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BRIONI HISTORY: Brioni is an Italian fashion house founded in 1945 by Nazareno Fonticoli and Gaetano Savini. In 1990,Umberto Angeloni became CEO of Brioni. It specialises in the sale of hand-made suits. Brioni’s first fashion show was held in 1952 at the Pitti Palace, Florence. The show gave the company world wide exposure. In 1954, the Brioni held the fashion show in New York City, followed by shows in eight other American cities. That year Brioni opened new shops on both sides of the Atlantic. MAIN COMPETITORS: Men’s wear: ???Ferragamo ???Ermenegildo Zegna ???Hugo Boss ???Giorgio Armani ???Gianni Versace
According to the results of the 2011 Luxury Brand Status Index (LBSI) Brioni is the top men’s luxury fashion brand of the year. Women’s wear: ???Hugo boss ???Polo Ralph Lauren ???Zegna (Agnona) ???Hermes ???Prada ???Louis Vuitton KEY DATES: 1945 – Brioni opens a tailor shop in Rome 1961 – Brioni begins distribution to the United States 1978 – Brioni opens its own tailoring school 1982 – A retail shop is opened in New York 1990 – Umberto Angeloni is named chief executive officer 1995 – Pierce Brosnan, in the James Bond film Goldeneye, wears a Brioni suit 2002 – Brioni opened its first two women’s apparel stores in Milan and New York
ESTABLISHMENT OF WOMEN’S LINE: (Donna Brioni): As Brioni prepared for the future, the esteem accorded to its brand name was as strong as ever. Although Angeloni consistently tempered any growth of the company’s retail network by insisting the development of a retail chain was not in the company’s future, the number of Brioni shops increased, nonetheless. In 2002, the company opened its first freestanding women’s store in Milan followed by a second women’s store in New York later that year. WOMEN’S LINE TEN YEARS ON:
Brioni, known for its menswear announced in Q3 2011 that it has ended its women’s wear line, the fall/winter collection currently in stores being the last one. The women’s fashion show was scheduled for 25th September during Milan Fashion Week which was subsequently cancelled. Brioni’s women’s line has had a rocky history since launch, underperforming in most markets. Alessandro Dell’acqua was named creative Director for Brioni’s women line in May 2010. The Company has ended its contract with the creative director and also has closed its Brioni’s Italian plant in September 2011, which exclusively manufactured the women-wear collections.
The company’s decision to end its women’s line is motivated by its need to concentrate on its core business, men’s wear and accessories. There’s also news that PPR/Gucci group started negotiating a buyout of Brioni in July; however a deal is yet to be reached Bibliography: http://www. brioni. com http://www. luxuryinstitute. com http://www. fundinguniverse. com http://article. wn. com http://www. enotes. com http://www. elegant-lifestyle. com http://www. cpp-luxury. com