stays true to its roots, with plenty of teeny-weeny styles.

“It’s a very Brazilian brand,” said Hermanny.