What’s In Store, From a Master Merchandiser.
Review of Gucci Spring 2027 Fashion Show
By Angela Baidoo
Announced as ‘The Store Show’ on Instagram four days ago the designer built an entire ‘store’ for his spring 2027 show, complete with four distinctive layouts and all the fixtures, fittings, and furniture you would expect upon entering the brands retail space on Via Monte Napoleone. With security diligently guarding the merchandise on display, least any guests attempt to secure a souvenir from the show feigning ignorance that it was a prop. And In his first true vision for Gucci, Demna invited us in to window shop from the front row.
This meta device was his method of self-referencing the brand, while also displaying his extensive experience as a chief merchandiser who knows what will go from runway-to-retail and fly off the shelves. His love of characters also provided room for a full expansion of the The Snob, The Rebellious Aristocrat, and The Eccentric who we were introduced to at the beginning of his tenure. but there is still room to push the boundaries now that the foundation has been fully established.
THE COLLECTION
THE VIBE
In a personal letter to editors – via the show invitation that was later shared to the brands Instagram account – Demna wrote that his spring 2027 collection should be marked down in the ledger as day one. An unofficial starting gun for his complete vision for Gucci, and what we can expect in the seasons to come.
This approach feels logical as his ‘official’ debut would have been considered more of an appetiser, it gave a flavour of his grasp of the Gucci house codes and how he will interpret them going forward. There was also his dabble into the world of filmmaking with ‘The Tiger,’ directed by Spike Jonze released nearly a year ago to the day. This presented another angle, or visual medium, for the designer to approach how Gucci has become an integral part of popular culture. The film linked to the introduction of ‘La Famiglia’ and the extended lineage of which we were introduced to today, in what can only be described as the ultimate runway-to-retail experiment.
The cult of personality drives this world, ever since we could broadcast every minute of our lives, from the thrilling to the mundane. And it is this cult that has also had a hand in creating the outsized influence the brand has on everything from music and film, to sport and hospitality. ‘Gucci’s history is carried by personalities’ reiterated the designer. It is not what you wear, but how you wear it that makes the double G cool, provocative, or even bourgeoise.
Taking himself back to Gucci’s origin story, he was taken by the way people from all walks of life might cross paths in the hotel lobby of The Savoy Hotel in London. An institution where Guccio Gucci got his start in life as a porter, and which also became the very place that began the seeds of an idea to start a luggage atelier. Previously, said lobby would only have entertained the international jet set, inter-mingling and brokering deals. Today – as a reflection of Gucci’s runway casting – you can expect aristocracy, tech bros, and award-winning actors to rub shoulders with influencers, rappers, and the nouveau rich. And it is in this spirit of possibility that Demna plans to build his new vision for Gucci.
It’s undeniable that the designer knows good merch, and this season he made the case for his ingrained merchandising instinct of what will sell to the new luxury consumer. A consumer who comes from all walks of life, and will require an equally savvy marketing playbook. So to set the show in a store is the designers way of drilling down the reason we were all in the room. To sell clothes, dreams and fantasies too, but ultimately the goal is to get the brand back in the good graces of its shareholders and reignite its standing in the zeitgeist. Something Demna has always had a knack for capturing in his world-building.
Within the collection shown in the store format there were instantly recognisable tropes that have been instrumental in influencing fashion over the years. From the moment that clothes went from home-made to mass produced working women have sought to emulate the upper classes as an act of performing upward social mobility i.e. dress for the life you want, not the life you have. The style of American Ivy League college students became a global phenomenon and easy-to-duplicate uniform that worked on a universal level for both men and women. And whatever the state of gender politics there were always women for whom glamour and the kind of dressing that hugs the body and hikes the heel will always be a way of life.
If this is day one then Demna has set out his intention to be a man of the people. Understanding that what the aspirational customer wants is access to luxury (the cotton rugby tops and the now more keenly priced accessories provide that), while the nouveau rich – who have always enjoyed displaying their matching Gucci luggage or double-G sandals – will see themselves in the oversized fur coats, slinky evening wear and fitted skirt suits, as the designers letter stated “Gucci is about luxury that wants to be seen.”
THE WRAP UP
Today’s front row was testament to the designers pull, and featured Bianca Jagger, Donatella Versace, Shawn Mendes, Cardi B, and Naomi Watts rubbing shoulders with the leadership team of François Henri Pinault and new CEO Francesca Bellettini who will be closely observing, not just the wares on display, but the initial and ongoing response to this new world.
A world that had the foundations laid today, and though we are in a time of ongoing economic uncertainty Demna shouldn’t confine himself to the parameters of the house. If this is the core merchandise that customers can expect to purchase seasonally, then in upcoming seasons there should also be a push to add in more elements of fun, fantasy, or experimentation that play into the designer strengths not just as a master merchandiser but as an experienced showman who knows how to upend expectations.
