The Coming of a New Guard

PARIS, France — If one was looking for evidence that there is a new guard taking over in fashion, then there couldn't be a better week than this one to prove it.

Alessandro Michele's appointment as creative director of Gucci saw the artistic direction of one of the fashion world's most important brands pass into the hands of a relatively unknown former assistant to Frida Giannini, the brand's recently ousted creative director.

This wasn't the first time a strategy of continuity has been employed at Kering, of course. Sarah Burton took over in the wake of Alexander McQueen's death and has been an able and talented conduit for the McQueen aesthetic and approach, so the model has worked before.

But should Gucci have taken a more disruptive approach this time, bringing in an entirely new designer, with new creative ideas?

"Gucci needs new energy and new ideas to create a 'buzz' and move back to centre stage in a more crowded market," wrote Luca Solca, head of luxury goods at financial services firm Exane BNP Paribas, in an analyst report covering the appointment. "Investors may wonder whether someone with a long track record within Gucci may lack the energy, vision and ideas to achieve this."

"We believe the consideration of an external candidate would have allowed for more discontinuity and disruption in the short term, with the potential for a revised long term strategy — something which may well have been a positive for the Gucci brand," agreed Mario Ortelli of Sanford C. Bernstein in his own report.

It seems that while the brand recognises the need for change, it thinks it can be found from the inside. Commenting on the appointment, Marco Bizzarri, president and chief executive of Gucci, said in a statement: "After a considered and thorough selection process, Alessandro Michele has been chosen to assume the role as Gucci creative director, based upon the contemporary vision he has articulated for the brand that he will now bring to life."

Mr Michele's first menswear collection was certainly a surprise, but simply showing a change of direction is not enough. That change of direction has to mean something for the long-term. Our next view of Michele's potential vision for Gucci will come on 25 February in Milan, during the womenswear collections.

Elsewhere in Milan, continuity was the approach also taken at Versace, which appointed Anthony Vaccarello creative director of its Versus collection. Vaccarello had been designing capsule collections for the brand as a consultant, but clearly Donatalla Versace sees an aesthetic and personal fit, as Vaccarello's role has now been made permanent.

And here in Paris, Jonathan Anderson showed his second menswear collection for Loewe in a bustling showroom in Place Saint-Sulpice. As before, key editorial looks rotated on two models, mixed with a series of desirable commercial pieces shown in a presentation laid out like a store. It was a fresh way to present a collection.

Please enjoy our top stories for the week gone by:

Gucci Appoints Alessandro Michele Creative Director
Kering-owned megabrand Gucci has officially appointed Alessandro Michele its new creative director.

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Op-Ed | Fashion's Overtaxed Designers Need the Support of Image Directors
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In China, Showrooms Blossom
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The Creative Class | Edouard Roschi, Perfume Developer
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And don't forget to check out BoF Weekly, a week in review published with Flipboard and updated every Saturday.