PPR Gucci Group Case Study

By Sophie Cheung

The PPR Gucci Group, formerly known as Pinault-Printemps-Redoute, was founded in 1963 by Francois Pinault. Currently, the company is run by his son, Francois-Henri Pinault and specializes in the design, manufacture, and marketing of luxury goods. The Luxury group brands of PPR include:Gucci

• Bottega Veneta
• Yves Saint Laurent
• Balenciaga
• Alexander McQueen
• Boucheron
• Sergio Rossi
• Stella McCartney
• Puma (subsidiary brand)

The company's power comes not only from its control over the creme de la crop of luxury brands, which has enabled it to dictate style to the upper echelons of society and the masses, but also from the company wealth and influential power of the Pinault family.

A keyword search on sites such as Business of Fashion and The New York Times shows PPR as having one of the foremost number of related articles with LVMH as a close industry rival. The search results for PPR are well up into the thousands, which show industry power as media attention circulates around those that are deemed important enough to receive it. More than that though, the Pinault family also owns a significantly influential sector of the French Media through the family owned company Groupe Artémis.

The Pinault family also owns the world's most renowned art collection and Francois Pinault was awarded the most influential person in contemporary art for two years straight in 2006

and 2007 respectfully. Additionally, the family also owns the prestigious Palazzo Grassi--a modern art museum in Venice in as well as the world's leading art auction house Christie's. Their power and influence thus extends beyond fashion as their control over the art world lends them the ability to dictate creativity and aesthetics in general.