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Instead, on Jan. 21, the company announced it had hired
Mr. Michele, who had spent the last 12 years working in
Gucci’s accessories department, the last three as the associate
director to Ms. Giannini. And the reaction of the fashion
world could be summed up with one word: “Who?”
to two people directly familiar with the situation
but who weren’t authorized to speak for the company.
Barely a week into the job, Mr. di Marco’s
replacement, Marco Bizzarri, apparently found
the situation untenable.
On Jan. 9, Ms. Giannini, after more than 12 years
with the company, was immediately dismissed.
She left the building that day, assisted by a few
colleagues who helped her carry out her belongings,
according to two people with knowledge
of the situation. (Through a spokesman, Mr.
Bizzarri and Mr. Michele declined to comment.
Mr. di Marco and Ms. Giannini did not respond
to several requests, by email and by phone, for
comment.)
In the fashion industry, the vacancy meant a giant
opportunity. Both Kering and its main rival in
the fashion world, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis
Vuitton, had used recent job openings to make
star acquisitions. In the last few years, Raf Simons
was hired at Dior, replacing John Galliano;
Alexander Wang replaced Nicolas Ghesquière
at Kering’s Balenciaga; Mr. Ghesquière went to
LVMH’s Louis Vuitton. Mr. Slimane, the former
Dior Homme designer, went to Saint Laurent
after a several-year break from fashion to focus on
his photography. In nearly every case, that splashy
hire resulted in business success.
Suggesting a similarly big move might be in the
offing, the Kering chief executive, François-Henri
Pinault, said in December that Gucci needed a
new point of view, complete with “more daring
shows.”
At first, all eyes centered on Givenchy’s Mr.
Tisci, whose name had long been circulated in
connection to the Gucci gig. Those talks never
happened, Mr. Tisci said.
“No, no, no,” Mr. Tisci said, when asked at the
couture shows in Paris last month if he had been
contacted by Kering. “I’m happy at the house I’m
staying at.”
Mr. Bizzarri and Mr. Pinault didn’t come close
to hiring any outside designers, according to two
people familiar with the process. They quickly
settled on Ms. Giannini’s longtime colleague Mr.
Michele. He came to Gucci with Ms. Giannini;
the two worked together at Fendi before that.
“I have to say, I think many people were surprised
with the decision because Gucci is so important
and drives such significant revenues to the group,”
said Imran Amed, the founder of The Business of
Fashion. “That being said, the industry is willing
to wait and see.”
Mr. Michele rushed a men’s collection together
in January, and his first official show as creative
director of Gucci will be the one that was supposed
to be Ms. Giannini’s last: the women’s fall
collection this week in Milan.
Gucci dominates Kering’s luxury business. (Kering
was formerly known as PPR, and known before
that as the Gucci Group.) In 2014, Gucci had
3.49 billion euros in revenue, or nearly $4 billion.
The next two biggest luxury revenue earners at
Kering were Bottega Veneta and Saint Laurent,
that brought in, combined, $2 billion.
The company is nearly a century old, but it
became a significant profit and revenue generator
only in the last two decades. In the early 1990s,
Gucci nearly went bankrupt.
“The company was broke,” said Domenico De
Sole, the former chief executive of the Gucci
Group, by telephone. “It had a fantastic name,
but the family had mismanaged it.”
Mr. De Sole, along with Mr. Ford, quickly
changed that. Mr. Ford’s work as creative director
has become one of the most celebrated turnarounds
in fashion history. He infused Gucci with
sexiness, minted fashion stars (Carine Roitfeld
was one) and built an empire. In the years after
Mr. Ford and Mr. De Sole’s success, the company
bought Bottega Veneta and purchased stakes in
Alexander McQueen and Stella McCartney.
When Mr. Ford and Mr. De Sole left the company
in 2004, Gucci was earning revenue of $3 billion,
up from the $200 million it made when they took
over a decade earlier. Gucci Group executives
got their first crack at a major succession plan. It
failed. It split up leadership ranks and appointed
three bosses: Alessandra Facchinetti headed
women’s wear; John Ray controlled men’s; and
Ms. Giannini led accessories. Ms. Facchinetti was
gone by 2005, Mr. Ray in early 2006, and soon
Ms. Giannini was the sole creative director at
Gucci, producing both men’s and women’s wear.
When she took over, Mr. Ford’s iconic sexy
designs went by the wayside, but the money and
profits kept pouring in.
In early 2009, Mr. di Marco was appointed Gucci
chief executive after having achieved considerable
financial success at Bottega Veneta. Six months
later, his relationship with Ms. Giannini became
8 background story