Sabato De Sarno takes us home for the Gucci Cruise 2025, presenting his London-inspired collection at one of the most famous art galleries - Tate Modern. Ever since Sabato was appointed the new creative director of the brand, he was tasked with the difficult mission of toning down the brand, while trying to make it more desirable and appealing to stealth wealth. With the earning releases for Gucci this Spring being another 18% lower than the previous quarter, it is making us question whether his take on the iconic brand is what was really needed.
The Cruise 2025 collection explores dichotomies. It is set in a highly brutalist building - the Tate Modern, and it mixes a bit of everything, as if Sabato De Sarno is too afraid to bet on any particular movement or style for that matter. We see a plain version of Gucci, as if the house is trying to blend in with everyone else, while trying to find its space in the ever changing market. But Cruise shows were never meant to be this big thing, and our main focus was always on the bags.
The first assemble of outfits walking down the runway isn't anything mind-blowing, but when was a Cruise/Resort collection ever of any interest? It caters to a very small market, or at least that is how it would be pitched to investors, if that market even exists. However, it oftentimes comes at a great price for fashion houses, which are forced to fly out celebrities and press to whatever location they've decided to host the event, simply because it falls off-calendar and isn't in a common fashion week location.
