GABRIELECORTO MOLTEDO has a lot to live up to. The 28-year-old designer comes from serious fashion pedigree - his parents Laura and Vittorio Moltedo founded Italian luxury label Bottega Veneta in 1966. So when he decided to follow in their footsteps and launch his own handbag line, Corto Moltedo, in 2004, he wanted to make sure he stood out.
'Branding is super important,' he says. 'From beginning to end, from the hardware to the leather, a Corto Moltedo bag is branded. It's very important. It's the ultimate way of individualising.'
Making a statement is clearly important to Moltedo. Dressed in a pair of dark tracksuit pants, a black blazer, trainers and his signature logo necklace, he looks more like an extra from a hip-hop video than the designer of a luxury brand.
Moltedo is blase about his privileged background. He grew up travelling between Paris (where his parents' business was based), New York and the Venetian countryside. He was surrounded by the family business and during his summer holidays, would visit the company's factories in Italy, learning everything from packaging and quality control to cutting leather.
He studied art history at New York University, before earning a masters in communications at Boston's Emerson College. When he finished his studies, Moltedo returned to Italy and launched his handbag line. It was only natural that he turned to his parents - who sold Bottega Veneta to the Gucci group in 2001 - for advice.
'I hired my dad,' he says. 'We're like best friends. He helps me with the organisation. But my parents have influenced me only in the way that they pushed me to be an individual and make my own decisions. They supported me from the beginning. They've always told me to do what I want to do. This is my own choice.
'In times of need they are there to answer questions, but I'm still the boss. Besides, I don't think they have a passion for bags any more. They're coming out of their ears!'