MILAN — Sergio Azzolari was appointed chief executive officer of Roberto Cavalli in April 2023, but he jokingly says that, at the company, “we calculate time in dog years.” No matter the math, Azzolari said he has been busy “bringing back the coolness” to the brand with the help of creative director Fausto Puglisi.
“He’s been doing an amazing job,” said Azzolari of the designer during an interview at the brand’s offices in Via Bagutta ahead of the womenswear fall show, scheduled in Milan on Wednesday.
Puglisi joined the house in the fall of 2020, increasing the brand’s visibility also through the slew of celebrities who have worn it, from Jennifer Lopez and Dua Lipa to Lady Gaga and Gwen Stefani, among others.
Distribution, however, was lagging behind in a company that Azzolari characterizes as “a start-up with 23 milion followers. The brand is amazing, but it’s bigger than the actual distribution of the product.”
Accordingly, he said proudly that Cavalli succeeded in opening a boutique in London’s New Bond Street in December after only three months, “a major achievement in such a short time and competing against major conglomerates that were eyeing the same location, and it’s already giving us a lot of satisfaction.” This followed the opening of a store at Wynn Las Vegas in the fall.
The Roberto Cavalli store at Wynn Las Vegas.
In April or May, a new unit will open in Los Angeles at the Beverly Center mall and a boutique will open in Riyadh in the first half of the year, bringing the total number of the monobrand stores to 16. A store will open in the fourth quarter in central Montreal at Royalmount, the new $7 billion mixed-use development by L Catterton Real Estate in a partnership with Carbonleo. Canada is a new market for Cavalli and Montreal is a city “that attracts many New Yorkers, who travel there and to Miami for bachelor and bachelorette parties and various special events.”
One outlet door will also bow at Value Retail’s new luxury Belmont Park Village in Long Island, which “is very promising,” he said, and one at Sawgrass Mills in Florida.
A new store concept by Puglisi has not been presented yet, and the executive said a flagship — in Via Montenapoleone — is in the works in Milan, “hopefully to be unveiled in September.”
Pop-ups “in fun locations” are also in the cards, but Azzolari said “we are not in a rush, our priority is now to fine tune and bring back luster to the brand.”
Wholesale, excluding licenses, account for almost one-third of revenues, but Azzolari said there is much more potential in that channel as well.
Last summer the brand revisited the house’s spring 2023 print, Wild Leda, as a capsule collection celebrated through a series of events, which kicked off in London. On that occasion, Cavalli teamed with Selfridges to install a dedicated pop-up store on the second floor, and marked the brand’s entry into the storied department store. The bucolic scene of the capsule was inspired by the Leda and the Swan archival pattern originally designed by founder Roberto Cavalli in 1994.
The brand is also shining a light on denim, which was a cornerstone under the namesake founder, and Azzolari and Puglisi are working on launching a capsule at Selfridges at the end of the summer.
Revenues in 2023 amounted to 120 million euros, compared with 80 million euros in 2022.
Azzolari believes the brand has the opportunity to stand out in the ocean of quiet luxury designs, which he thinks are starting to create some fatigue with customers. “The ‘mob-wife’ trend — even though I don’t like this term — the flashier, more powerful woman is appearing on the scene and this could be an advantage for us,” contended Azzolari. “Historically, in moments of crisis, there is a desire to escape.”
Azzolari was previously CEO of Dsquared2, which he led for less than a year. Before that, he was general manager of Fay and Hogan, owned by Tod’s Group. He started his career at Benetton Group, balancing his fashion and retail roles with his professional rugby commitments. He then built his expertise via executive roles at Missoni, Luxottica and Deckers Corp.
Sergio Azzolari
Azzolari is turning his attention to the development of the Europe, Middle East and Africa region as well as the North American market. “We can’t stretch ourselves too much and too quickly; we need to strengthen the brand where we are already present,” he opined.
The U.S. area is already Cavalli’s largest market, representing one-third of sales, “very close to Puglisi’s heart,” and a deep influence on his creativity.
As reported, earlier this month the brand said it was collaborating with the Las Vegas Fashion Council during the Big Game Weekend, around the Super Bowl.
Cavalli pledged 10 percent of sales from its boutique at Wynn Las Vegas and from its couture suite through the weekend event toward creating a grant to support a talented young designer.
Puglisi has been focusing on building the brand’s womenswear collections. “Menswear has a lot of potential but we have to find its identity, it should be the companion of the woman, while it used to be a distant cousin,” Azzolari said with a chuckle.
He was also upbeat about new licenses, including an eyewear agreement with De Rigo, and a strategic partnership with Genny owner Swinger International for the Just Cavalli sister line, which Azzolari believes has significant potential to attract Gen Z customers. This was previously managed under license by OTB production arm Staff International.
This year the brand will launch a fragrance with Inter Parfum in a licensing agreement that was previously held by Coty Inc. Cavalli is also gearing up to present at Salone del Mobile in April once again, since the company has “a very strong home business, and consistent with the brand’s fashion in terms of style,” said Azzolari.
Hussain Sajwani, founder and chairman of the Dubai-based Damac Properties, owns Cavalli through his private investment company Vision Investments, which bought the brand from Clessidra SGR in 2019.
Sajwani’s property development company Damac is planning a 70-story residential building located on the Dubai Marina, overlooking the Palm Jumeirah, called Cavalli Tower, which will be furnished with items from the Roberto Cavalli home division. Another tower is planned in Dubai, as well as one in Miami.
