Fashion, 2023 will be driven by managers

Andrea Guerra becomes the ceo of Prada group while Gianfranco D’Attis of the homonymous brand. The Gucci’s duo, formed by Alessandro Michele and Marco Bizzarri, breaks apart. Tom Ford sells his brand to Estée Lauder generating doubts about the future of its historic president Domenico De Sole. Raf Simons closes his brand after 27 years. It does not end there. Between goodbyes, closures, and chair turns, many already confirmed and others hovering in the air, for the fashion & luxury sector it could be the beginning of a new era under the banner of revolution and change.

«2023 will be a year full of restart and further stimulus for the global luxury sector. It will finally turn the page after pandemic and macropolitical uncertainties of the last two years have impacted the strategies of luxury companies, a sector that nevertheless comes out of this period in good shape», Mauro Premazzi, managing director, head of Italy, and European luxury at Jefferies, told MFF. The first news to leave everyone stunned was the one by belgian designer Raf Simons, who announced on Instagram he would be putting a definitive stop to his brand. According to rumors, this choice would be made to focus only on Prada, for which he is the creative director alongside Miuccia Prada, in the event that soon there will be a final passing of the baton. Then again, this would be just one of the many novelties within the milanese fashion house. The group, in fact, is beginning to study the hand-over between ceo Patrizio Bertelli and his son Lorenzo. And to ease the transition process, Andrea Guerra, a top manager from former Luxottica and Lvmh, has been called to the top job to replace co-ceos Patrizio Bertelli and Miuccia Prada. «Prada has been organizing for the hand-over for quite some time. Lorenzo Bertelli has already taken the helm of the most critical function, marketing. Andrea can help a lot in this transition, given his extensive experience in entrepreneurial companies such as Luxottica, Eataly, and Lvmh», Luca Solca, senior research analyst, global luxury goods at Bernstein, clarified. «We believe this change will be viewed positively by the market, as it brings solid professional experience to the Group while reducing succession risks and is the culmination of a series of changes within the company aimed at ensuring the Group’s sustainable growth. As stated in the press release, this is a step to facilitate the succession of Lorenzo Bertelli, the Group’s future leader», UBS analyst Susy Tibaldi echoed. Last but not least, the Milan-based company announced that Gianfranco D’Attis will take over as ceo of the Prada brand from January 2, 2023.

Another big surprise, determining the conclusion of a crucial chapter for the brand, was Alessandro Michele’s farewell to Gucci, as well as the breakup of the fantastic duo composed of the designer and ceo Marco Bizzarri, one of the most solid couples, at least so far, within the fashion system. It was Bizzarri who had wanted Michele to take over the style team in 2015. «I think Gucci needs to start a new creative chapter, after the extraordinary success of the era marked by Alessandro Michele.

Maybe this is also an opportunity to shift to plural creativity management, as Dior or Louis Vuitton have been doing, to understand. A change of pace is certainly needed to give consumers new reasons to buy Gucci», Solca pointed out. At Dior, a manager on the further rise, Pietro Beccari, with a past at Vuitton and Fendi, confirms a vision rewarded by the market. Among the most anticipated challenges in 2023 is the one of Marco Gobbetti from Ferragamo, a manager who has already brought a turnaround first at Givenchy and then at Burberry. Returning to Bizzarri, with a past at Stella McCartney (now part of the Lvmh galaxy and a brand now headed by Gabriele Maggio) and at Bottega Veneta, he has been president and ceo of Gucci since 2014. Under his lead, the brand has seen a real takeoff.

Now what? History teaches us that certain changes of course can be sharp, and nothing rules out the possibility that Kering, the French giant headed by Gucci, will not decide to replace Bizzarri as well. Or, at least, that is what market rumors anticipate. «I believe that these changes at the top are also the result of strategic changes in sight, and I expect an increasing focus on the production chain, the real bottleneck for the expansion of the sector on which all luxury players should focus, following the example of large groups such as Lvmh and Chanel which acquire local producers with whom they already work and who bring in scarce skills and production capacity. Right now, keeping the supply in step with the ever-growing demand is the priority», Premazzi pointed out. Speaking of Kering, if we talk about change, one must wonder whether Francesca Bellettini, the longtime ceo of Yves Saint Laurent, will continue in her job or leave it to embark on a new experience. After all, it has been almost 10 years since the Manager has sat at the top of the brand. Regarding the luxury giant Richemont as well, rumors give a possible exit of Gabriela Hearst from Chloé. A critical issue that if confirmed would have to be handled by another Italian ceo with an international career, Riccardo Bellini. But news also comes from overseas. The US beauty giant Estée Lauder managed to win Tom Ford.

The amount of the deal is expected to be between 2.3 billion dollars and 2.8 billion dollars. Tom Ford, the fashion brand’s founder, will be the «Creative visionary» after the deal closes and until the end of 2023, while chairman Domenico De Sole is expected to stay on as a consultant for the same time frame. It is still unclear what De Sole, president and ceo of the Gucci Group from 1994 to 2004, will do next. In this scenario, Premazzi concluded, managerial skills and strengthening the supply chain, vertical integration, speed of time to market, and staff training become key factors. In short, managers are always crucial when we talk about growth, but in 2023 their challenges will grow. (All rights reserved)