‘Create your own niche ... and you will always have a space in the market’: Etro fashion at 50
- Known for its paisley prints, Italian fashion, homewares and furniture house remains family-run despite recent takeover trend
- Founder’s son Jacopo Etro isn’t hung up about control, though, saying, ‘it doesn’t matter who runs the business if you are still able to express your values’
Italian fashion brands like to keep business in the family, but things are changing fast. This year alone Missoni sold a 41.2 per cent stake of its business to a private equity firm, while Michael Kors acquired Versace for a cool US$2.1 billion. The recent death of Wanda Ferragamo has raised speculation that many of Ferragamo’s remaining family members are looking to sell their shares in the luxury brand.
While this might be taken as signalling the imminent end of Italy’s fashion dynasties, Jacopo Etro has a different take on the matter.
“Is this the end of an era? It depends on how you look at it. We still have some family-run businesses, like Dolce & Gabbana and Alberta Ferretti, for example. You can still be a family business and be on the stock exchange.
“The trick is to create your own niche which makes you different to any other brand – independent or otherwise. Because you’re special you will always have a space in the market and there will always be a demand. To me, it doesn’t matter who runs the business if you are still able to express your values,” he says.
Etro was founded by his father, Gerolamo “Gimmo” Etro, in 1968 and made its name by creating and developing textiles for fashion companies. The 56-year-old scion joined the family business when he was just 20 years old and has been hooked ever since. He started his career in the sampling room and, over the years, he has taken on bigger roles including overseeing textiles, homewares and, more recently, accessories.
