Gucci shakeup

Gucci's high profile personalities, designer Tom Ford, 41, and CEO Domenico De Sole, 59, have announced that they will leave Gucci in April 2004. Six months' negotiations about the renewal of their contracts with the PPR Group, major shareholder of Gucci, failed to lead to an agreement.

Undoubtedly, the contribution of “Tom and Dom” has turned the almost moribund Gucci brand into one of today's largest luxury groups of the world. The question that now arises is whether Gucci can be run as any major conglomerate, independent of the stamp of dominant personalities.

Ford's rise to superstar
Texan designer Tom Ford, former TV actor, took hold of Gucci's women's wear line in 1990. In 1995 his collection was much remarked and he was appointed Director of all the brand: men's and women's wear, perfumes, accessories. His marketing flair enabled him to promote Gucci's intertwined G-logo not only on clothes and accessories, but also to link it to an impressive series of trivia, such as dog collars and mink coats for children.
Ford was also appointed designer of YSL in spring 2000, a few months after Gucci acquired control of the French house.

De Sole's charismatic management
A lawyer from Calabria, Italy, Harvard graduate, Domenico De Sole joined Gucci in 1984. Ten years later, Maurizio Gucci was murdered and De Sole was asked to take command of the Group. He appointed Ford as Creative Director of the brand and the Gucci-mania testified to the success of the collaboration between the two men. Meanwhile, Gucci snapped up Yves Saint Laurent BeautÉ, 51 % of Stella McCartney, 51 % of McQueen, controlling interest in Bottega Veneta, Balenciaga, Boucheron, Sergio Rossi, Bedat & Co. and Roger & Gallet.

Moving forward
Pinault's Pinault-Printemps-Redoute group now owns 67 % of Gucci and is offering to buy the Gucci shares it does not own at $ 85.52 per share. The offer ends in April.
How Gucci will maintain its success and identity is a story yet to be written. A committee to select successors has been set up involving PPR chairman Serge Weinberg and Gucci supervisory chairman Adrian Bellamy, who said the company owed “a huge debt of gratitude to both Domenico and Tom.”

Read our Cover Story on Gucci

http://www.gucci.com

Europa Star / NM
13 November 2003