Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, March 24, 1991 TAG: 9103210321
SECTION: SPRING FASHION PAGE: E-8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: San Francisco Chronicle
DATELINE: MILAN, ITALY LENGTH: Medium
The Italian firm of fine leather goods, once a status symbol among movie stars, saw its heyday in the late '50s and on into the '70s.
But by the '80s, as the name graced 22,000 products, some as common as cutlery, tumblers and key chains, those with taste considered the interlocked double G's tacky.
The glamour of Gucci was gone.
Maurizio Gucci, grandson of Guccio Gucci, who founded a saddlery in Florence in 1922 that spawned a worldwide empire of luxury leathers, is working to restore the reputation that once made Grace Kelly, Audrey Hepburn, Jackie Onassis, Sophia Loren and the duchess of Windsor loyal customers.
The first fall Gucci collection under the new leadership of Maurizio Gucci, 42, chief executive officer and chairman; Dawn Mello, 52, executive vice president and creative director; and Richard Lambertson, 39, design director, was informally presented earlier this month.
Mello, who began her career in fashion as a model, was president of Bergdorf Goodman for 15 years before joining Gucci in November 1989. She recruited Lambertson, who had been an assistant to Geoffrey Beene for seven years.
The trio has already made major changes.
Maurizio said that Gucci prices have been raised by 20 percent, and the quality of the goods 80 percent since last year.
"In 1938, my uncle [Aldo] said quality remains long after price is forgotten," said Maurizio. "He was absolutely right. He was a genius."
To recapture the exclusivity it once enjoyed, the Gucci product line has been pared to 7,000 items, eliminating such items as vinyl purses and key chains. Wholesale distribution has been stopped, a move that cost Gucci $35 million in sales.
When the double G's will be seen at all, they'll be a discreet, delicate design. The signature dark green of Gucci will be lightened to a shade of celadon.
And the new ready-to-wear collection is sparked with a rainbow of colors and modern shapes.
by CNB