Could Tom Ford return to Gucci?
His name has been mentioned as the next designer for the Italian fashion house after it announced in December that designer Frida Giannini and her partner, CEO Patrizio di Marco, would exit the company.
Ford ran Gucci from 1994 to 2004, turning around an unprofitable business that eventually went public.
Ford also took over YSL after Gucci Group acquired the brand during his tenure.
Though Gucci announced Giannini and di Marco’s departures before Christmas, Giannini was expected to stay on to present her fall 2015 collections. But she just left a month early, ahead of both the men’s show Monday and women’s wear in Milan in February.
Ford’s return may be a long shot — he’s since launched his own brand estimated by some to be worth $1 billion. His Gucci departure came after a public dispute with Gucci’s parent company PPR. François-Henri Pinault today runs the conglomerate, now called Kering.
“This is absolutely and completely unfounded. His own brand is growing dramatically and he views that as the next 30 years of his life,” a rep for Ford said.
Ford has also since adopted a son, Alexander, with partner Richard Buckley.
Ford presented his mod inspired fall 2015 menswear collection in London this week, Ford’s women’s wear collection — usually presented in London — will instead be held in Los Angeles on Feb. 20, two days before the Academy Awards.
“Like fashion, film is also a creative endeavor that is extremely important to me,” Ford said of the move. “I am excited to bring these two aspects of my life together by presenting the collection in Los Angeles.”
Meanwhile, insiders say a Gucci internal team is taking over the helm until a new head designer can be named.
Others in the running for the job include Joseph Altuzarra, Givenchy’s Riccardo Tisci, Emilio Pucci’s Peter Dundas and LA-based Saint Laurent designer Hedi Slimane.