Kering flagship Gucci has employed Stefano Cantino, a veteran communications government from Louis Vuitton, to the newly created position of deputy CEO, bolstering its efforts to reignite development.
Earlier than becoming a member of Vuitton, Cantino rose by the ranks at Prada, changing into a prime communications officer after which chief government for the French market. At Vuitton, he oversaw the now €20 billion-a-year model’s sprawling communications equipment, together with blockbuster trend week spectacles resembling Pharrell Williams debut on Paris’ Pont Neuf and elaborate museum-style exhibitions.
The appointment comes at a pivotal second for Gucci as Kering makes an attempt to revamp the model’s picture, collections and organisation in a bid to get issues again on monitor after a precipitous gross sales decline.
Underneath new management — together with artistic director Sabato de Sarno, CEO Jean-François Palus (Kering chairman François-Henri Pinault’s most trusted deputy) and Kering deputy CEO Francesca Bellettini — the model is angling for a extra high-end, timeless picture, however might want to stability that ambition with efforts to draw consideration and will get clients enthusiastic about Gucci once more.
Gross sales fell by round 20 p.c within the first quarter, the group mentioned in an unscheduled buying and selling replace final month, additional knocking investor confidence within the model’s turnaround programme.
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Can Gucci’s Turnaround Plan Nonetheless Work?
This week, Kering flagged gross sales had been down 20 p.c at its flagship model, knocking confidence within the group’s turnaround technique. ‘A extra drastic answer is required,’ one analyst wrote.
