Demna Gvasalia - Designer, Creative Director of Gucci

[penny609]

That "Tavernello" thing just reminds me so much of quirky memories. Very on point.

 

[FashionPower]

At the end, I think it's the most suitable choice to act as a containment action to prevent further losses and slightly increase sales (or stabilize them whatsoever).
Let's be honest, Gucci is a leather goods brand, they need strong accessories (see the Dyonisus and Marmont bags and the Princeton furry loafers) for the girlies and easily merchandisable basics for the mens (logo hoodies / tracksuits). Demna is a master in making pop fashion and desirable entry level sneakers / basics: look at the Runner, the 3XL, the Track...all of these are Balenciaga staples now and current spenders associate Balenciaga to those rather than Cristobal architectural couture.
- His hypebeast cult followers will obviously follow him at Gucci
- New sneakers / footwear releases that will sell better than the current hideous and outdated footwear selections under Sabato
- The latest bag releases from Demna are amazing: the Rodeo, the Bal Air and the Hamptons, they have been recently introduced and already became brand staples amongisde the Cagole and the revamped City. These bags feel very luxurious while still keeping an edge. Remember that Sabato did not release a new staple bag in his first show, we had to wait 6 months for the first bag release, the Gucci Milano that flopped so hard and got discontinued...
- Balenciaga basics (which contributes to...90% of the sales?) are produced in low operational cost countries (underpaid blue collars and / or no job regulations) : hoodies and tshirts are made in Portugal, sneakers are made in China, hence the sellout margins are ginourmous, we're talking about a 10 bucks cotton hoodie sold for 1k+. Gucci can easily outsource production or tweak the system to get the made in Italy tag while still outsourcing...now imagine Gucci hoodies by Demna sold at 3k with production cost of 15 bucks, bingo for Cantino.

As I have always said, most people in here tend to forget that Alessandro achieved commercial success because of the Jeffree Star logo athletic wear and the accessories, not for the avant garde RTW that was produced in 10 pieces for the whole world and bought by 3 wealthy bored chinese...
Look at Jeffree in 2018 (peak of Michele era) : Gucci logo top, Gucci logo tracksuit, Princeton loafers, Gucci stripe cardigan: this is exactly what the typical customer was from Gucci under Michele. Yes, of course I know there were also the fashion twinks who bought the ruffled loose silk shirts with bows and tassels but that was one millionth of the Gucci consumers base.


I am expecting at least 3 footwear and 2 bags new releases for the first RTW show, plus many many hoodies and tshirts of course.

 

[FashioNarrating]

They clearly moved him to Gucci because they wanted to generate hype as qu!ckly as possible (between Balenciaga looking real tired, no show for Bottega, a shaky McQueen and a stale Saint Laurent, Kering had a pretty weak show season - ironically, Gucci's studio-approved collection was better than anything the brand has shown in recent years, even before Ancora).
Frankly, I'm ok with this announcement because the essence of the brand has always been grЄЄd, from the founders - y'all have seen House of Gucci, lol - to Kering using it as their cash cow ever since Tom Ford demonstrated how much coin you can make with some flash and aggressive branding. In line with that, Demna gets to be as gimmicky as he wants (as long as his stuff makes insane sums of money, ofc) and Gucci will get another era that doesn't have much to do with the previous one(s) which actually makes sense because it's always been more about the bling & ching than particular silhouettes, fabrics or finishes.

 

[proseccotabis]

This situation also highlights that Kering is still absolutely terrible at HR

they are even worse with employees who are not near CD level and are at middle or entry we just dont hear about it on tfs.... unfortuantely. its all horror horror

 

[yslforever]

At the end, I think it's the most suitable choice to act as a containment action to prevent further losses and slightly increase sales (or stabilize them whatsoever).
Let's be honest, Gucci is a leather goods brand, they need strong accessories (see the Dyonisus and Marmont bags and the Princeton furry loafers) for the girlies and easily merchandisable basics for the mens (logo hoodies / tracksuits). Demna is a master in making pop fashion and desirable entry level sneakers / basics: look at the Runner, the 3XL, the Track...all of these are Balenciaga staples now and current spenders associate Balenciaga to those rather than Cristobal architectural couture.
- His hypebeast cult followers will obviously follow him at Gucci
- New sneakers / footwear releases that will sell better than the current hideous and outdated footwear selections under Sabato
- The latest bag releases from Demna are amazing: the Rodeo, the Bal Air and the Hamptons, they have been recently introduced and already became brand staples amongisde the Cagole and the revamped City. These bags feel very luxurious while still keeping an edge. Remember that Sabato did not release a new staple bag in his first show, we had to wait 6 months for the first bag release, the Gucci Milano that flopped so hard and got discontinued...
- Balenciaga basics (which contributes to...90% of the sales?) are produced in low operational cost countries (underpaid blue collars and / or no job regulations hoodies and tshirts are made in Portugal, sneakers are made in China, hence the sellout margins are ginourmous, we're talking about a 10 bucks cotton hoodie sold for 1k+. Gucci can easily outsource production or tweak the system to get the made in Italy tag while still outsourcing...now imagine Gucci hoodies by Demna sold at 3k with production cost of 15 bucks, bingo for Cantino.

As I have always said, most people in here tend to forget that Alessandro achieved commercial success because of the Jeffree Star logo athletic wear and the accessories, not for the avant garde RTW that was produced in 10 pieces for the whole world and bought by 3 wealthy bored chinese...
Look at Jeffree in 2018 (peak of Michele era Gucci logo top, Gucci logo tracksuit, Princeton loafers, Gucci stripe cardigan: this is exactly what the typical customer was from Gucci under Michele. Yes, of course I know there were also the fashion twinks who bought the ruffled loose silk shirts with bows and tassels but that was one millionth of the Gucci consumers base.
View attachment 1364286

I am expecting at least 3 footwear and 2 bags new releases for the first RTW show, plus many many hoodies and tshirts of course.

100% right and brilliantly explained but you deserve torture for your illustration.

 

[KilltheLook]

At the end, I think it's the most suitable choice to act as a containment action to prevent further losses and slightly increase sales (or stabilize them whatsoever).
Let's be honest, Gucci is a leather goods brand, they need strong accessories (see the Dyonisus and Marmont bags and the Princeton furry loafers) for the girlies and easily merchandisable basics for the mens (logo hoodies / tracksuits). Demna is a master in making pop fashion and desirable entry level sneakers / basics: look at the Runner, the 3XL, the Track...all of these are Balenciaga staples now and current spenders associate Balenciaga to those rather than Cristobal architectural couture.
- His hypebeast cult followers will obviously follow him at Gucci
- New sneakers / footwear releases that will sell better than the current hideous and outdated footwear selections under Sabato
- The latest bag releases from Demna are amazing: the Rodeo, the Bal Air and the Hamptons, they have been recently introduced and already became brand staples amongisde the Cagole and the revamped City. These bags feel very luxurious while still keeping an edge. Remember that Sabato did not release a new staple bag in his first show, we had to wait 6 months for the first bag release, the Gucci Milano that flopped so hard and got discontinued...
- Balenciaga basics (which contributes to...90% of the sales?) are produced in low operational cost countries (underpaid blue collars and / or no job regulations) : hoodies and tshirts are made in Portugal, sneakers are made in China, hence the sellout margins are ginourmous, we're talking about a 10 bucks cotton hoodie sold for 1k+. Gucci can easily outsource production or tweak the system to get the made in Italy tag while still outsourcing...now imagine Gucci hoodies by Demna sold at 3k with production cost of 15 bucks, bingo for Cantino.

As I have always said, most people in here tend to forget that Alessandro achieved commercial success because of the Jeffree Star logo athletic wear and the accessories, not for the avant garde RTW that was produced in 10 pieces for the whole world and bought by 3 wealthy bored chinese...
Look at Jeffree in 2018 (peak of Michele era) : Gucci logo top, Gucci logo tracksuit, Princeton loafers, Gucci stripe cardigan: this is exactly what the typical customer was from Gucci under Michele. Yes, of course I know there were also the fashion twinks who bought the ruffled loose silk shirts with bows and tassels but that was one millionth of the Gucci consumers base.
View attachment 1364286

I am expecting at least 3 footwear and 2 bags new releases for the first RTW show, plus many many hoodies and tshirts of course.

You are so on point! Also this is confusing for me when brands want to go upmarket. There's a time an there's a place for everything/everyone. As elitist as fashion is, I hope the suite does notice that the majority of their profit comes from the mass with no taste.

 

[blueorchid]

As elitist as fashion is, I hope the suite does notice that the majority of their profit comes from the mass with no taste.

Bold to think that the suits have any taste.

 

[Royal-Galliano]

i can't wait for this. also curious how different he can get as a CD. he's gone unhinged at balenciaga almost making it a societal experiment, distorting the idea of what a heritage luxury brand can be and what people are willing to buy.

 

[Monsieur Cristobal]

Demna Gvasalia- New Director Creative of Balenciaga

"She scoffed at the suggestion that Gvasalia might steer Balenciaga in an edgy, streetwear direction, given his gritty approach at Vêtements. “Definitely not,” she said. “You could have said exactly the same thing the day Martin Margiela was appointed at Hermès, or Jean Paul Gaultier at Hermès. But it didn’t go that way.”



wwd.com

Out of nostalgia I was reading the first pages of this thread.
The very first post was this interview with Isabelle Guichot, back then CEO of Balenciaga.
She was invited to leave one year later.

In the second page there is also a very interesting text by Cathy Horyn, very hesitant about the many margielaisms at Vetements.

 

[NYLA22]

I found this interesting from Lauren Sherman today:

Most people remain stunned and confused. There are others who know Demna and believe he is more than capable of expanding his purview. Also, frankly, Kering had no other choice. (An unproven designer was too big of a risk, and there were no other proven creative directors available—or interested.) Investors, who may be less understanding of the curious machinations of the luxury industry, reacted poorly, with Kering shares down about 10 percent on the news. The company’s market cap is now just over $27 billion, down from $115 billion in August 2021.

"No other proven creative directors available..." I'm guessing "available" meaning...at the salary they were offering.

 

[callmejaeden]

I found this interesting from Lauren Sherman today:

Most people remain stunned and confused. There are others who know Demna and believe he is more than capable of expanding his purview. Also, frankly, Kering had no other choice. (An unproven designer was too big of a risk, and there were no other proven creative directors available—or interested.) Investors, who may be less understanding of the curious machinations of the luxury industry, reacted poorly, with Kering shares down about 10 percent on the news. The company’s market cap is now just over $27 billion, down from $115 billion in August 2021.

"No other proven creative directors available..." I'm guessing "available" meaning...at the salary they were offering.

Not even Ralph Rucci?!

 

[LadyJunon]

The company’s market cap is now just over $27 billion, down from $115 billion in August 2021.

That's insane...

 

[proseccotabis]

I found this interesting from Lauren Sherman today:

Most people remain stunned and confused. There are others who know Demna and believe he is more than capable of expanding his purview. Also, frankly, Kering had no other choice. (An unproven designer was too big of a risk, and there were no other proven creative directors available—or interested.) Investors, who may be less understanding of the curious machinations of the luxury industry, reacted poorly, with Kering shares down about 10 percent on the news. The company’s market cap is now just over $27 billion, down from $115 billion in August 2021.

"No other proven creative directors available..." I'm guessing "available" meaning...at the salary they were offering.

wow i didnt realize they were doing that badly...

 

[yslforever]

I found this interesting from Lauren Sherman today:

Most people remain stunned and confused. There are others who know Demna and believe he is more than capable of expanding his purview. Also, frankly, Kering had no other choice. (An unproven designer was too big of a risk, and there were no other proven creative directors available—or interested.) Investors, who may be less understanding of the curious machinations of the luxury industry, reacted poorly, with Kering shares down about 10 percent on the news. The company’s market cap is now just over $27 billion, down from $115 billion in August 2021.

"No other proven creative directors available..." I'm guessing "available" meaning...at the salary they were offering.

I do believe uninterested.
Every reputed or established, available or soon-to-be-available, CD (MGC, Jones, Gallieno, Hedi, PPP, Viard) knows Gucci is a shitshow and that Ancora guy was a second choice.
Coming right now would make them the third choice and not a savior.
Also every one of them know that the CD will be the fall guy, even if factually 90% or more of the financial successes depend on the c-suite : distribution, production, merchandising, advertising budgets, pricing strategy, small accessories, perfumes, beauty, watches, etc etc. All things that have very little connection with the 4/6 collections a year, the runway shows, the set design, the casting…
For instance : Saint-Laurent, AV provides two great shows a year, look books and campaigns, RTW is less than 7% of the revenue. And his own runway creation even less, if you take into consideration the carry-ons and RTW merchandise : denim, tuxedos, leather jackets, shirts and hoodies.

So what’s the point for an established name of going to Gucci if you know full well 90-95% of the financial results will not be yours put 100% of the blame will be put on you ?

Ancora was not an established name so he took the chances, took the money, and took the blame too. Good for him because he had not prior reputation.

 

[proseccotabis]

I do believe uninterested.
Every reputed or established, available or soon-to-be-available, CD (MGC, Jones, Gallieno, Hedi, PPP) knows Gucci is a shitshow and that Ancora guy was a second choice.
Coming right now would make them the third choice and not a savior.
Also every one of them know that the CD will be the fall guy, even if factually 90% or more of the financial successes depend on the c-suite : distribution, production, merchandising, advertising budgets, pricing strategy, small accessories, perfumes, beauty, watches, etc etc. All things that have very little connection with the 4/6 collections a year, the runway shows, the set design, the casting…
For instance : Saint-Laurent, AV provides two great shows a year, look books and campaigns, RTW is less than 7% of the revenue. And his own runway creation even less, if you take into consideration the carry-ons and RTW merchandise : denim, tuxedos, leather jackets, shirts and hoodies.

So what’s the point for an established name of going to Gucci if you know full well 90% of the financial results will not be yours put 100% of the blame will be put on you ?

Such a great analysis.
I think this functionality and methods apply to 90% of the brands we discuss here too. Ferragamo, Jil Sander, Versace, McQueen and many more (NOT Dior tho lol)
at the end of the day its really the suits that truly drive the company and do the decision making and the CD literally reports to the most senior suit. I wrote it earlier when the news came out but i still truly believe that they hired demna only for the shock factor and pr whilst the actual processes and the way collection merch will be working for example will remain the same...i think its obvious that cantino and co operate in sheer panic thinking that if everyone will talk about it would be proportional to success..

 

[HigthaVandah]

I do believe uninterested.
Every reputed or established, available or soon-to-be-available, CD (MGC, Jones, Gallieno, Hedi, PPP, Viard) knows Gucci is a shitshow and that Ancora guy was a second choice.
Coming right now would make them the third choice and not a savior.
Also every one of them know that the CD will be the fall guy, even if factually 90% or more of the financial successes depend on the c-suite : distribution, production, merchandising, advertising budgets, pricing strategy, small accessories, perfumes, beauty, watches, etc etc. All things that have very little connection with the 4/6 collections a year, the runway shows, the set design, the casting…
For instance : Saint-Laurent, AV provides two great shows a year, look books and campaigns, RTW is less than 7% of the revenue. And his own runway creation even less, if you take into consideration the carry-ons and RTW merchandise : denim, tuxedos, leather jackets, shirts and hoodies.

So what’s the point for an established name of going to Gucci if you know full well 90-95% of the financial results will not be yours put 100% of the blame will be put on you ?

Ancora was not an established name so he took the chances, took the money, and took the blame too. Good for him because he had not prior reputation.

Thanks for the insight, very good points.

 

[Olaffo]

^ great points guys ! I’d love to also add that there must have been a „second „first”” trier of potential designers taking interviews or some sort of negotiations like Fabio etc. etc. So imagine now: for whatever reason you can’t get proven designers with name and sort of aesthetic authority, then you can’t get former or current studio / design directors so all you’ve got left is a bunch of your existing CD from which I bet only Demna agreed to take a risk. It’s a shitshow beyond comprehension…

 

[fashionsavvvvvy]

Im rewatching this. It’s funny how Demna in this was “trying to rescue The most depressing city aka where The Simpsons live”. Let’s see if he can rescue this Gucci sinking ship

 

[MaraPiovani]

i really can not see.... i don see him being sexy, being gucci, even being "italian" so... maybe he will show something new about him... very curious about that.... can be an explosion, lets see what

 

[Frederic01]

Also, frankly, Kering had no other choice. (An unproven designer was too big of a risk, and there were no other proven creative directors available—or interested)

Imagine being so toxic and having such a bad reputation as a company and a management team that no creatives want to work with you SMH. These executives have way too much say in what is going on now at Kering and at Gucci to the point where they are literally driving away potential talent. That's actually terrifying if you ask me.

And now Gucci is going to sink even further thanks to a few people at the top who will never be held accountable for their decisions, because? Because why exactly? Can someone please explain?

Cantino should be fired for hiring Demna. Terrible decision and Demna will prove it in a matter of no time.