Let the Gucci Speculation Begin
2014年12月13日Gucci is finally getting its long-anticipated makeover.
Kering, the Italian brand’s parent company, announced on Friday that Patrizio di Marco, Gucci’s chief executive, and Frida Giannini, its creative director, would both be leaving the brand. Mr. di Marco will step down on Jan. 1, and Ms. Giannini after her autumn-winter women’s wear show in February.
Marco Bizzarri, chief executive of Kering’s luxury couture and leather goods group, will become chief executive of Gucci. A new designer has not yet been named. Mr. Bizzarri declined to comment on his new role or plans.
Though Kering has made numerous changes in its luxury group this year, such as naming new chief executives at Bottega Veneta, Brioni and Christopher Kane, Gucci is the powerhouse of the group — responsible for more than half of its luxury division revenues — and thus changes in its management have correspondingly powerful implications.
You know what that means: Let the speculation begin!
Mr. Bizzarri’s appointment will provide a sense of continuity, and François-Henri Pinault, Kering’s chief executive, said in his statement that he anticipated no strategic changes to the brand’s already stated plans to become evermore exclusive. Ms. Giannini’s departure, however, is sure to set off a frenzied guessing game as to who will take her place.
Under her leadership, Gucci never had the same fashion buzz that made its name under the former creative director, Tom Ford. But Ms. Giannini, who became creative director for accessories after his departure in 2004 and then took over as sole creative director for women’s wear, men’s wear and accessories in 2006, brought a more accessible edge to the brand.
Her first major bag as creative director, Flora — a stylized archival flower print that Mr. Ford had famously rejected — was a consumer hit.
However, in recent years Gucci had struggled to define a consistent aesthetic, swinging in its ready-to-wear collections from ’60s references to ’70s references, and from understatement to bling. The most recent spring-summer collection was a mélange of rock, ’70s and Japanese influences. Meanwhile, its accessories business plumbed the archives for “classics.”
Falling sales — third-quarter revenues were down 1.9 percent compared to the same period a year ago — meant that rumors had been swirling around Ms. Giannini all year. In May, she publicly denied plans to leave.
“This is a real opportunity,” said Luca Solca, luxury analyst at Exane BNP Paribas. “They have been going back to the archives when they should have been trying to invent the item of the future. There is a need for more courage and innovation.”
Names that have been floated as possible replacements include Givenchy’s much-celebrated Riccardo Tisci. Earlier this year he denied ever speaking to Gucci about the job, but his potential appointment has the luxury industry rubbing its hands with glee thanks to its dramatic Capulets and Montagues implications: Last year, Kering’s biggest rival, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, appointed the former Balenciaga designer Nicolas Ghesquière as artistic director of Louis Vuitton. Since Balenciaga is a Kering brand, and Givenchy an LVMH name, a Tisci steal would provide some nice payback.
Then there’s the young New York designer Joseph Altuzarra, who sold a minority stake in his house to Kering last year, and who was named the women’s wear designer of the year by the Council of Fashion Designers of America last June. However, the size of his business compared to Gucci (he only has about 10 full-time employees compared to Gucci’s thousands), as well as his lack of men’s wear experience at a time when men’s wear is the focus of many luxury brands, mitigate against his appointment.
Of course, Kering could always look to its own design team, as it did with the appointment of Ms. Giannini, though that would not provide the same much-needed excitement as an outside name.
Meanwhile, there is another important facet to Ms. Giannini’s departure that has been overlooked in the excitement about What Next: Mr. Pinault’s statement that Ms. Giannini “has been the sole creative director of Gucci for close to a decade.”
“This is a remarkable accomplishment, considering the level and breadth of responsibility of overviewing all the aspects related to product and image for such a global brand during such a long period of time,” he continued.
In fact, in the past designers stayed at brands for much longer. Giorgio Armani, Ralph Lauren, Valentino, Karl Lagerfeld at Chanel, Yves Saint Laurent at his own brand — all were or have been at the top of their respective houses for multiple decades, not just one.
What Mr. Pinault seems to be saying, by contrast, is that in this brave new ultracompetitive world of luxury that may no longer be the case. Certainly, looking at the musical chairs of today’s new generation of designers, he seems to be right. But that is the first time I have ever heard a group chief executive articulate the new reality.
Whomever takes Ms. Giannini’s place would do well to take note.
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Kering, the Italian brand’s parent company, announced on Friday that Patrizio di Marco, Gucci’s chief executive, and Frida Giannini, its creative director, would both be leaving the brand. Mr. di Marco will step down on Jan. 1, and Ms. Giannini after her autumn-winter women’s wear show in February.
Marco Bizzarri, chief executive of Kering’s luxury couture and leather goods group, will become chief executive of Gucci. A new designer has not yet been named. Mr. Bizzarri declined to comment on his new role or plans.
Though Kering has made numerous changes in its luxury group this year, such as naming new chief executives at Bottega Veneta, Brioni and Christopher Kane, Gucci is the powerhouse of the group — responsible for more than half of its luxury division revenues — and thus changes in its management have correspondingly powerful implications.
You know what that means: Let the speculation begin!
Mr. Bizzarri’s appointment will provide a sense of continuity, and François-Henri Pinault, Kering’s chief executive, said in his statement that he anticipated no strategic changes to the brand’s already stated plans to become evermore exclusive. Ms. Giannini’s departure, however, is sure to set off a frenzied guessing game as to who will take her place.
Under her leadership, Gucci never had the same fashion buzz that made its name under the former creative director, Tom Ford. But Ms. Giannini, who became creative director for accessories after his departure in 2004 and then took over as sole creative director for women’s wear, men’s wear and accessories in 2006, brought a more accessible edge to the brand.
Her first major bag as creative director, Flora — a stylized archival flower print that Mr. Ford had famously rejected — was a consumer hit.
However, in recent years Gucci had struggled to define a consistent aesthetic, swinging in its ready-to-wear collections from ’60s references to ’70s references, and from understatement to bling. The most recent spring-summer collection was a mélange of rock, ’70s and Japanese influences. Meanwhile, its accessories business plumbed the archives for “classics.”
Falling sales — third-quarter revenues were down 1.9 percent compared to the same period a year ago — meant that rumors had been swirling around Ms. Giannini all year. In May, she publicly denied plans to leave.
“This is a real opportunity,” said Luca Solca, luxury analyst at Exane BNP Paribas. “They have been going back to the archives when they should have been trying to invent the item of the future. There is a need for more courage and innovation.”
Names that have been floated as possible replacements include Givenchy’s much-celebrated Riccardo Tisci. Earlier this year he denied ever speaking to Gucci about the job, but his potential appointment has the luxury industry rubbing its hands with glee thanks to its dramatic Capulets and Montagues implications: Last year, Kering’s biggest rival, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, appointed the former Balenciaga designer Nicolas Ghesquière as artistic director of Louis Vuitton. Since Balenciaga is a Kering brand, and Givenchy an LVMH name, a Tisci steal would provide some nice payback.
Then there’s the young New York designer Joseph Altuzarra, who sold a minority stake in his house to Kering last year, and who was named the women’s wear designer of the year by the Council of Fashion Designers of America last June. However, the size of his business compared to Gucci (he only has about 10 full-time employees compared to Gucci’s thousands), as well as his lack of men’s wear experience at a time when men’s wear is the focus of many luxury brands, mitigate against his appointment.
Of course, Kering could always look to its own design team, as it did with the appointment of Ms. Giannini, though that would not provide the same much-needed excitement as an outside name.
Meanwhile, there is another important facet to Ms. Giannini’s departure that has been overlooked in the excitement about What Next: Mr. Pinault’s statement that Ms. Giannini “has been the sole creative director of Gucci for close to a decade.”
“This is a remarkable accomplishment, considering the level and breadth of responsibility of overviewing all the aspects related to product and image for such a global brand during such a long period of time,” he continued.
In fact, in the past designers stayed at brands for much longer. Giorgio Armani, Ralph Lauren, Valentino, Karl Lagerfeld at Chanel, Yves Saint Laurent at his own brand — all were or have been at the top of their respective houses for multiple decades, not just one.
What Mr. Pinault seems to be saying, by contrast, is that in this brave new ultracompetitive world of luxury that may no longer be the case. Certainly, looking at the musical chairs of today’s new generation of designers, he seems to be right. But that is the first time I have ever heard a group chief executive articulate the new reality.
Whomever takes Ms. Giannini’s place would do well to take note.
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