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CEO Talk | Matteo Marzotto, Chairman, Vionnet

Imran Amed, Editor — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 23:30:14 +0000

Matteo Marzotto in his Milan offices | Source: The Business of Fashion

MILAN, Italy — When Matteo Marzotto, stylish scion of the Italian fashion dynasty announced in February 2009 that he was acquiring the storied House of Vionnet, owned at the time by Arnaud de Lummen who had already had a go at reviving the sleeping beauty himself, the response from the fashion industry was simultaneously one of intrigue and distaste. On the one hand, a swarm of journalists and buyers packed into Marzotto’s Milan apartment for the initial press conference. On the other, many fashion observers could not fathom how a legendary French fashion house could be moved to Milan, run by an Italian, and designed by Rodolfo Paglialunga, an Italian designer who had worked for most of his career in Italy.

Fast forward two years and it seems Mr. Marzotto has taken the first small but successful steps in rebuilding the Vionnet business, if not in quite the same aesthetic or spirit as that of its namesake designer, then undoubtedly far more successful in generating revenues and editorial coverage than the previous attempt to bring Vionnet back to life. Indeed, Vionnet’s gowns and party dresses now regularly show up on red carpets on both sides of the Atlantic where starlets such as Carey Mulligan, Marion Cotillard and Rachel McAdams have taken to the Vionnet cause, giving the brand a new lease on life. The brand chalked up over 5m euros in sales in its first year, from a standing start.

After years of hands-on experience turning around the Valentino business (and then selling it for a tidy sum), Mr. Marzotto is banking on turning Vionnet into his next fashion success story, leveraging his extensive global fashion network, his undeniable charm, and the fashion DNA that runs in his family. For many Italian fashion insiders, this is not a man to bet against.

With the imposing (and inspirational) photo of his grandfather looking over his shoulder, Marzotto spoke to BoF about the early results of his work on the Vionnet brand and his plans for its future.

BoF: Let’s talk about the House of Vionnet. With your experience and connections in the Italian fashion industry you had many other opportunities post-Valentino, but instead you decided to attempt to relaunch this brand. Why?

Matteo Marzotto: The word is passion. Even before my time at Valentino I thought there was the capacity and potential to grow another brand, or try to relaunch a brand, something with a beautiful history, but no recent past. Then one day I went to this consultant to speak about a completely different matter and in front of him there was a brochure on Vionnet. I asked about the brochure, and he said ‘it’s a small thing, it’s not for you.’

It was the final business plan for Vionnet.

BoF: What does the Marzotto organisation bring to the table to help with your strategy for Vionnet?

MM: Ten years ago, Marzotto was managing licenses. It was your typical Italian industrial organisation for fashion, the kind of organisation that made Italian fashion big at the end of the 1970s.

I grew up in that organisation, and for a long time I thought it would be interesting in terms of value creation to work directly on a brand. Then [the Valentino opportunity] came and we worked like horses for five years to build it up. In five years we doubled the business from 128m euros in sales and a net loss of 40m euros in 2002, to 260m euros in sales and a net profit of 27m in 2007.

Our management style was very much from the culture of Northern Italy, in Veneto, checking the financials twice, sometimes three times a day, while also learning how to work and survive with image issues, style issues and drama queens. In those 5 years I dreamed of taking something small and making it big by applying the principles of a large organisation to a small one.

BoF: So you will use the same approach at Vionnet as you did at Valentino?

Not completely. In my opinion there is a risk in fashion of constantly re-using the same people coming from the same backgrounds. People are always growing up with the same procedures in fashion, then changing companies and exporting those old ways of doing things to other companies. For this reason, it’s nice to have new blood as well and do new things. In a big company you cannot do certain things, you have to plan it and protect it.

BoF: What will be different with Vionnet then?

MM: We have to show a little bit more of our personality, the human side of fashion. Overall, there is too much focus on how people look; a kind of gaudy feeling. I like the idea of being very small and trying to relaunch a very beautiful brand through Facebook, Twitter, the web, whatever. I’d like to show a small part of our day to day life.

BoF: What do you mean exactly?

MM: We did a little test in Paris which I liked very much. It was quite traditional, a little bit of backstage plus a little bit of testimonials during the presentation of the collection. From now on we would like to fix this, to catch some of the daily life of the company.

BoF: At the most recent IHT conference, you said that it was ‘a nightmare for an Italian to relaunch a historic French brand.’ How do you respect the history of a French brand even though it’s based in Italy?

MM: Unfortunately when I said that, it was because French people were reacting to the acquisition very badly. French customers, especially in Paris, felt betrayed. The Vionnet brand had been there for 70 years.

Overall, my respect towards the brand comes from its history, and from our side there is the highest respect. Madame Vionnet foresaw the future, like a visionary.

She was so ahead, and made the body free by throwing away the bustier. The organisation of the company was genius, it was probably 40 years ahead. She was the very first to make a [branded] perfume, and use advertising and marketing for publicity.

She was a genius in everything; my admiration for her is so deep. There is no reason whatsoever for me to try and make it a fast fashion company, because I come from a family business, because I grew up with a respect towards history.

I cannot explain it; I can only speak through the quality of product.

BoF: What are your plans for the future?

MM: I am working with the same energy, concentration and focus as I was at Valentino. What I want to leave you with is the idea that there are people very much in love with fashion and this project. There are some brands which have no stamina, feeling or connection, but Vionnet is different.

Vionnet presents its Autumn/Winter 2011 collection during Paris Fashion Week on Friday

CEO Talk is an ongoing series of discussions with fashion entrepreneurs and business leaders. Previous interviews are listed below:

BoF Daily Digest | Europe embraces outlets, Vionnet exhibition, Death of the Sari, Suits back in Milan, Agnes b. doubles China stores

BoF Team — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 10:51:17 +0000

Berlin designer outlet, courtesy of McArthur Glen

Designer Outlets Come Into Fashion Across the Continent (WSJ)
“The Berlin Designer Outlet Center, built to resemble a German country village, is the latest outlet to open in Europe and further evidence that in a broader retail industry plagued by tenant insolvencies and declining consumer spending, the outlet segment is still expanding.”

Vionnet exhibition opens in Paris (Telegraph)
“Vionnet, dubbed the “couturier of couturiers”, is being honoured with an exhibition, opening today at Les Arts Décoratifs in Paris, which spans her work from the setting up of her house in 1912 to the glory years of the Thirties.”

The Dying Art of The Sari (Time)
“Sales do pick up in the winter, Delhi’s high season for lavish parties and weddings, but fashionable young women are more interested in designer saris in sheer fabrics made on power looms, not the traditional hand-woven silks like the ones in their mothers’ cabinets.”

Italian designers dream of summer in the city for 2010 (AP)
“Returning to the urban styles which made them famous, Italian designers are putting men back into suits and ties after many a season of wardrobes for globe-trotting vacationers.”

Agnes b. to Double China Stores to Tap Retail’s ‘Bright Spot’ (Bloomberg)
“Agnes b. Group, the French fashion brand created by designer Agnes Trouble, will double its stores in mainland China to tap growing demand that’s made the country a “bright spot” in the retail industry.”

Friday Column | Failure to re-launch?

Lauren Goldstein Crowe — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 11:43:42 +0000

Matteo Marzotto, courtesy of The Sartorialist

LONDON, United Kingdom — The recent news that Matteo Marzotto and Gianni Castiglioni have bought the Vionnet brand reminded me of the old saying about second marriages: a triumph of hope over experience. Arnaud de Lummen has already had a hand at reviving Vionnet, the classic couture brand, over the past few years, but has now moved on to other projects. (You can read all about it in BoF’s exclusive interview with de Lummen.)

In announcing the purchase of Vionnet, Marzotto said “I am convinced there is always room for projects that have at their core originality, energy and passion. With Vionnet I would like to bring back to life an idea of fashion that is contemporary without forgetting its history.” And, Marzotto is not the only one who thinks so.

Halston is probably the highest profile re-launch, but the $20 million plus purchase price paid by Hilco Consumer Group, Harvey Weinstein, and a small group of private investors, means the pressure is on to see big-time results in a shrinking economy.

By comparison, Azzaro, bought by Reig Capital in 2007, has been taking a slow and steady path – and managed to maintain positive results despite the disappointing times. Managing Director Sagra Maceira de Rosen puts it down to the focus on performance in their two stores – the flagship in Paris and the new pop up store in Mount Street, which recouped its costs in the first two days of sales. (Full disclosure: Sagra is also the co-author of a book on Jimmy Choo that I am publishing later this year.)

I’m enamoured with JT handbags, based in Florence, who have exclusive distribution in Bendel’s in New York and are still considering European partners. And Lela Rose, who made her name dressing the Bush twins, is embarking on a new push into Europe under the guidance of sales director Sandra Ellis, who joined from Zac Posen.

But is it a foolish time to attempt these kinds of initiatives? On the surface of things, the answer would appear to be ‘yes.’ Sales of established brands are suffering, so retailers are going to be extra cautious about taking risks on new brands with unproven sales performance.

On the other hand, the suffering of the big brands could provide an opportunity for leaner, smaller bands. If established mega-brands are cutting back on their ads, so much the better for smaller, independent brands whose single pages have a better chance of being noticed in the glossy magazines. And even if they don’t have money for advertising, creative marketing ideas (read about Halston’s innovative online video in our CEO Talk with Bonnie Takhar) have a better than usual chance of getting noticed.

If Giorgio Armani isn’t in London throwing celebrity-studded extravaganzas at Earl’s Court (like he did in 2007 to celebrate his collaboration with the charity RED), then the press is all the more likely to head over to the Azzaro pop-up store on Mount Street to get a snap of Jemima Khan.

The danger is falling into the trap of getting over-extended. This is not the time for ambitious launches. Fortunately Marzotto and Castiglioni have the industry experience and deep-enough pockets to fund Vionnet through a transition stage. Brands without big backers aren’t so lucky.

So, while it may not be a good time to make money, if these re-launches are carefully managed, it could still be a good time to establish a fan base that will pay off when the recession ends.

Lauren Goldstein Crowe has returned from sartorially-challenged Whistler, so we are now back to our regularly scheduled BoF programming. You can expect more of her popular Friday columns to come.

Paris Fashion Week: The resurrection of Vionnet

Imran Amed, Editor — Tue, 09 Oct 2007 04:00:00 +0000

In the 1920′s, a young French designer named Madeleine Vionnet created a virtual tornado in the in the fashion industry when she developed the bias cut. By cutting fabric against the grain, she enabled it to cling, drape and give in a way that was flattering to the body. Vionnet went on to build an enviable and innovative business, dressing clients such as Marlene Dietrich, Katharine Hepburn, and Greta Garbo.

The house was shut down during the Second World War, but since then, Vionnet’s technique has been widely used by numerous acclaimed designers, including Azzedine Alaia and John Galliano, who has made the bias-cut dress one of his own signatures.

Now, almost 70 years after it faded into oblivion, the House of Vionnet may not be dead for much longer. Not if Vionnet CEO Arnaud de Lummen has something to say about it. Over the past few years, he has been quietly laying the foundation to resurrect this once-great house to its former glory. De Lummen’s father bought the rights to the Vionnet business 20 years ago and has waited until now to task his son, a Harvard-trained lawyer, to make this ambitious vision a reality.

After Sophia Kokosalaki’s one year stint heading up design, Mr. de Lummen installed French designer Marc Audibet at the helm of Vionnet — a move which was lauded by many industry insiders, some of whom feel that Kokosalaki was unable to carve out an identity for Vionnet that was distinct enough from her eponymous label.

The choice of Mr. Audibet, who has long been an admirer and practitioner of Vionnet’s techniques, is an inspired one. Not only does he have experience at some of the finest European fashion houses, including Prada and Trussardi, there is no other label to compete for his time or creative energy.

The Business of Fashion sat down with Mr. De Lummen at Vionnet’s recent presentation for S/S 2008 at Place Vendome during Paris Fashion Week to learn about his strategy for building the Vionnet brand. We also took in an abbreviated presentation of Mr. Audibet’s series of dresses which were immaculately in tune with Madame Vionnet’s vision. While I wish they had been shown in a setting more suited to Vionnet’s grand style (the stark white backdrop with modern mirrored gizmos felt anachronistic), there was no denying the power of Audibet’s designs.

With all of the talk of Diego Della Valle’s search for a designer to revive the House of Schiaparelli and the ongoing efforts of Harvey Weinstein to rebuild Halston, Vionnet will certainly be an interesting story to watch

On sales and distribution…

Barney’s will continue to hold the exclusive rights to distribution in the USA, but as of S/S 2008 the Vionnet will slowly open up distribution in other key markets. To secure its exclusivity, Barney’s effectively funded the working capital costs for production by paying for its order up front.

On marketing and communications…

While Mr. Audibet’s dresses are undeniably complex and intricate in their design, to the untrained eye, many of the most difficult techniques might be lost. Communicating in this, the fashion era of sound-bites and celebrities, means that educating consumers on Vionnet’s techniques will be crucial.

And, the Press are listening. There was no shortage of editors at the presentation, including Le Pli magazine’s Take Hirakawa, whose smiling face and great style I recognised from Diane Pernet’s blog.

On case studies for the Vionnet strategy…

Reviving a fashion label — let alone a Parisan Couture house — from the dead is no easy task. Just ask the people trying to rebuild Asprey or Pringle or Bally or Ungaro. De Lummen says he and his team have been very careful to respect the codes of the Vionnet brand. When asked about a potential case study, he insists

"there is no case study for what we are doing…though I look at Chanel when I am thinking about where we should be aiming for."