Paninaro (Italian pronunciation: [paniˈnaːro]; feminine: Paninara; plural: Paninari; feminine plural: Paninare) was a youth scene that took its name from a group of youngsters who used to meet at the Al Panino bar (At the Sandwich)[1] in Milan's Via Agnello during the early 1980s. The group's meeting place later moved to Piazza San Babila, where Burghy, a defunct Italian fast food chain, had just opened its first restaurant; it then became a full-fledged subculture, whose members were to be found associated to the many branches of the chain, which were spread all across Milan. The subculture was known for its apolitical nature and its twin obsessions with fashion and Americana, contrasting sharply with the politically-aware generations of the 1960s and 1970s.
The Paninaro scene developed in tandem with the vapid hedonism of the 80s, fostered by Reaganomics, Thatcherism, deregulation and liberism and was eagerly embraced by the sons of well-to-do professionals who benefited from the widening gulf between high-income families and salaried workers.
It was also reinforced by the diffusion in Italy of Berlusconi's television channels, which transmitted messages of consumerism and fostered a fetishistic urge of self-affirmation through the acquisition of status symbols. Among these one station, Italia 1, was explicitly aimed at a younger target, broadcasting then-popular US series, movies, cartoons and comedy shows which had unparalleled popularity in the 10-25 age range.
The Paninaro look's cornerstones were: Timberland boots or Vans deck shoes, Argyle socks, Armani jeans rolled up to ankle height, El Charro belts with Texan or western-style big buckles, Best Company sweatshirts, bulky Moncler jackets and brightly colored Invicta rucksacks. Designer Olmes Carretti collaborated with the British sailing brand Henri Lloyd to further develop their iconic " Consort" sailing jacket so favoured by the Paninari.
Other popular items were Ray-Ban sunglasses, Naj-Oleari underwear, Fiorucci and Moschino accessories, Controvento and CP Company clothing.
In their heyday, Paninari were lampooned in the Italia 1 comedy show Drive-in by Enzo Braschi, who played a character depicting the shallowness of the subculture and its unending vulnerability to newer trends and fads of the 1980s (New Romantic, Dark-Goth, Rambo-like, and so on). Braschi later dropped the character after a season in which he appeared in military uniform relating his experiences in the then-compulsory service in the Italian Army (then a rite of passage signalling detachment from the teenage years).
The Paninaro movement was also diffused in some European countries, and is immortalized in the 1986 cult song "Paninaro" by the Pet Shop Boys.