On Wednesday, a day before Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons made their collaborative debut for Prada, another (albeit very different type of) collaboration was gearing up to be announced in Milan, between Italian luxury house Gucci and Colorado-based outdoors brand North Face. Being that it’s 2020, word of the partnership was first shared on TikTok via a three-part video series released by Gucci.
In each of the bite-size clips, a flag featuring the collab’s logo — North Face’s signature logo with the words “Gucci” and the colours of the Italian flag below it — is seen waving in the wind of a mountain range. The sound of a foghorn is heard echoing in the background.
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The statement from North Face doesn’t share much more about the forthcoming collaboration, but promises it will arrive shortly: “Gucci and The North Face confirm that they will be bringing a collaboration to life in the coming months that celebrates the rich heritage of both brands.”
Given that we won’t be seeing a Gucci collection presented during Milan Fashion Week this month — Gucci creative director Alessandro Michele announced a reduction in the number of shows per year, from five to two, as well as a postponement of a SS21 show due to the pandemic, back in May — this news is a welcome surprise for Gucci fans who’ve been waiting for more of the brand’s signature excessive layering, clashing prints, and inventive show set-ups. (Michele’s last show, titled “Epilogue” involved a 12-hour livestream, which included behind-the-scenes access and models who doubled as Gucci employees.)
In the five years since Michele took the helm at Gucci, the designer has accomplished a lot. One thing he has yet to do with the brand, though, is partner up with someone else, making this his first-ever collaboration as creative director. North Face, on the other hand, has plenty of experience in that department. In streetwear alone, the brand has partnerships with Supreme and Brain Dead, an L.A.-based brand co-founded by Kyle NG and Ed Davis. They’ve also been teaming up with Junya Watanabe since 2006. And, just recently, North Face released a pair of padded boots and a matching puffer with Timberland.
If the buzz on social media is any indication, we should prepare for an instant sell-out.