Gucci: Luxus, Lust & Drama! 🤯
Hinter dem berühmten Doppel-G verbergen sich mehr als 100 Jahre Glamour, Gier und die dunkelsten Familiengeheimnisse. Erleben Sie die schockierende Saga der Gucci-Dynastie – von der kleinen Lederwerkstatt in Florenz über den weltweiten Aufstieg zur Luxusmarke bis zum Auftragsmord an Maurizio Gucci. Eine wahre Geschichte, die selbst Hollywood blass aussehen lässt!
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TVTranskript
00:00The Gucci family history has always teetered on the edge of scandal and creative extremes.
00:14An Italian proverb says, the first generation builds, the second expands, and the third destroys.
00:30A true bloodbath.
00:38Everyone wanted to be a member of the then exclusive club.
00:45Pure megalomania, no limits.
00:48Don't underestimate Gucci. The house rises like a phoenix from the ashes. Time and time again.
01:01This absurd story begins at the start of the 20th century in 1900.
01:16Not in Italy, the birthplace of Gucci, but in London.
01:21Gucci, who had a penchant for luxury from an early age, worked as a pageboy at the renowned Savoy Hotel.
01:26He notices a huge market gap thanks to hotel guests with high purchasing power and their desire to travel.
01:32Fine leather luggage.
01:37Until then, people had traveled with large, very heavy suitcases.
01:41Now, one wants to travel carefree.
01:43Leather suitcases play an important role in this.
01:46And Gucci, Gucci wants to bring its innovative ideas to the people.
01:53Back in Florence, Gucci gets to work.
01:56In 1921 he opened his first shop selling leather luggage.
02:03To appeal to an international, cosmopolitan middle class from the outset, he makes English the business language.
02:11This sets it apart from other Florentine craft businesses of that time.
02:15From 1935 onwards, Mussolini's fascist policies prevented any trade beyond the borders of Italy.
02:29This makes it impossible to import raw materials from abroad.
02:32The trade embargo before World War II made it very difficult for Gucci to obtain leather.
02:37The company's history is characterized by pushing boundaries. Initially, this was primarily technical. If leather wasn't an option, then Gucci would use a different material.
02:48He solves the problem with local materials that grow on Italian soil.
02:56As a leather substitute for durable bags, he mainly uses hemp, from which a very robust fabric can be made.
03:02They were set with small, brown, interlocking diamonds. A precursor to the later monogram. This was the first unique selling point of Gucci luggage.
03:14Success comes overnight. Aldo Gucci, the eldest of Guccio's six children, is the first to shine at his side.
03:21Aldo was the marketing genius, the charismatic and charming man who wanted to make Gucci a big international success.
03:32He was also the one who insisted on opening the first branch outside of Florence, in Rome.
03:40This was a first step into the international market, especially towards a very American clientele, because the Cinecita cinema had just opened in Rome.
03:48Cinecita and Hollywood were closely linked. Many American actors and actresses filmed their movies in Rome or even shot films in Italy.
04:09Aldo takes advantage of the situation after the war ends.
04:11American GIs brought their wives gifts from Gucci, back then still in equestrian style, and thus became ambassadors for the brand.
04:19The first American Gucci customers were actually in Italy. The war was over. They were going home and wanted to buy souvenirs for their wives and girlfriends.
04:30The Gucci items were ideal. Thoroughly Italian, affordable, yet special. And so small that they could stow them in their luggage and take them to their thieves.
04:42In 1947, Gucci broke new ground once again with the invention of the Bamboo Bag.
04:50She became known to a wider audience through the actress Ingrid Bergman, who filmed in Italy with her husband Roberto Rossellini.
04:56The bag brings a completely new look to the leather goods landscape.
05:04Gucci's inventiveness is evident in the interplay of materials that initially do not seem suitable for handbags.
05:11The bags connect strands with ease, and bamboo is one of the lightest yet most durable materials.
05:20Following Aldo, Rodolfo, his younger brother, is now also joining the company.
05:27Rodolfo was less interested in expansion, but he too played an important role in the company.
05:35Only those who remember while in quarantine will remember this Atter, who here is the interpreter of the film Rotaie.
05:39He then longed for Maurizio D'Ancora and was the protagonist of the film set between the two wars.
05:44For the past few years, Maurizio D'Ancora has opened the door to Rodolfo Gucci.
05:47Rodolfo first becomes an actor and also marries an actress, Sandra Ravel.
05:54But major success eludes them.
05:56After the war, he returned to his family and worked for the company.
06:00Initially, he heads the branch in Milan.
06:05The product range is being expanded.
06:07In addition to luggage, Gucci now also offers belts, shoes and, following the example of its French big sister Hermès, silk scarves.
06:15Later, Rodolfo designed the famous Flora cloth for Princess Grace of Monaco.
06:20It is a tribute to the company's Florentine roots.
06:27The depictions of nature are clearly influenced by Renaissance art.
06:31For example, Botticelli's Primavera in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence.
06:35A declaration of one's own origins.
06:38This establishes an independent repertoire that extends beyond the equestrian sports environment.
06:44With flowers that would later become a trademark of the company.
06:481953 is a key year for Gucci.
07:01Aldo pushed through the opening of the first store outside of Italy.
07:05In New York.
07:08That too was a vision of Aldo's.
07:11He said, why wait until the Americans come to Italy to buy our products?
07:16Why not bring Gucci to America?
07:18And he did.
07:20At that time, there were only two Italian brands in New York: Gucci and Pucci.
07:24But 1953 is also the year of Gucci's death.
07:28He died two weeks after the opening of the branch in New York and would not live to see its extraordinary success.
07:35The millionaire bequeaths to Aldo and Rodolfo a company that is already famous on two continents.
07:40It is the era of Dolce Vita that makes Italy and its abundance of treasures known throughout the world.
08:00A symbol of this lifestyle is Gucci's famous red and green web stripe.
08:08Gucci was so attractive because its products were both elegant and practical.
08:17It was this magnificent Italian style with its lightness that made good looks appear effortless and natural.
08:24Not contrived, not contrived, completely natural.
08:27Audrey Hepburn, a famous Gucci customer, also films in Italy.
08:42There was a general trend towards taking life a little less seriously.
08:46In Italy it was the famous Dolce Vita, in America the outdoor movement.
08:51Back then, it was fashionable for the rich to show themselves on the beach in the Hamptons or at the golf club on weekends.
09:03The Gucci slippers were very comfortable and elegant shoes at the same time.
09:10Men and women could wear them, on airplanes as well as in boardrooms.
09:15They were versatile and comfortable. At the same time, they exuded class and elegance.
09:21In the 1960s, more and more Gucci stores sprang up around the world, from Los Angeles to Tokyo.
09:32The stars continue to act as ambassadors for the brand free of charge.
09:36From Sophia Loren to Samuel Beckett to Jackie Kennedy, who is now called Onassis.
09:41One bag even bears her first name and serves as protection from paparazzi.
09:45The Gucci bag combines leather with metal details that allude to the equestrian world.
09:57This is effective and timeless.
10:00In addition, it features a relaxed, rounded shape that is also innovative.
10:05The bag is large enough to hold something.
10:08At the same time, it is so delicate that it can be carried under the arm.
10:11This creates the ideal combination of practicality and fashion that characterized the Gucci bag of that era.
10:18Gucci is the first luxury goods brand in the USA.
10:22In 15 years, the family fortune will increase a thousandfold.
10:26To honor their grandfather, Aldo and Rodolfo made his initials their company logo.
10:33The double G.
10:34Aldo then commissions his artistically ambitious son Paolo to design the first pieces of a prêt-à-porter line.
10:46Marked with the monogram GG.
10:48In addition, there are shirts and dresses in the style of the Flora print scarves.
10:52Paolo considers himself a creative spirit and desperately wants to design his own fashion.
11:00He is so impetuous and fiercely determined that arguments between him and his father are inevitable.
11:06Aldo wants to put him in his place, not let him design all the products himself.
11:11Paolo reacts with frustration.
11:12And Rodolfo? His only beloved and pampered son, Maurizio, has fallen hopelessly in love with an intriguer, Patrizia Reggiani.
11:24Maurizio found her enchanting. He called her his Foletto Rosso, the red goblin, after the red dress she wore when they first met.
11:33Maurizio was determined to marry Patrizia, against his father's wishes. His father feared she only wanted to marry rich.
11:45Patrizia Reggiani has desires. From a young age, her father indulges all her whims, giving her cars, furs, coats, and expensive clothes.
11:55She can never get enough. I think that's characteristic of her personality in all areas of life.
12:02Rodolfo even went to the Cardinal of Milan to try and stop the wedding.
12:07But the cardinal said, "I'm sorry, Signor Gucci, you are in love, there's nothing I can do."
12:16With this marriage, Maurizio defies his father for the first time.
12:20Patrizia already represents the transgression of boundaries in the life of Maurizio Gucci.
12:25Rodolfo threatens to disinherit Maurizio. He was supposed to receive 50 percent of the company, but instead, he leaves everything behind, packs his bags, and one evening appears at Patrizia's door, ready to move in with her and her family.
12:42Paolo seizes the opportunity to go to Milan and help Rodolfo as a fashion designer.
12:51Patrizia sees red. For the ambitious wife, giving up the empire is out of the question.
12:56She encourages Maurizio to get back into it and has the brilliant idea of persuading him to collaborate with his uncle in New York.
13:02With that, Patrizia embarks on a grand adventure. She starts a family with Maurizio, and in her penthouse high above Fifth Avenue, the glamorous life and the New York jet set lie at her feet.
13:12She considered herself a Gucci from the very beginning and immediately adopted that name. I think even before the wedding.
13:22The couple soon bought a yacht, the Creole, a chalet in St. Moritz, and took pleasure trips all over the world.
13:29She really has a knack for meeting all her demands and needs. It's never enough.
13:34And Patrizia was right. The duo of Aldo and Maurizio is proving to be excellent. Rodolfo doesn't like it at all.
13:46Maurizio lets Aldo take the lead. Somehow they manage to work it out. Sometimes he resents Aldo having this role. Then they argue.
13:53But most of the time Maurizio agrees with Aldo's decisions, as long as he can do what he wants.
13:58From now on, Aldo is in the spotlight, as the embodiment of the Gucci brand.
14:16Gucci is now at the height of its success, and has recently added jewelry to its product range.
14:28But the ready-to-wear line is underdeveloped. It's somewhere between Bond girl and...
14:34And the world of Julio Iglesias.
14:50In the late 1970s, the juicy Gucci fruit first became worm-eaten.
15:05The number of licensing agreements for inexpensive products is increasing rapidly.
15:08Although they bring in many dollars, they push the brand out of the luxury segment and open the door to cheap imitations.
15:14There were far too many licenses for every conceivable type of product.
15:23Gucci glasses, Gucci coffee mugs, Gucci placemats.
15:27This was partly due to the many family members who all took it upon themselves to grant such licenses.
15:36It was very lucrative for them, but the brand lost exclusivity as a result.
15:40Such licenses can be a stumbling block.
15:45The basic idea is to copy the features of a label in a simplified way in order to make the items more affordable.
15:52However, this increases the risk of cheap counterfeits, because the products are now much easier to imitate.
15:58From now on, everyone could produce cheap imitations of Gucci bags.
16:01Some discount stores offered them, even though they weren't from Gucci at all.
16:05Paolo himself concluded one of the many licensing agreements.
16:08Gucci Plus. This has absolutely nothing to do with luxury anymore.
16:13Aldo wouldn't tolerate it for long. The first of many conflicts between father and son.
16:17Paolo is hurt because his father doesn't trust him and founds his own label, Paolo Gucci.
16:23A serious competitor that the family is trying to prevent at all costs.
16:27Paolo is assigned the thankless role of the black sheep.
16:30His father found that completely unacceptable. There could only be one Gucci. And Aldo was convinced that he was.
16:41For him, there was no difference between the man and the brand. And he believed he embodied both.
16:48Paolo reacts angrily to the attempts to thwart his plans and does everything in his power to get revenge.
16:53The situation escalates. Betrayal and below-the-belt blows ensue. Finally, Paolo denounces his father for tax evasion.
17:01The accusations lead to a lawsuit and a trial. And indeed, his father is sentenced to prison.
17:08Admittedly, only in an open prison in Florida, but still. A shocking example of how badly this family twist had degenerated.
17:16This shows how competition in the second generation eventually causes the third generation to split up.
17:25In 1983, after the death of his father Rodolfo, Maurizio inherited 50 percent of the Gucci Group.
17:31Spurred on by Patricia, he will not rest until he has fought for and won the top position at the Rudehaus.
17:35He explains that too many cooks spoil the broth. Everyone here has their own idea of Gucci. We need one, my unified vision.
17:48And Maurizio hatches a diabolical plan to seize the shares of the other family members as well.
17:54To do this, he uses the reputation of the investment bank Morgan Stanley, as well as the money of a credit institution in the Middle East, Invest Corp.
18:00This financial plan was actually a covert operation. Invest Corp remains invisible for now.
18:09Morgan Stanley buys the shares. And then Invest Corp reveals itself as Maurizio's partner.
18:18Maurizio is the last Gucci still working in the company. Invest Corp is handing over the reins to him.
18:24Maurizio also takes one last, bold step to clear up his marriage.
18:30Patricia has always stood by him, but now she is a burden to him.
18:33He can no longer bear her and files for divorce. And he learns that his Folletto Rosso has become a black widow.
18:44Mr. Jacky became Dr. Hyde. And this is incredible, because I'm still convinced that he's a good person, but he's acting in a different way.
18:54You forgive him?
18:55Yes, absolutely.
18:57She says she forgives you.
18:59Thank you very much.
19:01I forgive you.
19:01In the future, Maurizio will run the company alone. But what will he do with a brand whose image is so damaged?
19:21He then said no. I want to bring Gucci back to the top of the market. As a kind of Italian Hermès. With the same top quality and a first-class image.
19:31And I want to do that.
19:34Maurizio has an upselling strategy in mind. He dreams of once again playing in the illustrious circle of international luxury brands like Hermès and Vuitton.
19:42And he succeeds in recruiting an iron lady, the American Dawn Mellow, managing director of the luxury department stores Bergdorf-Goodman on Fifth Avenue.
19:50Under Dawn Mellow, the dusty, hopelessly old-fashioned New York department store Bergdorf-Goodman became the epitome of style and glamour.
20:02With their help, Maurizio is sure he can reposition Gucci.
20:09She was the one who started cleaning up at Gucci, if you can put it that way.
20:14She reduced the number of existing stores from 1,000 to 180. And under her leadership, the number of items shrank from 20,000 to 1,800.
20:22Gucci products should once again become a desirable, scarce commodity.
20:28Despite all his efforts, Maurizio is unable to balance the accounts.
20:33The lack of lucrative profits from licenses has created a hole in the company's finances.
20:37And the exorbitant costs of the upselling strategy have not yet paid off.
20:40Cornered and in order to avoid certain bankruptcy, Maurizio reluctantly sold his 50 percent stake in Invest Corp. in 1993.
20:52Ultimately, Maurizio's excessive budget allowed Invest Corp. to gain the upper hand and remove him from the company.
21:03They paid him $120 million for his 50 percent stake in Gucci. And then he was out.
21:09He was the last Gucci to run the company. In fact, the last one to ever work there.
21:16Two years after his symbolic death, Maurizio actually dies.
21:20Who murdered him?
21:21For two years, all of Italy followed an investigation with rapt attention, which initially yielded no results.
21:45Patrizia got her revenge on Maurizio.
21:47For her exclusion from the Gucci empire, of which she considers herself the true originator.
21:53Now she becomes the black widow.
21:56She hasn't gotten over no longer being a Gucci.
22:04She said I am and always will be a Gucci. I am more Gucci than all of them.
22:08The Black Widow is sentenced to 29 years in prison for murder, of which she only serves 18.
22:34After her release, she is the only remaining member of the Gucci family who still brings the name into the headlines.
22:40She did something unimaginable, that's clear. We can't downplay it. She was rightly punished.
22:47But it's not all that black and white. As the Italians say, it's a case of chiaroscuro.
22:52Did Patrizia truly love Maurizio? I believe so.
23:09I think they loved each other. It was a real marriage. She wasn't just after the money.
23:14But money, style, and glamour are incredibly important to her. We've seen just how important.
23:21But even though she has malicious traits, I don't believe she is evil through and through.
23:26I would say she is multifaceted.
23:28What will become of Gucci without Maurizio?
23:37When InvestCorp buys the entire company, Dawn Mellow refuses to work for the new Middle Eastern owner, whom she has never heard of.
23:44She resigns.
23:46InvestCorp is now entrusting the company to two men who already belong to the company but have so far remained in the shadows.
23:51One of them is Tom Ford, an unknown designer from Texas.
23:56Dawn Mellow hired him back in 1990, and now he's being promoted to Creative Director.
24:01The second is Domenico de Sole, who is to take over the overall management.
24:05He has been the family's lawyer for 20 years.
24:10It was something that was quite unusual.
24:13I believe that Tom and I had a very good understanding of the company.
24:17We knew the company quite well, we knew its strength, we knew its great strength.
24:20We knew about the big problems, but we had a very good feeling that we had to create the company to fix the company.
24:28Now Tom Ford is in charge as chief designer, but he can't immediately find the magic style formula.
24:33Another challenge is the spectacular success of Armani and Versace.
24:37He was still searching for his own vision and was heavily influenced by Dawn Mellow's and Maurizio's image for Gucci.
24:46Maurizio wanted everything round, brown, soft, and feminine. Beautiful bags and jackets made of creamy leather.
25:00His first collections featured an Audrey Hepburn look, with circle skirts, small sweaters and flower pot prints.
25:07Even he himself later found them terrible.
25:11It wasn't a particularly beautiful fashion show, not a great triumph. It was still a far cry from the extravagance of the second show, Pornchick.
25:20To free himself from the oppressive legacy of Gucci, Tom Ford is launching a contemporary duo.
25:25The French designer Karine Roatfeld and the Italian photographer Mario Testino.
25:30To be honest, when he called Mario Testino and me about his campaign, we had never even heard of Gucci.
25:37Back then we had other customers who we considered more important and also funnier.
25:41So we kept refusing for a long time, until he finally came to our studio.
25:45I remember it was summer, no air conditioning, no headlights.
25:49Hard to bear for an American.
25:51He enchanted and seduced us.
25:54Truly, our work for Gucci was the result of a temptation.
25:57Tom's encounter with Karine Roatfeld changes everything.
26:01For him, it's a liberation.
26:03He invents the new Gucci woman, pushing boundaries in the process.
26:10Uptight bourgeoisie is a thing of the past.
26:12Welcome, sexy girl.
26:18The hip-hugging trousers don't sit low enough, lower.
26:20The zippers were so big.
26:24Your shirts are so buttoned up.
26:26Button up, button up, button up.
26:28I got everything I wanted.
26:31Tom always said yes.
26:35Most importantly, we had men and women on the catwalk.
26:38Guys who looked quite like Playboys, very 70s, with longer hair, slightly tailored suits, a bit like the Rolling Stones in Studio 54.
26:46The girls in Tom Ford films have one thing in common.
26:50They are sexy.
26:51Not vulgar, but not far from it.
26:53They are beautiful, chic, fearless, and want only one thing: to seduce everyone.
27:03People wanted to be members of the exclusive club that Gucci was at the time.
27:07I think it was a bit sexier, more strings, fewer strings, fewer strings.
27:22This was incredibly successful with the stars of that era.
27:39Madonna and many others immediately wore those trousers, that shirt.
27:43Thus, the new Gucci image spread rapidly and comprehensively.
27:48People used to go to Gucci to feel like Jackie Kennedy or Grace Kelly.
27:55From the mid-90s onwards, people bought from Gucci to resemble the icons of the new era.
28:00Kate Moss or Paris Hilton, jet set and bling bling, a desire for silk shirts, new materials, glitter look.
28:08That was Tom Ford's innovation for Gucci.
28:12They know women have to be physical. Women are physical.
28:15Nothing is more physical than a pair of high-waisted trousers and a good pair of pants.
28:18This time it worked. Gucci is back in the race. Maurizio sold a few months too early. Now Tom Ford triumphs.
28:29InvestCorp capitalizes on the success and takes the Gucci Group public.
28:35I've had a really lucky year and probably a lucky life.
28:39I am happy to work with so many wonderful and talented people from whom I have learned so much.
28:45I would also like to thank Domenico De Soli and InvestCorp for their support and for giving me a chance.
28:54Tom Ford has consistently transitioned from sexy to porn chic. His trademark? The famous G-string, which he wears on both men and women on the catwalk.
29:05And then we move on to outfit number 2.
29:12And if you see yourself on this side, then it's very much like a teabag, you see.
29:20There's a small cable in the front, but in the background you have nothing but a string, baby.
29:27That was the first time male and female models appeared in string thongs.
29:36This tested the limits.
29:40But at least they were wearing moccasins and beautiful watches and sunglasses.
29:44It wasn't just the strings. It was a look.
29:46That was a look.
29:47I love the underwave because it's been a long time since I've been wondering.
29:51I think this is very new. But I think it's all very easy.
29:55And I think I can do all the collections.
29:57Everything.
29:58It's something that can simply be very sexy.
30:00And it's something other people don't know you're wearing.
30:03For example, the transparent undershirt for men with a small Diamond G.
30:06Who sees you in your subconscious, besides yourself or someone you are?
30:09So, under-the-waist can be very sexy.
30:12And it's funny because just knowing that you have a certain undertone,
30:16It can do what you feel.
30:17Even if you're wearing a large t-shirt or something.
30:20If you want to know that, it's something you can get out again.
30:23The porn industry is marketed in campaigns that increasingly break the established norms.
30:28With photographs by Mario Testino.
30:30The truth is, the concept for the advertisement usually comes from each show.
30:34I think Tom Ford has made a strong determination about who his wife is.
30:38Even his lascivious campaign, the audacity of which remains unforgettable.
30:49The trimmed pubic hair of model Louise Pedersen.
30:52That was the fashion show with the kimonos.
30:56We were at the photoshoot.
30:58Louise looked beautiful, but I said to Mario, something's missing.
31:02We don't yet have an image that sticks in the memory.
31:05Everything is very nice, but there's no disturbing element.
31:07The water is somewhat lacking.
31:09He asked, "What do you want to do?"
31:11Back then, everyone kept talking about the G-spot, and I said, G as in Gucci.
31:15That's good.
31:16We shave out a G and have a G-spot.
31:18The makeup artist Tom Pecheux and Orlando, the hairdresser, cut out a G from paper,
31:23We shaved around it and took the photos.
31:26It was Tom Ford's strength to make the campaigns for Gucci so suggestive and scandalous that everyone took notice.
31:42They never got lost in the crowd.
31:44The old adage "sex sells" has certainly proven true for Gucci.
31:49But should one accept any price for this and degrade men's and women's bodies to objects?
31:55They are the girls of Gucci, they are strong, they are content, they are everything everyone wants.
32:09I wanted every one of those girls to look like Kandys.
32:13It was so beautiful, so expensive.
32:16They just wanted to bite her.
32:19Bite-sized candies. Seriously? And do the models even want to be bitten?
32:23Such considerations of the post-MeToo era are completely foreign to Ford.
32:29With American pragmatism, he stays his course and establishes a new standard in the industry.
32:33The 360-degree creative director who controls absolutely everything.
32:38From the candy-colored look of the models to the floral decor in the shops.
32:42Tom Ford was one of the first artistic directors of a major fashion house.
32:49Before him, such positions were primarily held by designers and couturiers.
32:53Ford was not a fashion designer. He had not designed a single piece of clothing.
32:57But he invented the image of Gucci.
33:00He took care of the campaigns, the stores, the casting, the fragrances, the shows, the carpet.
33:06Simply everything. Everything as one. I think that's brilliant.
33:10That's ingenious. I think it's brilliant.
33:12If you can get through that, then you will get your light, and the light will be better.
33:15You want to go there and you want to go there.
33:17You want to go there and you want to go there.
33:19Yes, yes.
33:20You're doing it? Okay, I'm sorry.
33:22But the light is good.
33:34What I wanted was to go back to very strong, sexy women.
33:38Sexy.
33:40Very sexy, but a different kind of sexiness.
33:42A different kind of sexiness.
33:44Hot.
33:45Sexy.
33:46Still sexy, but a different kind of sexy.
33:49A little more hidden.
33:51Oh.
33:52Sexy.
33:53Oh.
33:54Sexy.
33:55Oh.
33:56It's so funny, but really sexy.
33:57Sexy silhouette.
33:58So sexy.
33:59Stronger and stronger and stronger.
34:00Oh, my God.
34:01Sexy and sexy and sexy and the idea of temptation.
34:04Okay, thank you very much.
34:05Thank you.
34:06Thanks very much.
34:07Yes.
34:08In reality, Tom and Domenico ran the company as if it belonged to him.
34:14They had an enormous amount of leeway, autonomy, and creative freedom.
34:20Domenico, I completely trust on the business side.
34:23He completely trusts me on the design side.
34:26And so, in a sense, we can work independently, but together, which I think really makes us almost twice as strong as a lot of our competitors.
34:33It's a wonderful, wonderful relationship.
34:35Great understanding.
34:36The phenomenal success of pawn chic à la Gucci is turning the new luxury goods manufacturers into lustful beasts.
34:42Everyone wants a piece of the cake.
34:44First, Bernard Arnault, the head of the LWM Asch Group.
34:47He is planning a hostile takeover of the Italian fashion house.
34:50When Arnault plans the creeping takeover of Gucci, Tom and Domenico know that if it succeeds, they will no longer be needed.
35:01Arnault employed legions of successful creatives and managers. They would lose their jobs and be fired.
35:08To prevent Arnault's robbery, Domenico de Sole secretly contacts another billionaire, a certain François Pinault.
35:18Venons-en now to this offensive surprise in the universe du Grand Luxe, with the entrance of the Groupe Pinault Printemps Redoute.
35:25François Pinault bought Gucci for 18 billion francs.
35:29A number 1 world luxury, the French LVMH.
35:33Son patron, Bernard Arnault, lived 5 months at the Italian house.
35:37This fois-ci, the war is declared, quoi qu'on en dise.
35:39Vous savez, moi j'avais des relations très amicales with M. Pinault.
35:42This is why I have a lance in this affaire Gucci without me passing a coup de fil.
35:46Alors je sais bien que la philosophie ambiante des affaires, c'est de considérer que all les coups sont permis,
35:53même éventuellement againsttre des Americans, aujourd'hui.
35:56Ce n'est pas ma philosophie.
35:57Are you looking forward to it?
35:59Le jour où on a declaré la war, le jour où on attack et où on attack.
36:07A relentless war breaks out between the two industrial moguls.
36:11Bernard Arnault is powerless to stop a new corporation from competing with his LVMH.
36:16The Gucci Group was formed from François Pinault's purchase of Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent.
36:20The winning duo, Tom & Dom, are given the keys.
36:23Included in the deal is that Tom will not only become chief designer at Gucci, but also at Yves Saint Laurent.
36:28Tom Ford, who was at the height of his fame at Gucci, wanted to become Creative Director at Saint Laurent at all costs.
36:37Yves Saint Laurent was the dream of everyone who worked at Gucci.
36:41It's a completely different way of working. The company has a respectable profile.
36:49The target audience is the French woman. More sophisticated than Gucci, in my opinion. More mature, not as girly as Gucci in its early days.
36:56One must remember that Yves Saint Laurent was still alive at that time.
37:00Hinault oversaw only the ready-to-wear line. Saint Laurent and Pierre Berger were responsible for haute couture.
37:06Therefore, there was a certain rivalry. The transfer of power did not go particularly smoothly.
37:11Tom Ford never managed to make a name for himself at Saint Laurent. He wasn't considered legitimate there.
37:17He received a lot of attention, a lot of pressure. Naturally, his style no longer had anything to do with what Yves Saint Laurent stood for.
37:25The fact that a Texan took over Yves Saint Laurent was considered inappropriate and offensive.
37:31Yves Saint Laurent himself does not hold back in criticizing his successor.
37:35Of course, it is a source of despair when someone you are increasing in number doesn't necessarily increase what you are increasing in number.
37:39But that's her opinion, and then it moves on.
37:42Beyond the fashion houses Gucci and Yves Saint Laurent, the Gucci Group is expanding.
37:53He is buying, among others, the labels Balenciaga, Alexander McQueen and Bottega Veneta.
37:59The new fashion system is established. A luxury segment in which two large corporations compete.
38:05After the sex offensive, Tom Ford proceeds to the ultimate transgression of norms. Now it's about money.
38:11Ford fuels an unbridled capitalist lust for luxury products.
38:16We don't live very long. I think you should have a great time while you're on Earth.
38:21Someone who consumes, buys, or even engages in fashion is already in a good position on this planet.
38:26But when you're in that position, you don't feel guilty about it.
38:29We are materialistic people. We live in a material world. We love it. We love it. We love it.
38:32We love it. That's what fashion is to me. It should be fun. It's about celebrating life.
38:38At Gucci, a new generation took over. François-Henri Pinot, the son of François Pinot, now led the management.
38:50It was simply not possible to reach an agreement with Tom Ford on how to proceed with the Gucci brand in the future.
38:59Finally, Pinot decided that the brand was more important than the designer.
39:12From then on, Tom and Dom were out of the game.
39:18Another turning point in the company's history.
39:22After Tom and Dom left, the mood within the PPR group is not exactly euphoric.
39:33The share price falls. Within a single day, 500 million euros in market capitalization go up in smoke.
39:41Who will take the reins at Gucci now?
39:43Big names are circulating. But François-Henri Pinot doesn't want to fall into the trap a second time of hiring a designer and a manager who want more power than the company's owner.
39:53Then the idea arose to staff the creative department with a team.
39:59Alessandra Faccinetti was to design clothes, Frida Giannini the accessories, and John Ray the menswear.
40:06But soon Frida Giannini alone had control over all accessories as well as men's and women's fashion.
40:11Among the chief designers, she is rather a marginal figure, but she remains in a leading position at Gucci for quite some time and shapes a somewhat different style of women's fashion there.
40:23Rather tame, sweet, alternative. Ultimately, a bit bland.
40:26Perhaps this was the way the company wanted to return to its roots after the Tom Ford era.
40:47Leather backs, in particular, were once again very much in focus. Frida Giannini was known for this at that time.
40:57She unearthed a lot from the old Gucci archives, and it went incredibly well.
41:03It should not be forgotten that Vuitton, Hermès, Gucci and Céline sell significantly more bags and accessories than clothing.
41:14However, from 2012 onwards, sales stagnated, and the nouveau riche became a caricature for upcoming Gucci looks, soon even declining.
41:20Other brands in the group, such as Yves Saint Laurent or Bottega Veneta, are recording double-digit growth figures.
41:27In December 2014, François-Hori Pinot, who now heads the Kering Group alone, decides to end the collaboration with Frida Giannini.
41:37She negotiates an extension until the beginning of 2015, but the conflict escalates and Pinot feels compelled to dismiss her as quickly as possible.
41:44The new appointment is Pinot's right-hand man, the Roman Alessandro Michele. A complete unknown to the public.
41:56His appearance is quite unconventional: long hair, rings on every finger, always wearing an XL shirt. In a luxury goods company, he stands out a bit.
42:06Alessandro Michele had approximately one week to design his first menswear collection.
42:12Frida left rather quickly, and he was thrown in at the deep end. But he presented a collection that thrilled everyone.
42:18A special surprise at the men's show was a red blouse made of chiffon or silk with a bow.
42:34That was unusual for a men's collection, and something about it struck a chord.
42:40His designs unsettled some, and the first critical voices were raised. Where does Michele want to take Gucci? What is the common thread?
42:48When I'm working, I really need a nice place.
42:56Rome is the perfect place to take a break from the fad.
43:02I can use my brain, I can go into another part of my brain.
43:11All these things make me feel very contemporary.
43:13It's really about this kind of tradition between the past and the past.
43:20This is my way of working.
43:22Alessandro Michele presents himself as a poet, radically different from Tom Ford, who played market leaders off against each other.
43:29I usually work in a very unconventional way.
43:33Because I always start from different forms of inspiration.
43:38Photographer, pictures for a film, old signs.
43:42It's time for this company to tell a different story.
43:47I'm changing everything.
43:49This new interpretation shows what Gucci could also be.
44:00It's as if the floral print has been incorporated into a thousand different garments.
44:04An explosion of colors, motifs and materials, exuberant and baroque,
44:10which proves that Gucci can develop a new artistic vision.
44:14Initially, the industry is skeptical of this guru who jumbles up the decades as if Gucci were a hip secondhand shop.
44:23But with his second show for women's fashion, he completely captivated the scene.
44:28What makes him stand out is his boundless creativity.
44:35He is a maximalist who is not afraid to mix seemingly contradictory things.
44:39Some elements are reminiscent of the Japanese kawaii aesthetic: cute, colorful, and poppy, a challenge to the style of the house.
44:48He keeps the classic moccasins, but reinterprets them as fur-lined slippers.
44:53In this way, he creates an imaginative appearance with high recognition value.
44:57...
45:01...
45:07...
45:09...
45:14Furthermore, Michele stands for increasingly elaborate and creative fashion shows.
45:32For example, the show where each model carried their head, or a replica of it, like a handbag.
45:44Tom Ford launched the Ponchig in the 1990s,
46:14a replacement offering to Generation Z, who had to experience sexuality as risky due to AIDS.
46:20Now Alessandro Michele offers millennials the queer, gender-fluid fashion they desire.
46:25His fashion, with its fluid transitions between genders, redefines the categories of masculine and feminine.
46:37This really appeals to younger generations.
46:39After Tom Ford and even Frida Giannini, this is a radical departure, a real innovation.
46:44Alessandro Michele is making Gucci contemporary.
46:47And who buys this gender-fluid, maximalist baroque kawaii fashion?
46:56Wealthy Asian millennials.
46:58Between 2015 and 2019, they ensured that Gucci's sales tripled.
47:04In 2022, sales figures even exceeded the 10 billion euro mark.
47:08The Kering Group has its flagship company back.
47:10Tom Ford reached his target audience through stars and icons like Kate Moss, Paris Hilton, and so on.
47:21Alessandro Michele is appealing to a new generation through social networks and advertising campaigns on YouTube.
47:28With each and every collection, he creates a dream world that one wants to follow.
47:34Furthermore, he was prudent enough to have very good friends.
47:37Jared Leto and Harry Styles; the designs were a perfect fit for his two muses.
47:42But it's not just pop stars who wear the house's flagship fashion.
47:46Gucci has always been the label most appreciated by rappers.
47:49Even in the 1990s, the company kept this fan group at arm's length to avoid jeopardizing its image.
47:55Michele, on the other hand, acknowledges this pact and collaborates with many rappers.
47:59Including Gucci Mane. The name says it all.
48:02In the post-Covid era, after seven successful years, there is a certain over-regard from Asian customers for Michele's maximalist style.
48:28And once again, François-Henri Pinot takes decisive action. In November 2022, Alessandro Michele is dismissed.
48:35There's a certain irony to that, because with Michele, sales had increased by 400 percent.
48:41And as soon as profits temporarily drop by 20 percent, he is punished and kicked out.
48:48Although he caused sales figures to explode.
48:51Alessandro Michele will be replaced by Sabato de Sarno, who previously worked for Valentino.
48:58But the transition is proving bumpy. Competition in the luxury goods segment is now fierce.
49:03Most manufacturers have experienced declines, most notably Gucci.
49:07At the beginning of 2025, just two years after his hiring, the company is already burning itself out again, this time from de Sarno.
49:13It is very difficult for a designer to have found their own style after only three fashion shows.
49:23Especially since bags and everything else also need to be designed.
49:25Fashion houses are constantly changing their artistic directors, like in the game Musical Chairs.
49:31One corporation after another is changing its CEO.
49:33Okay, it goes from McQueen to Givenchy, then from Dior to Fendi. All the time. That doesn't work.
49:38In March 2025, facilitated by a transfer within the fashion group Kering, Demna Guasalia will become the designated Creative Director at Gucci.
49:47After ten years of experience at Balenciaga, where he made Ikea bags and carabiners socially acceptable for the luxury class.
49:55Can the self-proclaimed anti-capitalist get the company back on track, both creatively and financially?
49:59Gucci's history is marked by luxury and scandals. In that sense, the company is irreplaceable.
50:09I know of no other major fashion house with a comparable history.
50:13This tradition of craftsmanship, travel luggage, leather accessories, in a family that has always moved on the edge of scandal and creative extremes.
50:21Gucci has proven in the past that taking risks pays off.
50:32And I believe that if a fashion house uses its heritage creatively, instead of turning it fatally against itself, it can reinvent itself again and again for another hundred years.
50:46Don't underestimate Gucci. The company has experienced rise, fall, and resurgence.
50:51And it has all the talents and prerequisites to still amaze us with its creations.
50:58And to get back to the top through an unexpected turn of events.
51:01in some unexpected twist.
51:04And I believe it is a hit of the Ver telefone-Tour-Tour-Tour-Gerror-Ans Skywalker- nggak-Netzungen.
51:11And I believe it is a blow of the loss of the Zogi-Tour-Tour-Gerror-Tour-Tour-Tour-Tour-Tour-Tour-Tour-Tour-Tour-Tour-Tour-Tour-Tour-Tour.
51:13and tX-Tour-Tour-Tour-Tour-Tour-Tour-Tour.
51:14See you next time.
51:44See you next time.