Sabato De Sarno Draws Inspiration From London for His Gucci Cruise Debut

Ana Colón

May 13, 2024 at 7:25 PM·5 min read

<p>Photo: Launchmetrics Spotlight</p> — Photo: Launchmetrics Spotlight

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The pressure Sabato De Sarno is facing surrounding his first Cruise collection for Gucci — presented on the runway in London on Monday — goes beyond the typical stress of putting on a fashion show. In April, the brand's parent company, Kering, reported that revenue for 2024 was already down 11%, and warned investors that recurring operating income for the first half of the year might be down up to 45% — which, yikes. Gucci, specifically, was 21% down that first quarter, with a "sharp decline" in the Asia-Pacific region. (Double yikes.)

This isn't on De Sarno, necessarily. His debut collection only landed in stores in February. Still, there's a lot riding on his vision for the Italian fashion house (which, from what we've seen so far, skews far more minimal, refined and digestible than his predecessor's imaginative, ornate creations): Gucci was, until very recently, a top money-maker for Kering, and former Creative Director Alessandro Michele was a blockbuster hit until he wasn't.

Cruise 2025 is De Sarno's fourth outing at Gucci, and his third womenswear show. In an interview with The Guardian, De Sarno explained that his first collection "was an introduction to my wardrobe – the classics, in my opinion"; the second explored sensuality. Cruise 2025 is meant to explore "romanticism" in his own way, he said. That perhaps comes across in the setting: Following the lead of its jet-setting luxury competitors, Gucci opted to stage its latest Cruise show in a city De Sarno has traveled to many times over the course of his career and that he's drawn inspiration from.

"To me, it's a place where people are sharing energies and ideas, no matter where they are coming from," he told The Guardian. "More than a specific style, what fascinates me about this city is the ability to bring opposites together, to make them coexist in a unique way made of conversations and exchanges." De Sarno specifically cited a Princess Diana look from 1991, where she's wearing an oversized varsity jacket with a pencil skirt, as epitomizing this energy: "I like personalities that speak about something contradictory, that bring together what seems distant and make it work." (There's also a lot of lore surrounding London for Gucci — it's said that Guccio Gucci got the idea for the brand while working as a porter at The Savoy.)

Whereas other destination shows might take more literal inspiration from their chosen setting (see: Maria Grazia Chiuri's New York-meets-Paris collection for Dior, Virginie Viard's Manchester knits for Chanel Métiers d'art), De Sarno taps into a feeling and a metropolitan sensibility. Models descended down the spiral staircase in the Blavatnik Building at the Tate Modern in looks that embodied that juxtaposition he spoke about — in texture, in shape, in color: gauzy pussybow blouses under boxy brown jackets, paired with short-shorts (which are becoming a signature of De Sarno's Gucci); formfitting mini dresses with oversized shoulder bags, all in the same shade; big overshirts with sheer floral pencil skirts; lacy bralettes peeking out from underneath bibbed tops.

In footwear, Gucci ditches the larger-than-life platforms in favor of flats and loafers. (It's reminiscent of when Valentino, De Sarno's former employer, presented a mostly flat-soled lineup after catching flack online for heels models could barely walk in.) Some models doubled up on bags, carrying both leather satchels with large mesh totes, while others slung a single oversized accessory on their shoulders.

From afar (or, at least, the livestream), the assortment feels easy and mostly uncomplicated. With De Sarno's collections so far, a lot of the appreciation comes from getting a closer look at the pieces, to see that those boxy brown jackets are embossed in various patterns, that those sheer midi skirts are embroidered (much like the florals on the jeans), that the tinsel on pants are actually strings of beads. Then, there are the clear technical stand-outs, like the ombré checked pieces accented by beaded fringe that Dua Lipa, who was sitting front row, is surely eyeing for her next holiday. The most compelling propositions, though, are the more unexpected color combinations — lilac with dusty pink with green-yellow with burnt orange with blue, or butter yellow with olive with light green with dusty pink with burgundy — that feel playful and imaginative, hinting at that romanticism that De Sabato spoke of.

See the full Gucci Cruise 2025 collection below.