Hugo Boss Renews Creative Leadership
PARIS — In the midst of a major revamp, Hugo Boss has announced changes in its creative leadership.
The German fashion giant has named Marco Falcioni as senior vice president of creative direction, in charge of the Hugo and Boss brands in tandem with their respective designers, effective March 1.
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In the newly created role, Falcioni reports to chief executive officer Daniel Grieder, the former Tommy Hilfiger executive who joined Hugo Boss last June, charged with reversing the fortunes of a company that had fallen behind amid the athleisure juggernaut.
Chief brand officer Ingo Wilts is stepping down from the executive board for personal reasons, effective Monday, although he will continue to be involved with collections until the end of the year, the German company said.
In August 2021, Grieder unveiled an ambitious five-year strategy for Boss, named “Claim 5,” which involves broadening the two brands’ appeal among younger consumers, notably, transforming into a lifestyle company without reneging on the brands’ roots in formalwear, and ramping up digital.
So far, it seems the strategy is paying off. Boss started the new year with a bang, unveiling a campaign that flooded social media and global billboards with images of celebrities and influencers in neutral-toned hoodies emblazoned with the brand’s new logo, a world away from its past image as a purveyor of tailored suiting.
Since the campaign went live on Jan. 26, that hoodie has reportedly become the bestselling single style in the history of the company, and the brand’s net sales increased by 248 percent (from 1.3 million euros to 3.3 million euros), the firm revealed to WWD in mid-February.
Falcioni joined the company in 2015, and was most recently part of the Boss menswear runway team and responsible for collaborations including Boss x Russell Athletic that are key to the label’s rebranding. He was also behind the design of the company’s first NFT collection pieces.
Also starting March 1, Andrea Cannelloni will take on a yearlong mission as creative adviser, returning to the company he left in 2008. He was most recently president of Napapijri at VF Corp.
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Hugo Boss’ Comeback Strategy: Youth, Lifestyle and Lashings of Data
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