fashionologie

Frida Giannini, Gucci CEO Patrizio di Marco Publicly Announce Their Romantic Involvement

fashionologie — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 07:35:20 PDT

>> Frida Giannini and Gucci CEO Patrizio di Marco have publicly announced that they've been a couple for over two years. Although many fashion brands are or have been run by couples - Miuccia Prada and Patrizio Bertelli, Valentino Garavani and Giancarlo Giammetti, Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Berge - this marks the first time the couple is not the owners of the brand but rather its employees.

Giannini, 38, who became Gucci creative director in 2006, and di Marco, 49, who joined as CEO in January 2009, became romantically involved on a trip to China; both were divorced at the time. After their relationship changed, di Marco says he went to Rome to speak to François-Henri Pinault, the chief executive of PPR, which owns Gucci; Giannini also spoke to Pinault, separately. Both say they were fully prepared to leave Gucci if required, but Pinault “was very supportive.”

Pinault says that he is not concerned if the relationship were to go south: “If something changed and one left, well, we would deal with that. . . . This is a family business – it was started by my father, and I know how that can feel and seem to the outside world, but I also know how much that makes you be strict with yourself. And I knew them, so I knew if anything this would make them more demanding with themselves.”

Gucci Spring 2012

fashionologie — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 09:01:02 PDT

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Frida Giannini Finds Fashion More Inspiring Without a Stylist's Influence

fashionologie — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 11:37:55 PDT

>> When Frida Giannini is asked how she first got interested in fashion - whether it was through music or otherwise - she replies in the new issue of Interview: "I always loved the look of musicians. I’ve always admired them because they have a look - when I was growing up, it seemed that the ones I liked didn’t need to have a stylist. Now there is this trend where everyone has a stylist, or follows the suggestions of a stylist, from designers on down. But I have some memories of looking at David Bowie in the ’70s, and he had this look that was so authentic and original, which I think is more genuine in a way for a musician, and also very intriguing from the designer’s point of view." Also learned: Giannini owns 8,000 vinyl records. [Interview]

Frida Giannini Loves Her Some Hot Dogs

fashionologie — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 14:39:44 PST

>> It's no secret that Gucci creative director Frida Giannini likes Rome, where she grew up, and music from the likes of Prince, Madonna, and Franz Ferdinand. Those are two of the twelve things she tells Elle Decor's February/March 2011 issue (out Feb. 8) she can't live without . . . but what about some of the less obvious things she listed? Among them: the seaside ("When I want to escape, I take my German shepherd, Gunner IV, and go to my beach house in Sabaudia, an hour from Rome"); hot dogs in Central Park ("I can eat four at a time, with lots of ketchup"); Agent Provocateur lingerie ("I wear a lot of black, which can look severe. Lingerie lets me play with my secret side"); pilates ("I do it early in the morning; I feel less guilty for the rest of the day"); and pasta with fresh tomatoes ("Don't forget the basil. So good and so healthy").

Gucci Reeling in Commercial Appeal, Repositioning with Pricier Heritage-Inspired Pieces

fashionologie — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 13:45:11 PDT

>> Since Frida Giannini took the helm back in 2004, Gucci has been criticized for being too commercial, even earning comparisons to Zara at one point. The label's chief executive, Patrizio di Marco, who joined the company at the beginning of last year, agrees: "Gucci was going too mass-market, too commercial, too much on opening price points."

While having less expensive, aspirational products boosted Gucci's sales for several years, the brand had hoped to hit €3 billion ($3.9 billion) in sales by 2011. Last year, sales were €2.27 billion. Di Marco blames the fact that buyers for Gucci's own stores (which account for 70 percent of the brand's sales) were choosing cheaper, logoed items over Giannini's designs, causing her designs to be lost and an erosion of the brand's exclusivity. During the slump, aspirational purchases also slowed sharply, resulting in Gucci being hit harder than Louis Vuitton or Hermes.

So di Marco has set out to elevate the brand and shed it of its cheapening image. The brand's Spring 2011 collection focuses on "sophisticated seduction" and marks the debut of a new line of heritage-inspired handbags drawing from the brand's equestrian history. "Every single brand in the universe, especially in this industry, is talking about heritage - even when there's no heritage, no history," says di Marco, who noted that he supports Giannini's use of archives for inspiration. "Some designers say, 'The archives are old and I know best. That's the most pretentious attitude possible. This company is about icons."

He added that Gucci will place less focus on the cheaper "GG" monogram canvas bags, which saturated the market previously, and more emphasis on its new offering of "vintage" bags such as the New Bamboo bag, an updated $2,000 version of a 1947 bag with a bamboo handle, and the $3,000 New Jackie leather bag, which takes its inspiration from a purse made famous by Jackie Onassis. Gucci store buyers have also been given strict guidelines on what they can choose for their boutiques - instead of so many logo bags, prime positioning and focus will go towards the new heritage-inspired products.

Gucci Rolls Out "Luxury Digital Flagship Store" That Frida Giannini Has Been Working on for 18 Months

fashionologie — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 13:52:17 PDT

>> While some luxury brands are just now getting on the ecommerce train (and some still have yet to do so), Gucci, which launched its US ecommerce site in 2002, is now taking its online shopping experience to the next level - creating what it terms a "luxury digital flagship store."

Frida Giannini has been working on the newly rolled-out experience for the past 18 months, and Gucci president and CEO Patrizio di Marco says: “The destiny of the gucci.com digital flagship store is that it will become our highest-volume store in the world.”

They're also taking runway livestreaming to the next level »

Fashion in 50 Seconds 06/07/10 Fashion Icon Iman, John Galliano Names Fashion Fringe Finalists

coutorture — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 08:13:01 PDT

Iman (who will be recognized as this year’s Fashion Icon during the CFDA awards tonight) discusses her cosmetics collection, fashion line for HSN, and the role models used to have collaborating with designers.

John Galliano, chairman of the Fashion Fringe at Covent Garden competition, announced the three 2010 finalists-Alice Palmer, Jade Kang, and Corrie Nielsen.

Frida Giannini launches Gucci iPad cases. Priced at $230, the case will be available starting in mid-June in Gucci’s flagship stores in Rome, Milan, Paris, London and New York.

Joe Zee is editing a coffee table book for Elle's 25th anniversary tentatively titled “The Ellements of Style."

Gucci Belt Prints Dominate Frida Giannini's 2011 Cruise Collection

coutorture — Fri, 28 May 2010 12:20:16 PDT

Resort is all about the print for Frida Giannini's Gucci. Tiger stripes in khaki, army green and gray along with an iconic Gucci belt and chain print covered much of the resort collection's skinny pantsuits, slim strapless dresses, and one-piece swimwear. Giannini showed hints of inspiration from the Seventies, a decade not lost on Karl Lagerfeld's recent ressort collection for Chanel.

First Look: Gucci's New Couture Line, Gucci Premiere

fashionologie — Wed, 12 May 2010 12:31:47 PDT

>> Although Gucci declined comment back in January when rumor went around that Frida Giannini was working on a debut couture collection for the brand, it appears the rumors were true. The brand sent out a release today announcing that the dress Salma Hayek wore to the Robin Hood premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, at left, is the "very first" couture gown from the Gucci Premiere collection designed by Giannini.

The dress was described in the statement as a "floor length bordeaux silk georgette one shoulder gown with hip, back and shoulder drape detail [which] also features deep red crystal embroidery at the shoulder and waist." Hayek was accompanied on the red carpet by her husband, Francois-Henri Pinault, CEO of PPR, which owns Gucci.

Back when the rumors of the Gucci couture collection went around, there were no plans to show it on the runway. Instead, it was said it would be sold by appointment and used to dress top celebrities for big red carpet occasions.

Frida Giannini and Friends Celebrate Gucci Temporary Sneaker Store in London's Covent Garden

coutorture — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 07:45:15 PDT

Anouck Lepere (left) Mark Ronson, Frida Giannini, Jefferson Hack at Gucci

Frida Giannini was in London last night to fete the opening of her Gucci pop-up sneaker shop in Covent Garden. The 820-square-foot space will be open for three weeks, offering limited edition Gucci sneaker styles (two of which were designed by Giannini's co-host, Mark Ronson). Each piece is exclusive to the store, but after its stint in London, the shop will move to Tokyo this June. Click below for images from the in-store event and afterparty hosted by Jefferson Hack at Ronnie Scott’s jazz club.

Source: Getty

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