The Captivating True Story Behind the House of Gucci

originally November 23, 2021

This month on November 24th- which just happens to be the day before my birthday- you and I are receiving the best present ever with a fashionista thriller coming out in theaters starring none other than Lady Gaga. House of Gucci is about the brutal murder of Maurizio Gucci, the grandson of the Guccio Gucci, the company’s founder and is based off a true and incredibly intriguing story. I just finished reading the book that the movie is based off of, House of Gucci: A Sensational Story of Murder, Madness, Glamour and Greed by Sarah Gay Forden- which I can not recommend enough so here’s a LINK for you to get that- so today I feel inspired to share this historical gem of a tale that is the History of The House of Gucci.

I love a true story!
Guccio Gucci , the founder of this iconic brand was born March 26. 1881. He was born into a straw hat making family, and it was assumed that he would continue the family legacy doing that for his youth. However, the family business went bankrupt and the family fell apart. Guccio was then driven out of his house by his father and the 17 year old went to London.

In London, Guccio was taken in by the prestigious Savoy Hotel, which was the first ever hotel to have an electric elevator. There he worked a variety of jobs including as a dishwasher, a bag boy, and an elevator attendant. This job, that was quite prestigious at the time, gave Guccio a good look at how the wealthiest people lived and he saw first hand how luggage related to luxury. He noted that these people were obsessed with the quality of their suitcases and didn’t care much about the price. He also became acutely aware of the idea that these items were less about utility and more closely regarded as status symbols. This was when the cunning young adult first recognized these notions as a potential opportunity.

After a few years of working at the hotel, Guccio saved up enough money to return to Florence and start a new life. Once there, he married a dressmaker, Aida Calvelli, and started his family before being called to serve in World War 1. He was an officer. After the war, Guccio returned to Italy and found work in the struggling economy for a company that specialized in making high quality leather goods. There, he moved up quickly and even opened his own store. This carrier and the knowledge that he gained from it would soon prove essential in the success of his early years.

A few years later, and with Aida’s blessing, Guccio opened his own store in Florence. He called this shop Valegerio Guccio Gucci, which was later shorted to just Gucci. The shop sold high quality leather luggage and handbags that he selected from suppliers at first, but he later cut out the suppliers and opened a workshop where he made the goods himself. His first few years in business, Guccio struggled to turn a profit. It wasn’t long until the suppliers that allowed him buy their goods on credit were demanding payment. He finally shared the hard reality that he would have to close down his shop with his family and staff.

Lucky for him, Guccio’s future son-in-law offered to lend Guccio the money from his savings, put aside to marry his daughter Grimalda, to allow the store to remain open. Gucci humbly accepted, and from there, turned his business around. He was able to pay back this loan in full within just a few months, as well as hire a team of artisans to continue to produce their own high quality leather goods in the company’s workshop.

As Guccio’s business grew, so did his eldest son, Aldo’s, ambitions for the company. By then, Aldo had then traveled across Europe and was convinced that there was opportunity in expanding the Gucci product all across the continent. Guccio originally shot this idea down- saying it was too risky, and that they wouldn’t be able to come up with the money. This didn’t stop Aldo, however, as he decided to go behind his father’s back and asked their bank for a loan anyway.

They got the money from the bank, and Guccio eventually caved. The family opened up their second shop in Rome. This shop would prove to be a great investment dow the line as it saved the family from bankruptcy when World War 2 shut down the majority of Europe. In realizing this store’s success, Guccio found another loan and the family opened their third shop in Milan in 1950.

As the company proved to be successful across Italy, Guccio’s three sons, Aldo, Radolfo, and Vasco continued to aspire for more. In 1952, and without the permission of their father, the sons secretly flew to New York in search for the location that would be the family’s first American store. They settled on 7 E 58th Street, New York City, NY- which is still a Gucci location today. Guccio found out about this via telegram and was immediately furious with his boys, but again, eventually caved.

Unbeknownst to the family at the time, this New York City location would bring the Gucci family worldwide recognition as a top fashion label. Their brand was now celebrated far and wide as the first Italian label to open a store in New York City, and their styles- worn by the most highly regarded, from Queen Elizabeth to Jackie Kennedy. Unfortunately, only 1 year after opening the store in New York, Guccio would drop dead from a heart attack. His will left Gucci to his sons Aldo, Radolfo, and Vasco. His daughter Grimalda- whose husband once lent Guccio the money to keep the company open- was left nothing. This was something that she tried to fight legally, with, unfortunately, no avail. The 3 sons continued to reign on the Gucci parade without their sister.

The company continued to flourish through Guccio’s son’s efforts: with Aldo running international expansion, Radolfo focusing on the Milan store, and Vasco running their factory in Florence. Gucci was now growing rapidly. It’s popularity amongst the elites grew rapidly now, in thanks to its high quality products, and high- profile endorsers. Most especially those of their new shoes-called loafers- which the company is deemed responsible for popularizing among both men and women in the 1960s-1970s. 

Over the next few years, Gucci continued to open more locations, reaching 12, and expanded its product line to include perfumes and clothing as well. Gucci was now seen as a high status symbol brand and viewed as untouchable in the industry. Unfortunately, 2 years after this expansion in lines, Vasco passed away due to cancer. With no children, his stake in the company was given to his wife, Maria. Aldo and Radolfo then bought Maria out and split the company 50/50.

Later, Aldo split his shares- giving his sons Giorgio, Paulo, and Roberto 10% each. Radolfo, however, refused this courtesy to his one and only son, Maurizio, much to his resentment. Despite only owning a small percentage collectively, the sons came to realize around this time that they needed to step up and take on more responsibility for their fathers. This is when Giorgio, Paulo, and Maurizio began to take advantage of this opportunity and rebel against their fathers. First, Giorgio went behind his father’s back and opened his own store using the family name. Then, Paulo began his own label and outed his father for tax evasion. In 1953, Radolfo Gucci passed away, and Maurizio Gucci was finally given his half of the company. He used this power to kick Aldo out- leaving Gucci to the new generation.

Maurizio then became hungry for more power, so he got a loan to buy out the rest of his family. The company Investcorp gave him the loan believing his word that the company would be far more successful under only his leadership, leaving the split opinions and family drama in the past. Maurizio and Investcorp were now the sole owners of Gucci, and Maurizio then began to run the company into the ground with his bad leadership. His first years in Gucci’s drivers seat, Maurizio was losing about $30 million a year.

At this time, Investcorp agreed to save the company from the grave that Maurizio was digging, under the circumstance that Maurizio would leave the company. Maurizio finally did so, reluctantly.  Investcorp hired a new creative director for the company, Tom Ford, and under their guidance, Gucci became more successful than ever before and the fashion was morphed into the glamorous looks that Gucci is known for today.

It was 2 years after Investcorp kicked Maurizio out of the company, in 1995, that Maurizio’s body was found dead outside of his office in Milan. He had a tricky divorce after kicking his cousins out and tasting such profound power for the first time. There were years of drama between him and his ex-wife Patrizia Reggiani leading up to it and, upon recognizing him beginning to move on with another woman, she hired a hitman and had him killed. 

Gucci’s story is one of humble beginnings, drama, and glamour that has outlived multiple wars, bankruptcies, and family feuds. I hope that you learned a bit more about the history of this iconic brand and found it interesting or entertaining.

Now, since it’s already premiered, let’s talk a smidge about the MGM production of this tale and, most importantly, Lady Gaga’s fashion moments at its premieres!

Watch the movie’s trailer here:

Some of Lady Gaga’s looks as Patrizia Reggiani:

The director cited ’60s bombshell film star Gina Lollobrigida as inspiration for Lady Gaga’s costumes as Patrizia Reggiani, and Gaga claims she was inspired by the looks of her her fashion-conscious mother, philanthropist Cynthia Germanotta during the ’70s and ’80s.

Gaga went full method acting to play this part. Sharing with Vogue how she was particularly struggling to establish herself as a serious actress, she took this role incredibly seriously and lived the part of Patrizia Reggiani full-fledged, including the accent, for a year and a half.

Never one to miss at a red carpet- Gaga stuns at the movie’s premieres:

To the New York premiere, Gaga brought with her the wow factor. She wore a custom-made black velvet halter gown with a large accent bow by Armani. She paired this with an updo, Tiffany and Co jewelry, smoky eye, and strong red lip for the occasion.

To the London premiere, Gaga went for a rock-n-roll inspired look, sporting a statement purple draped maxi-dress in silk chiffon with matching cape that she whirled around dramatically on the red carpet. The look was designed by Gucci and is a part of their most recent (Spring 2022) collection. Gaga pairs this dress with black boots, fishnets, blunt bangs, and a smoky eye to increase its rocker feel.

For the Milan premiere, the superstar went for a more vintage pin up model look- rocking a custom-made red gown by Versace with a corset top, high slit, and criss-cross detailing. She paired this look with high pointed matching red heels, simply elegant jewelry, and a half-up, half-down hairstyle which, appropriately, makes one wonder if looks could kill.

At the Los Angelos premiere, Lady Gaga opted for beautiful strapless Valentino dress with train, whose shine rivals that of her own. Much like the other gowns, this one oozes glamour, making it perfect to wear for the introduction of this movie. She wore diamond earrings and necklace to go with it and rocked a short platinum blonde bob hairstyle which all went very well together. 

The End

House of Gucci premieres in select theaters November 24th, 2021 so check it out in a theater near you and don’t forget to read the book linked again HERE. I strongly believe that the more you know about these brands we talk about in the fashion world, the more you can appreciate them. As always, thank you so much for taking the time to read this. Check out my other blog posts for more content. If you enjoyed this, you may also like the very interesting biography of similarly iconic designer Coco Chanel linked HERE. Don’t forget to sign up for my emails to keep up because we, of course, have much more content to come.
See you again soon 
XOXO,

Amy