As the Couture show gather pace in Paris, the front rows are buzzing today with speculation that Gucci is about to join the oh-so fashionable fray.
According to a report in industry bible WWD, industry sources have confirmed that the label's creative director, Frida Giannini, has already put pencil to paper for a Gucci Couture debut.
Gucci may be so far staying quiet on the subject but it appears that plans are already fairly advanced, with the decision being taken that the collections would not be shown on the Paris runways but sold to clients and celebrities via private appointments. There'd be a focus, WWD notes, on wardrobing A-listers for the very biggest red carpet events.
Giannini has been widely credited with steering Gucci back into calm waters after the many months of upheaval that followed Tom Ford's high profile departure from the creative director role in 2004. She's forged ahead with building the brand's portfolio: launching a pop-up trainer store, engineering various charitable link-ups and inciting whispers about a Gucci cosmetics line.
While a presence in the Couture arena marks out a label as one of the world's most exclusive, the sums of money involved mean that the trend is for houses to exit rather than enter it. But if any label can swim against a tide, our money's on Gucci to be the one to do it.
Picture: Frida Giannini on the Gucci spring/summer 2010 ready-to-wear catwalk.
gucci.com
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