With the exit of Pierpaolo Piccioli from the creative leadership of the Valentino maison, an era comes to an end, one that starts from the foundation in 1960 of the maison in Piazza Mignanelli in Rome by Valentino Garavani, up to his farewell in July 2007, continuing with the continuity and modernization of the brand brought about by the modern vision of Pierpaolo Piccioli.
For further information ANSA Agency Valentino and Piccioli, consensual divorce after 25 years - Fashion - Ansa.it The stylist: "We created beauty" (ANSA)
Born 56 years ago in Nettuno, near Rome, a seaside town where he met his wife Simona and where they raised their three children, the designer joined Valentino in 1999, together with Maria Grazia Chiuri, creative director from 2016 of the Dior fashion house, with whom he had studied at the European Institute of Design and with whom he had had his first work experience at Fendi.
At Valentino the two designers began working on the accessories line, but soon they also collaborated on other lines alongside the maestro Garavani, helping to enhance the brand's codes and give it new lifeblood.
In 2007, Valentino Garavani retired and left the creative direction of the maison, acquired in 2002 by the Marzotto Group, to designer Alessandra Facchinetti.
But after just a year, in 2008 the helm passed to Chiuri and Piccioli until 2016, the year in which the paths of the two designers diverged: she moved to the helm of Dior, the first woman and Italian to lead the French fashion house and he he remained at the helm of Valentino.
Piccioli is highly esteemed by critics and the public for his collections that are impeccable from a sartorial point of view, but contemporary and innovative in lines and colors.
Among the most popular of recent years are the one dedicated to the white shirt in 2019. The one presented at the Teatro Piccolo in Milan in 2021 during the lockdown, instead of in Paris, to give support to artists damaged by the pandemic.
And the one in which he introduced "Valentino pink" with Pantone, called Pink PP which colored an entire collection in 2022, from clothes to shoes.
As well as the windows of Valentino boutiques around the world.
The designer is also known for his commitment to inclusiveness and diversity and for having valorized the work of the seamstresses and tailors of his atelier, who often accompanied him on the catwalk at the end of the fashion shows.
In addition to having helped bring the company to 1.4 billion euros in revenues in 2022, he has won important awards such as Designer of the Year 2022 at the British Fashion Awards.
In 2019 he was included by the American Time magazine in the list of the 100 most influential people in the world.
His latest collection, which was shown in Paris three weeks ago, was entitled Le noir, and was dramatically colored entirely in black: almost an omen or a message of the imminent end of his love affair with the Valentino fashion house, which lasted 25 years.
Now new scenarios are opening up regarding the succession of the leadership of the brand.
According to rumors, Maria Grazia Chiuri or Alessandro Michele, former creative director of Gucci, could be involved.
Moreover, last July the French luxury group Kering, which among others also owns the Gucci brand, acquired 30/% of Valentino from Mayhoola, a Qatari company that still holds the majority of the brand.
The acquisition envisages that Kering will be able to obtain full control of Valentino's share capital by 2028. Thus everything can happen in the waltzes of the most coveted seats in the fashion world.
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