Roberto Cavalli, Italian stylist; an icon of Italian and world fashion. He founded, a Florence, a world famous fashion house. Its main feature is originality.
Cavalli's style is well defined, the clothes caress the body and the fabrics used are colorful and with mixed patterns. Animal mantles, sequins, scales this is the style of the designer with a great reference to nature. The Cavalli woman is gritty and strong; in his collections Roberto shows all his personality: instinctive and exhibitionistic.
Biography
Roberto Cavalli was born on 15th November 1949 in Florence. Study atState Institute of Art of Florence textile applications of painting.
It was in the early seventies that he patented a process for printing on leather and created the first ones patchwork of materials and different colors.
In 1970 presents first collection with the name of Roberto Cavalli and shortly thereafter opens the first boutique of the brand.
Towards the age of twenty he married his first wife but at 29, shortly after the wedding, the two separated. In 1980 he married again, and found his main collaborator in Eva, his wife. At the end of the nineties the brand was established and distributed in 36 countries.
In June 2013 he received from the Domus Academy of Milan a honorary degree in Fashion Management. Here he gave a lecture at the end of the graduation ceremony.
The fashion house: the sixties and seventies
In recent years, a great experimentation on materials begins, especially on leather. Is in the 1970 Roberto Cavalli made his debut in Paris with his first collection. They showed leather patchwork garments made in collaboration with Mario valentino.
For the first time, in 1972, a Palazzo Pitti from Florence, presents the women's collection, patchwork is also applied to jeans. In those years there were many great fashion houses that took an interest in his work: from Hermès a Pierre Cardin; from Krizia a Emilio Pucci.
Towards the late seventies all the big brands moved to Milan while Cavalli decided to stay in Florence, isolating himself from the future capital of Italian fashion.
The fashion house: the XNUMXs and XNUMXs
It was in the early nineties that the fashion house moved its activities to Milan. In 1994, during the Fashion Week, the brand is heading towards international success. In the new collections they are present brindle jeans, dresses with large prints, embroidered furs, long dresses. L'animalier, an iconic element of the brand, is now beginning to conquer the great celebrities. The company presents i aged denim with a special processing ei first stretch jeans.
In the same years the various clothing lines of the fashion house were also born: Just Cavalli, Angels & Devils (today Roberto Cavalli Junior), Class Horses.
In 1996 the first was inaugurated Roberto Cavalli monobrand boutique in Venice. At the end of 2001 the brand is distributed in 30 countries.
In recent years, following several partnerships, he launched the line of sunglasses, the lines of watches and a exclusive club in Milan.
In 2010, the fashion house turns forty and shows in Paris with a collection that includes all the most famous pieces made over the years. In 2014 the designer decided to sell the ownership of the brand and the entire fashion house.
The fashion house: the development in recent years
In 2015 a new era begins for the Roberto Cavalli brand. Creative direction is in the hands of Peter Dungas; the bottom Hourglass SGR takes over 90% of the group with other minority shareholders.
In 2016 after the untimely death of Claudius Sposito, a new CEO is appointed who initiates major changes and a recovery plan for the company. In the same year the brand's headquarters returned to Tuscany, more precisely to Osmannoro.
In 2017 there is a new change, a new creative director. He arrives at the maison Paul Surridge. To relaunch the brand, new ones are created lines of accessories, ready-to-wear for women and new men's collections. Many shops are closed and the licensing of underwear and beachwear are internationalized. For the following year the expected breakeven is not reached and the Clessidra fund decides on the arrangement with creditors. In this same period the creative director Surridge also resigns. In 2019 the Dubai billionaire: Hussain Sajwani buys the company. Roberto Cavalli switches to Vision Investments.
The brands of the group Cavalli
Over the years the group has grown and so have the brands that have been included under the main one.
- Roberto Cavalli: historical brand launched in the world of luxury that includes lines of evening dresses.
- Just Cavalli: 1998, a young brand with an urban and rock style. Since 2011 it has been licensed by Renzo Rosso's OTB.
- Class Horses: day line for men and women. Since 2015 Swinger International license.
- Roberto Cavalli Junior: line for children from 0/16 years.
- Roberto Cavalli Home: in 2012 it was presented at the Salone del Mobile in Milan. Big collaborations with Made in Italy companies.
- RC Sports: sporty line.
Seven curiosities about the stylist Roberto Cavalli
1. The stylist is a child of art. Grandpa was Giuseppe Rossi, an artist, who exhibited at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence.
2. In the early 70's he was the first stylist a bring patchwork to the catwalk. This was precisely one of the transgressions that led to its popularity.
3. The maison's first boutique opens a Saint Tropez in 1972.
4. He is not a lover of American fashion, these are his words: "A farce, a swindle, we prostituted ourselves at their will but now it's time to stop it. Americans should be downsized. Their fashion? It is worth nothing, it should be crushed. "
5. In 2018 with Hussain Sajwani, who chairs the Damac Properties, Roberto Cavalli has signed a partnership to create the "Cavalli Hotel" project. Over the next ten years, the project plans to build five hotels. The first under construction is that of Dubai Marina financed for about 500 million dollars.
6. He was the first in 2007 to collaborate with the low cost brand H&M.
7. He is a great lover of photography, animals and nature. Some of these passions he manages to bring them back into his creations.
