Gucci Pre-Fall image courtesy of fashionela.com
Alessandro Michele, creative director of Gucci, announced on Instagram that Gucci will not show for the upcoming runway season. Additionally, Alessandro Michele announced that the Gucci brand will produce only two shows a year in the near future.
“I will abandon the worn-out ritual of seasonalities and shows to regain a new cadence, closer to my expressive call. We will meet just twice a year, to share the chapters of a new story. Irregular, joyful and absolutely free chapters, which will be written blending rules and genres, feeding on new spaces, linguistic codes and communication platforms,” Michele wrote, as reported in fashionnetwork.com.
Though this announcement may seem dramatic, in real time Gucci had already cut back on the number of runways shows produced by the esteemed Italian house. Gucci only held three runway shows in 2019.
With this announcement, Gucci joins a growing list of designers that are abandoning upcoming runway seasons. Armani is skipping the upcoming couture season in late June, as well as July shows in Milan. In April, Saint Laurent confirmed that it will not present during Paris Fashion Week in September.
Image courtesy of cfda.org
The fashion statement of the month
On Wednesday, The CFDA and the British Fashion Council (BFC) released a joint statement about the future of the fashion industry. This statement was based on feedback from CFDA and BFC members and stakeholders’ concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic’s effect on the fashion industry.
“The COVID-19 pandemic is hitting the fashion industry from every angle and severely impacting all the global fashion capitals, and there is no immediate end in sight, there is an opportunity to rethink and reset the way in which we all work and show our collections,” details a message from the CFDA and the BFC.
Some of the suggestions in the joint statement include fashion brands return to presenting collections in their respective showrooms, fashion collections launching closer to the intended seasons, and delivery of product closer to the cadence of the retail season. The CFDA and the BFC are suggesting that fashion designers only produce two collections a year. This reduction will cut down on the global carbon footprint and fashion journalists’ constant travel.
The directives in this press release also acknowledge sustainability. “Sustainability is an important conversation in every industry. Through the creation of less product, with higher levels of creativity and quality, products will be valued, and their shelf life will increase. The focus on creativity and quality of products, reduction in travel, and focus on sustainability (something we encourage of the entire industry) will increase the consumer’s respect and ultimately their greater enjoyment in the products that we create.”
Image courtesy of theskinnybeep.com
The Brit is on his way back
Gareth Pugh is on his way back. After purchasing 49% of his company’s trademark back from Rick Owens, Pugh is primed to return to the runway in September of this year. Rick Owens’ production partners Olmar and Mirta SpA purchased a majority of Pugh’s trademark in 2006.
“I’m really excited to start a new chapter,” Pugh told WWD, as reported in a recent fashionnetwork.com article. “We’re in a moment where we’re all being invited to invent the future, so for me it’s important to be part of that cultural conversation now more than ever.”
“Every designer should own his own name and I’m glad we were able to be any kind of help when he needed us,” Owens told the publication. “Gareth and [his husband Carson McColl] are family, and I love that we were all married for a minute. But we always will be.”
Pugh has experienced success outside of the fashion industry. Pugh has collaborated with the New York City Ballet, London’s Royal Opera House, Christina Aguilera, and Cardi B.
William S. Gooch
Speak Your Mind