Ending months of speculation, Gucci names fashion designer Sabato De Sarno as its new creative director. De Sarno replaces Alessandro Michele, whose shocking departure from Gucci after seven years left a massive impact on the brand.
The Italia label and its parent company, Kering say that Sabato De Sarno will be responsible for,
“defining and expressing the House’s creative vision across the women’s, men’s, leather goods, accessories and lifestyle collections”.
De Sarno, 39, was born in Naples, Italy. He is heading to Gucci from Valentino, a house he has worked at for nearly 13 years; most recently serving as fashion director under Pierpaolo Piccioli. His impressive resume also includes Dolce & Gabbana and Prada. Meanwhile, the Naples-born designer has yet to helm a major label and has a relatively limited public profile.
In addition, De Sarno’s predecessor received a surprise appointment in 2015, though he has contributed majorly to the transformation of the Italian label’s fortunes, heralding an era of colourful, maximalist and increasingly gender-fluid collections.
Just as with Michele’s appointment before and the introduction of Sabato De Sarno as its new leader, Gucci looks behind the scenes, rather than choosing a household name or somebody who has already been in charge of another major fashion house. It could become one of the reasons why Gucci now accounts for about two-thirds of the group’s profit from Kerning, generating reported revenues of 9.7 billion euros ($10.5) in 2021.
Finding the Connection between Gucci & De Sarno
Mentioning De Sarno’s vast and relevant experience in the fashion industry, Marc Bizzarri, Gucci’s president and CEO states that,
“I am certain that through Sabato’s deep understanding and appreciation for Gucci’s unique legacy, he will lead our creative teams with a distinctive vision that will help write this exciting next chapter, reinforcing the House’s fashion industry while capitalising on its rich heritage”
Meanwhile, Kering’s chairman & CEO, French billionaire François-Henri Pinault explains,
“With Sabato De Sarno at the creative helm, we are confident that the House will continue both to influence fashion and culture through highly desirable products and collections, and bring a singular and contemporary perspective to modern luxury”
Newly appointed creative director, De Sarno says that he is “deeply honored” to take the role adding that,
“I am proud to join a House with such an extraordinary history and heritage, that over the years has been able to welcome and cherish values I believe in”
What to expect from the new creative director?
The fashion world will have to wait another eight months to find out what De Sarno’s Gucci exactly look like. Earlier this month, Gucci unveiled its first new collection since Michele’s departure, opening Men’s Fashion Week in Milan with a contemporary pared-back Fall-Winter 2023 collection.
However, the Naples-born designer had to continue to fulfil his duties at Valentino and will not his debut until Milan Fashion Week in September 2023 for the Spring/Summer 2024 season. During that period, the in-house creative team will be responsible for the collections up until then, including Autumn/Winter 2023.
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