The Faces and Stories Behind Your Favorite Designer Brands
I’m sure that most of you reading have heard of some of the most common designer brands such as “Gucci, Louis Vuitton and Versace”, but have you ever been able to name the big guns of the operations or tell their stories? If you saw Alessandro Michele walking the streets of Europe, would you be able to tell the person next to you that he was the Creative Director of Gucci? Probably not. Maybe I sound nerdy and weirdly passionate, but I feel like it’s so important to be able to identify the masterminds, the brains of the operation, and the creative thinkers and artists that make fashion all that it is today.
Gucci | 1921; Florence, Italy
In 1921, Guccio Gucci bought his own shop in Florence, Italy, where he sold imported leather luggage. His first talent was his craftsmanship in leather and he started out selling leather bags to horsemen in the 1920’s and progressed to luxury luggage as his clients graduated from equine transportation to horseless carriages. In 1938 Guccio Gucci opened his first retail shop in Rome.
When one of Gucci’s favorite guys also happens to be one of your favorite guys… you guys wonder why Gucci is one of my all-time favorites!
And of course I have this perfume in every shape and size possible.
Harry and Alessandro Michele at the Met Gala in 2019. My heart can’t take it.
Louis Vuitton | 1854; Paris, France
Fun Fact:
Do you recognize this guy? Or even his name? Virgil Abloh is also the CEO and Founder of Off-White. The company was incorporated in Milan in 2012. The label has collaborated with Nike, Levi’s, Jimmy Choo, IKEA and Evian.
Louis Vuitton was a suitcase maker who focused on the high-end, wealthier side of the market. Then it was in 1896 that Louis Vuitton introduced the famous LV monogram to his bags, the design that has become so famous today.
Prada | 1913; Milan, Italy
Fun Fact:
Bertelli’s wife, Miuccia Prada, is the head designer at the Prada fashionhouse. She is renowned for using minimalist designs to achieve a traditional style with modern influence.
The leading Italian fashion designer, Miuccia Prada, has dressed countless women to the nines for several decades, and she’s best known as the Italian luxury fashion house’s head designer. She’s the youngest granddaughter of Mario Prada, who founded the label in 1913.
Prada Marfa
In case you’re not familiar with what this Prada Marfa sign stands for, it’s based on a ‘mock’ Prada store located just a few miles outside a tiny town in the middle of the West Texas desert called Marfa.
It’s pretty much just a fake designer boutique in the middle of the West Texas desert. Pretty cool if you ask me, and don’t even mention the photo-op!
Saint Laurent | 1961; Paris, France
Yves Saint Laurent is the man, the myth, the legend that adapted tuxedos to fit women. As a teenager, he left Algeria for Paris to work for designer Christian Dior and gained applause for his dress designs. In 1966, he launched his own fashion labels.
Dior | 1946; Paris, France
Christian Dior’s parents had hopes of him becoming a diplomat, but was artistically talented and began to sell his sketches on the street to make extra money.
Versace | 1978; Milan, Italy
Gianni Versace was an Italian fashion designer and founder of Versace, an international fashion house that produces accessories, fragrances, make-up, home furnishings, and clothes. He also designed costumes for theatre and films.
His brother, Santo Versace, served as CEO, and his sister, Donatella Versace, was a designer and vice president.
Gianni Versace Assassination
“On July 15, 1997, Andrew Cunanan approached the famed Italian designer as he returned to his Miami Beach mansion after a morning trip to a nearby café. Cunanan opened fire at point-blank range, shooting Versace twice in the back of the head, according FBI records.” [Time Magazine]
Donatella Francesca Versace is an Italian fashion designer, businesswoman, socialite, and model. She is the sister of Gianni Versace, founder of the luxury fashion company Versace which she inherited a portion of after her brother’s death in 1997.
The Villa Casa Casuarina At The Former Versace Mansion
Gianni Versace’s former South Beach, Miami mansion is now a popular tourist attraction where you can eat lunch or dinner (you can dine outdoors by that famous pool and pretend you’re staying in the hotel) or, to be able to see it all, you can stay the night at the Versace Mansion. Being a guest at the hotel allows you to see the hotel, take tours swim in the famous pool.
Chanel | 1910; Paris, France
The company is currently owned by Alain Wertheimer and Gérard Wertheimer, grandsons of Pierre Wertheimer, who was an early business partner of Coco Chanel.
Coco Chanel was a French fashion designer and businesswoman. She was credited in the post-World War I era with popularizing a sporty, casual chic as the feminine standard of style, replacing the “corseted silhouette” that was dominant beforehand.
