Bottega Veneta, the story
Since its birth in 1966 in Vicenza, Bottega Veneta represents the luxury English in the world of leather goods and international fashion.
Michele Taddei and Renzo Zengiaro give life to a company specialized in leather goods with a strong focus on the craftsmanship and the use of fine leather. These are the characteristics that still distinguish the products Bottega Veneta: the excellence of processing, the elegance and the minimal design mean that the unique style of the brand is immediately recognizable despite being one of the few high fashion brands that has chosen not to flaunt their logo.
The company’s debut was not easy but it was the genius of knowing how to transform a problem into a resource that gave birth to one of the distinctive symbols of the brand: the braided. The machines then owned by the company were only suitable for sewing ready-to-wear light fabrics and not the thick leathers needed to make a bag. This is how the idea was born of using a softer leather, the nappa, and to cut it into strips and then weave them following a precise diagonal pattern in order to obtain a single very resistant fabric. This type of workmanship, which enhances the artisan look, has become the mark that distinguishes every Bottega Veneta bag. A campaign is even launched with the slogan “When your own initials are enough”, to advertise the customization of the bags with the initials of those who buy them, instead keeping the logo only inside.
Bottega Veneta and the luxury short film
During the 70s Bottega Veneta opened the first store in New York City and started the production of footwear. The two founders leave the management of the company to Taddei’s former wife, Laura Moltedo, who works in the expansion in the United States successfully. Andy Warhol even made a short film called “Bottega Veneta Industrial Videotape”. In the 90s the brand created its first clothing line and in 2001 it was acquired by the Kering Group, formerly the Gucci Group, which entrusted Tomas Maier with the role of creative director. Under his direction the style of the brand is defined by the press as “discrete luxury”. Keeping the essence of the brand, Maier focuses on accessories with a refined and refined aesthetic. In 2005, the women’s prêt-à-porter collection appeared for the first time on the catwalk and the following year, the men’s collection. At the same time the Maison opens The School of Master Leather Makers Bottega Veneta with the aim of passing on its techniques of leather processing and grow those who will be the artisans of tomorrow.
In 2018, with the appointment of Daniel Lee as creative director, the fashion house began a process of change in the name of modernity: traditional values are combined with a completely innovative design so that it is called by the media “New Bottega”. He maintains the DNA of the brand by introducing streetwear elements and strong colors that attract new generations; the green lawn becomes the distinctive nuance of the House. The designer brings the fashion house on the crest of the wave with a series of bags and footwear become popular, especially the bag The Pouch: a clutch with minimal design, soft leather, which reinterprets that flaunted by Lauren Hutton in American Gigolò in 1980 and is currently the best-selling piece in the history of the brand.
Bottega Veneta e le it-bag
The models of Bottega Veneta bags become it-bag are many, among the most famous: The Knot, a small rigid braided clutch with a precious metal clasp in the shape of a knot; The Cabat, a shopping bag by hand that impresses for its simplicity; The Jodie, which owes its name to Jodie Foster, a hobo woven bag characterized by a side knot on the handle; the Cassette, one of the most recent creations, a shoulder bag in which the characteristic weave becomes maxi.
Bottega Veneta in recent years has been innovative also for the approach to communication: it is the first luxury brand to have completely eliminated its social profiles and to have focused on fashion shows event outside the official calendar of Fashion Week. The history of Bottega Veneta is made & nbsp; artisanal excellence and creativity that will continue with the recent change of direction: in November 2021, Matthieu Blazy, already in the team as ready-to-wear design director, was announced as the new creative director.
Cover Image: bottegaveneta
