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There is a new name in international fashion. Is called De Sarno Saturday, is Neapolitan, and is the new creative director of Gucci. A long-awaited announcement both by those who make up the entire fashion system and by the admirers of the maison, still destabilized by the farewell of Alexander Michael which in a few days could announce its arrival at Bulgari. De Sarno is a little known name but he arrives at Gucci with a prestigious curriculum and is well known (and appreciated) among insiders. Indeed, he has been a key figure in the last 13 years of Valentino, during which from a symbol of old-fashioned elegance he has become the most lively brand on social media, with the power to set trends around the world, also thanks to the actress Zendaya chosen as the face of the brand. The release of the Florentine fashion house that chooses Instagram to formalize the announcement is measured: «Gucci and Kering are pleased to announce that Sabato De Sarno will assume the role of creative director». Thirty-nine years old, transplanted to Milan since his studies at the European Institute of Design, he made his debut in 2005 with Prada, then moving on to Dolce & Gabbana, up to Valentino in 2009. Here he held the position of Fashion Director Man & Women, right arm of Pierpaolo Piccioli, creative director of the Maison Valentino since 2016 and awarded designer of the year at the 2022 Fashion Awards dedicated «to the work team, to whom I owe everything», a clear sign that De Sarno represented a fundamental element for the brand’s creativity . While waiting to see Sabato De Sarno’s first catwalk collection, which will debut at Milan Women’s Fashion Week in September 2023, all eyes are now focused on Valentino and Piccioli who will have to replace a gap that is difficult to fill.
His main gift is confidentiality: private Instagram with less than 5 thousand followers (his predecessor has one million and 300 thousand) where, however, he contributes not only fashion images but also poems, messages for the fight against civil rights and shots of the his beloved dog. She is married and her husband works in the offices of the European Union in Brussels. From a professional point of view, those who know him well exalt his aesthetic rigor and mastery for haute couture. In short, Sabato De Sarno is the opposite of the party animal Alessandro Michele, an antithesis that seems to outline a return by Gucci towards a less gender fluid style appreciated by generation Z which has however led to a flattening of turnover which in 2021 (only +10% compared to pre-pandemic 2019) and stopped at 9.7 billion euros while still representing the flagship maison of the Kering Group but with Yves Saint Laurent collecting an amazing +45%.
De Sarno’s apprenticeship was long and intense and for years he worked behind the scenes of the big names in fashion, cultivating interest above all in the knitwear sector. Precious yarns declined for Dolce & Gabbana, where he was the designer of the women’s knitwear collections, where he remained until arriving at Valentino where the gradual path that from head of the men’s and women’s knitwear section, will see him move on to direct the fashion sector is evident man until his appointment as Fashion Director, with the task of supervising the men’s and women’s collections, and right-hand man of creative director Pierpaolo Piccioli.
Leaving a trace in the showbiz is now an indisputable combination for the fashion sector and Alessandro Michele in 8 years in Gucci has traced a clear path. However De Sarno is certainly not a rookie in the star system, having taken particular care of the fuchsia imprint on the recent ones Met Gala 2023 and especially made last year’s most high-profile wedding dress worn by Nicholas Peltz at her wedding to Brooklyn Beckham. The announcement comes after Paris Fashion Week, where Maison Valentino presented a collection acclaimed by fashion’s most demanding pens, in which her signature stands out in haute couture garments with fluctuating volumes. “I am deeply honored to take on the role of Creative Director of Gucci. I am proud to become part of a Maison with such an extraordinary history and heritage, which over the years has been able to welcome and preserve the values in which I believe. I am moved and enthusiastic to contribute to my creative vision for the brand» De Sarno’s words entrusted to the press release.
