The mighty house of Gucci is currently a house in transition. It’s a hard act to follow the most recent dynasty, that of Alessandro Michele. The latter followed the relatively quiet 9+ year reign of designer Frida Giannini, who stayed well out of the spotlight as opposed to her predecessor Tom Ford. Ford was widely credited for shaking the dust off Gucci & making it one of the world’s leading brands in the mid nineties until he exited in 2004, & making himself the center of the spotlight more often than not.
The latest collection at Gucci seemed like an audition for creative director. This is not as surprising given that many fashion houses have stepped away from hiring 1st draft picks to follow supernova stars such as Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel & Alexander McQueen. This strategy has worked at both designers’ longtime first assistants Virginie Viard & Sarah Burton were groomed for years to take over in a well-organized succession plan. The former assistants dutifully followed in their boss’ giant footsteps & continue produce work that is in line with current brand standards & aesthetics, however thus far, they haven’t really demonstrated a strong vision for the future.
The biggest win employing this strategy has been Daniel Roseberry at Schiaparelli, who has reinterpreted Elsa Schiaparelli’s archives in a thoroughly modern manner that is resonating with retail & consumer customers as well & the press has taken major notice.
Hopefully, next season, Gucci will have a creative force at the reigns to continue to make this historic house great once again. Until then, we have to deal with a seemingly endless parade of ideas, none of which connect into a whole.
-Vivian Kelly (@thefashionhistorian)
