With sales in the global luxury sector starting to slow, Italian shoes, handbags and eyewear stand out as powerful growth engines as the middle classes in emerging economies indulge the urge to accessorize.

Companies like Casadei and Furla, which showed off their latest collections at Milan Fashion Week alongside the catwalk shows, are reaping the benefits.

A recent study by the consultancy Bain & Company found accessories were the fastest-growing part of the luxury goods market, with an estimated increase in 2013 of 4 percent from 2012 compared to a rate of 2 percent overall.

The report also found that Italian luxury brands have gained the largest market share of luxury sales, moving from 21 percent in 1995 to 24 percent now, nearly equaling French brands' share of 25 percent.

...