Book Cover

What is the spark that lights the fire of ambition, the fire that burns out reason, moral principles, respect, and attentiveness, in the pursuit of unchecked riches?

# Review

This film covers the rise, fall, and rise again of the global luxury brand Gucci. While the story of the company is tumultuous, the story of the Gucci family is on a whole different level and reads like an Italian melodrama, filled with betrayals, emotional confrontations, and even murder.

Forden retells the entire history of Gucci as well as the Gucci family’s role in operating the company, from Guccio Gucci launching a store selling imported leather goods, to Aldo Gucci taking the brand international, to Maurizio Gucci staging a coup and eventually selling out to outside investors. The book retells the dramatic events transpiring within the Gucci family, such as Paolo Gucci waging war against the rest of the Gucci family and Rudolfo and Aldo Gucci struggling over ownership of the Gucci company. The story also covers influential characters from outside of the Gucci family, such as Dawn Mello, Tom Ford, and Domenico De Sole.

While there were some lessons to be learned on how to operate a business, the management of Gucci is largely a lesson on what not to do when operating a family business. Here are my three main takeaways:

• Aldo Gucci, perhaps the best manager of the company from within the Gucci family, had some lessons worthy of learning. His attention to detail, such as closing a franchise store after discovering dust on the shelves, and his management of employees, such as inspiring his subordinates with his own work ethic, were both valuable assets in Gucci’s international expansion.

• Corporate governance is incredibly important, even within family businesses. Families should not rely only on familial relations to govern a business; familial and corporate relationships should be kept separate and proper corporate practices (such as having all agreements in writing) should be enforced. Managers outside the family with required skill sets should be prioritized and brought on to help manage and govern the company. As an investor buying a family business, it’s crucial to not lower the bar for corporate governance and transparency; proper governance should be established as soon as possible post-acquisition.

• It’s important to surround oneself with people who wish to succeed and not just yes-men. The greatest hamartia of Maurizio Gucci in my opinion was his failure to select the proper people to surround himself with. Maurizio was focused more on the creative vision of Gucci and is by all accounts, was not a competent business operator. Perhaps due to his insecurities from childhood, he refused to relinquish operational control, thus leading Gucci to become vulnerable and eventually causing the Gucci family to lose control of the company. Understanding one’s own weaknesses and being pragmatic with selecting people who one surrounds oneself with (surrounding oneself with people who are both helpful and not afraid to offer constructive criticism) are both important lessons to be learned from Maurizio’s story. Furthermore, having a stable personal life may not help one succeed in business, but having an unstable personal life (such as being hated by a narcissistic ex-wife) will certainly cause one to fail in business.

Forden’s writing is journalistic but there were certainly embellishments, such as conversations between the characters and what the characters were feeling. Forden is also knowledgeable about fashion history and there are sprinkles of her knowledge throughout the book. Overall, the book was incredibly detailed and featured a treasure trove of anecdotes about the Gucci brand as well as the characters surrounding it. What I found interesting, however, is the business reporting of Gucci’s business conflicts in the later years of the story, such as Investcorp’s acquisition of the company and the company’s shareholder fight against LVMH. People who aren’t necessarily interested in fashion will find some value there.

# Conclusion

An interesting saga with a little of everything.

# Overall rating: 7.4

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