By Benjamen Judd

Gucci Gives Us Our First Look At Their Next Phase

It's a more subdued fare at the Italian house in 2023

Overnight we caught our first glimpse at what Gucci looks like in a post Alessandro Michele world with their Gucci Menswear Fall Winter 2023 collection in Milan overnight.

The first solo menswear collection from the brand in three years and perhaps one of the first signs that things at Gucci are definitively moving on and along from Michele’s brand of fluid grandeur. Which brings us to the clothes themselves.

There’s an often-used (overused if you ask me) quote about fashion that suggests before leaving the house you take one thing off.

That’s seems to the new vibe at Gucci.

MILAN, ITALY – JANUARY 13: A model walks the runway during the Gucci Ready to Wear Fall/Winter 2023-2024 fashion show as part of the Milan Men Fashion Week on January 13, 2022 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Victor VIRGILE/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

Where “more” became something of a war cry for the brand with Michele at the helm, “that’s enough” could be the new motto.

This restraint – something we’re not used to seeing from the Italian brand – feels almost like a shock and it might be some time before we’re accustomed to the new direction.

Fits have expanded – denim slashed at the hem and left loose with a feeling of DIY approach to customised details. Memories of Michele’s romantic touch were there, along with his geek chic looks, but so were references to Frida Giannini era Gucci and even Tom Ford. What better way to reboot than to pay homage to what came before?

Where Michele knew what tickled Millennials, Gen Z is another beast entirely and it’s clear that Kering saw this new generation, along with its digital playground of TikTok, rejection of Instagram and Facebook for more “authentic” experiences and where messaging is more discrete.

Fashion for Gen Z is less about stunt and more about statements – individual ones, chaotic ones, polished ones. All that matters is it’s their own and it’s up to the rest of us to interpret what we want from it.

Sure, there’s a carryover of the flair that Michele made such a pivot on from his predecessor but it’s been tempered. Gucci gang, where the clothes marked the wearer, is out. Rather, we can now wear Gucci without Gucci wearing thin.

It might also be some time, or at least until a new creative director is announced, before a clear cohesive vision becomes apparent. All the references to house designers past might inspire the nostalgia – and no-doubt be a crowd pleasing sentiment – but the storytelling becomes anecdotal.

topics: Gucci, Milan Fashion Week Men's, Alessandro Michele, Fashion Week Men's, trending