Crunch time at Gucci Group
Suzy Menkes IHT Monday, October 13, 2003
Thursday is crunch time for Gucci Group. Tom Ford and Domenico De Sole are still in a standoff with PPR (Printemps Pinault Redoute) which in 2001 bought 64 percent of Gucci with a commitment to complete the deal. The fashion world is suddenly faced with the unthinkable: that Ford and his partner, the architects of so much in modern fashion, might go.
François Pinault, who sat with his son François Henri and Serge Weinberg, No. 2 at PPR, at Alexander McQueen's show on Friday said: "I am an optimist by nature."
But sources close to the conflict say that after six months, the renewal of Ford and De Sole's contracts has reached an impasse. PPR wants Ford to back off as Gucci Group's creative director to concentrate on the core brand; and Ford, who did not return calls on Sunday, is insisting on rebuilding the loss-making Yves Saint Laurent, but might be willing to compromise the underperforming, if hot, Balenciaga.
