In 1972, Diane von Furstenberg made history with her signature wrap dress—which became a symbol of empowered femininity for a generation of working women. “I was 25 when I created this one little dress that made me confident. I wanted to share that confidence with millions of women,” she said.
53 years later, she wants to revive her original mission, targeting the Gen-Z girl with updated designs, colour palettes and premium materials. A new distribution strategy favours regional giants like Europe’s Zalando, which has a strong exposure to the digitally native generation.
The relaunch comes after von Furstenberg decided to take back over operations of her namesake brand after having licensed to Chinese group Glamel for four years. “I realized I have something worth putting in the right hands,” the Brussels-born designer and entrepreneur said. Unsure how to proceed, she asked Tom Ford’s longtime business partner Domenico De Sole, whom she calls “the pope of fashion,” for advice.
De Sole introduced her to Graziano De Boni, a previous Giorgio Armani and Philipp Plein executive. A year ago, he became DVF’s CEO, tasked with taking back control of the product and brand narrative.
One step was to remove “low-end fabric and materials that were never part of DNA,” but had creeped their way into the collection over the past years. Today, the bestselling item is still the evergreen wrap dress – now made from 100 percent silk.
“Price increases reflect the material upgrade,” De Boni said. “Quality of fabric is the most important thing,” said von Furstenberg, “The designs need to be effortless, sexy, on the go.”
Nathan Jenden returned to the brand as creative director last month, joined by a team of designers tasked with rejuvenating the brand’s aesthetic.
The Exclusivity/Reach Sweetspot
In a turbulent market for wholesale, DVF needed a plan for distribution that could help it attract a new and younger customers while keeping a tight grip on storytelling. “I had to take back control of business, but do it in an unconventional way. I needed to take advantage of starting fresh,” said von Furstenberg.
De Boni’s solution: Inking major exclusive partnerships spanning DVF’s key regions, starting with Zalando for the European market, rather than reactivating a long list of wholesale accounts. The brand also remains available on its online flagship and a Brussels boutique.
While focusing on DTC can allow for even more control of image and pricing, that route was discarded in favour of the exposure and reach associated with large platforms. “I don’t think 100 percent DTC reflects reality,” De Boni said. “Through multibrand platforms we have access to different customer bases.”
Accountability was another key factor that favoured the new distribution strategy. “Retail deals help make sure you’re on track from a product and business perspective. You can’t be delusional,” said De Boni.
For Europe, Germany-based Zalando is DVF’s sole retail partner. Since its founding in 2008, Zalando has grown into Europe’s largest multi-brand platform, serving 50 million customers in 25 European countries today.
For the retailer, the partnership is a chance to expand its exposure to designer and luxury names. “We have mid-market positioning and evolve our selection from low- to high-end, based on customer needs,” said Lena-Sophie Roeper, VP designer at Zalando. “Searches for luxury brands have increased steadily over the last few years,” she said.
“We really look forward to the storytelling opportunity this deal brings us,” said David Schneider, Zalando’s co-founder. “Strong storytelling is what fashion is all about. We want to move away from being purely transactional,” he said.