Alessandro Michele is the New Creative Director of Valentino
After the farewell of Pierpaolo Piccioli and the rumors of the last few days, the official announcement has arrived: the former creative director of Gucci, Alessandro Michele, is the new creative director of Valentino. And Valentino Garavani welcomes the designer to the Roman fashion house he founded in 1957.
«Not all stories have a beginning and an end, some live a kind of eternal present that shines with an intense light, so strong that it leaves no shadows». This is the incipit of the press release with which Pierpaolo Piccioli announced his farewell to Valentino . And after less than 10 days the official announcement regarding his successor arrived: Alessandro Michele will be the new creative director of Valentino . And together with the press release issued by the Roman maison , the first words from Alessandro Michele arrived: «It's an incredible honor. I feel the immense joy and enormous responsibility of becoming part of a Maison de Couture that has the word 'beauty' engraved on a collective history made of distinctive elegance, refinement and extreme grace."
Alessandro Michele: who is Valentino's new creative director?
Born in Rome in 1972, Alessandro Michele is not the son of art. His father is an Alitalia technician and his mother leaves her job to dedicate herself to the family. It is she who transmits to him the passion for art and beauty, encouraging him to enroll in the Academy of Costume and Fashion. After finishing his studies, in 1994 he moved to Bologna to start working for Les Copains , a historic Italian knitwear company. Towards the end of the 1990s he joined Fendi , collaborating with Karl Lagerfeld and Silvia Venturini Fendi . In 2002 he was recruited by Tom Ford , then creative director of Gucci , to work in the design office of the fashion house founded by Guccio Gucci, where he initially worked on accessories. In the Tuscan maison he became Leather Goods director in 2006 and associate director in 2011, working side by side with the creative director at the time, Frida Giannini until 2015. From 2014 he became creative director of Richard Ginori (now Ginori 1735 ), an important Florentine house of porcelain, acquired by Gucci the previous year.
In January 2015, Marco Bizzarri , who had recently become CEO of Gucci after a change at the top of the company , offered Alessandro Michele the role of creative director in place of Frida Giannini , giving the designer a week to prepare his premiere show men's collection. A month later, he debuted with his first women's collection for Gucci , characterized by a revolutionary, eccentric and citationist style, with a strong inclination towards genderless, which defines the new aesthetic of the brand. Alessandro Michele reintroduces the iconic double G logo. In 2017 he was included (as the only Italian) by New York Time among the «100 most influential people on earth» of that year. In 2019, he launched Gucci Beauty and the brand's first high jewelry line. On November 24, 2022, his separation from the Gucci brand was announced.
When will Alessandro Michele's first collection as creative director of Valentino show?
Valentino had already announced last year that he would not present "his next men's and Haute Couture fashion shows in June 2024 ". New creative director Alessandro Michele will debut with his first runway show for Valentino next September, presenting Valentino's spring-summer 2025 ready-to-wear collection in Paris , during Paris Fashion Week .
The statement from Valentino Garavani and Giancarlo Giammetti, the founders of Valentino
«Welcome to the world of Valentino !» , this is the beginning of the short statement posted on Instagram by Giancarlo Giammetti , Co-founder of the Roman fashion house together with the "Emperor of Fashion", Valentino Garavani . Who closely echoes him - also through a post published on Instagram - welcoming the designer to the Roman maison he founded in 1957. « It is an honor to welcome you here, into our world, where creativity and elegance are always were the values that inspired us. Giancarlo Giammetti and I are sure that your vision, sensitivity and talent will further enrich our universe of beauty and style."
Pinault's statement welcoming Alessandro Michele back to Kering
After his stormy exit from Gucci , Florentine maison of the Kering group, strongly desired by François-Henri Pinault after 7 years as creative director - which marked the return of Gucci among the most desired brands in the world -, today the Chairman & CEO of the French group which owns 30% of Valentino , commented alongside the official announcement made by Palazzo Mignanelli : « I am very happy that Alessandro Michele has been appointed at the top of Valentino's creative direction, and I am sure that with his creativity, culture and eclectic talent, he will be able to magnificently interpret the unique tradition of this splendid Maison, and make it shine. I look forward to seeing his passion, imagination and dedication at work, in shaping this new chapter in the Valentinot story."
