Family affairs: 8 world-famous brands with a family dynasty behind them

The fashion industry is known for its strong family ties, from designer house heritage to model siblings.

Prada, Fendi and Hermès are known as high-end luxury brands backed by generations of families. We decided to mention the main fashion dynasties that conquered the world of high fashion. You need to know them, even if you do not claim the status of a fashion expert.

Versace

In the late 1970s, fashion designer Gianni Versace launched his own eponymous brand with his brother Santo and sister Donatella in Italy. The label’s popularity grew thanks to Gianni’s use of bold hues and revealing cuts. The House of Versace is credited with launching the careers of Naomi Campbell, Christy Turlington and Linda Evangelista. After the tragic murder of Gianni in 1997, Donatella took over as CEO of the company. Today, she is the creative director, and her daughter Allegra is the main owner of the company.

Prada

Mario Prada founded his eponymous brand in 1913 as a leather goods company. After his death in 1958, his daughter Louise took over the management, and then passed the company to her daughter Miuccia Prada in 1978.

In the same year, she met her future husband, Patrizio Bertelli, who is now her business partner. Miuccia is responsible for the creation of clothing and accessories under the label, while Patrizio has taken over the financial side of the business.

Under their leadership, Prada bought out other brands such as Jil Sander, Helmut Lang and Azzedine Alaïa. Expanded into menswear and launched a sister label, Miu Miu, where Miuccia is also creative director.

Ferragamo

In 1927, the young bootmaker Salvatore Ferragamo launched the brand in Florence, which attracted the attention of Hollywood stars Greta Garbo and Marilyn Monroe. After his death, his wife Wanda and their six children took over the family business, turning it into a leading fashion house. Completing the luxury image that this label represents, Ferragamos has also created the Lungaro hotel collection in Italy. Today, the third generation of Ferragamo works under the eponymous brand in various roles.

It is no secret that Italy is known to the world not only for fashion trends, but also for its own wine. If you really want to move to this temperamental country, but there is no such opportunity yet, it is enough to taste the sparkling drinks of the Fiorelli brand. And for those who, for one reason or another, do not drink alcohol, they created Fragolino Bianco Zero Alcohol, for which the wine underwent a special dealcoholization process.

Why Fiorelli?

Fiorelli is one of the leaders in the sale of sparkling wines in Ukraine.

All sparkling brandy is made only in Italy from local grape varieties of the Piedmont region.

Fiorelli is a combination of quality, elegant design and an attractive price.

The brand has a wide selection of flavors. Even non-alcoholic sparkling wine is presented in two formats – in a bottle and in a jar, which is convenient to take with you.

Fendi

In 1925, married couple Eduardo and Adele Fendi opened a small leather goods store in Rome. Their five daughters, Carla, Paola, Anna, Alda and Franka, later inherited the company, which became a recognized brand in the luxury goods market. Silvia Venturini Fendi, Anna’s daughter, joined the brand in the 1990s alongside Karl Lagerfeld and now serves as the company’s creative director of accessories and menswear.

By the way, next Tuesday everyone will start drowning in pink tinsel, candies, valentines – after all, Valentine’s Day is on the horizon. Many couples cannot do without a beautiful candlelit dinner. And, in connection with this, a popular question arises: “Which sparkling wine to choose for February 14?”. In the assortment of the Italian brand of sparkling drinks Fiorelli, you will find exactly what your significant other will like. This Brut Rose is a sparkling rosé brut with a delicate coral color that has a light, refreshing taste with hints of limes and pink flowers. Enjoy this drink with seafood and soft cheeses.

Representatives of the strong half of humanity are advised to pay attention to the classic Fiorelli Brut. This sparkling wine is excellent as an aperitif, while it goes well with light appetizers and fish dishes.

Missoni

Ottavio and Rosita Missoni founded their knitting workshop in 1953, and five years later presented the first collection of the Italian luxury house. The Missoni brand, known for its colorful zigzag pattern, has been around for generations. After Ottavio and Rosita moved on to other endeavors in the 1990s, their children took over the management of the family business: Vittorio became marketing director, Luca became menswear designer and Angela was in charge of womenswear. Later, Angela’s daughter Margherita, who works on a line of accessories, joined the cause.

Hermes

The Hermès family is one of the richest and most authoritative in the world of fashion. Founded in the 19th century by an experienced leather craftsman, Thierry Hermes, the luxury brand has been offering the most valuable leather products for more than a century. Thierry was succeeded by his son Emile-Charles Hermes, who was followed by his sons Adolphe and Emile-Maurice Hermes. In the middle of the 20th century, the fourth generation of the family came to power, and Robert Dumas, grandson of Emile-Maurice, became the executive and creative director. The French house became a fashion canon under Jean-Louis Dumas, Robert’s son, who introduced the brand to clothing, jewelry and the famous Birkin bag. Today, there are about a dozen heirs to the $49.2 billion Hermès fortune, with cousins Pierre-Alexis and Axel Dumas leading the brand.

Dsquared

The founders of the brand were brothers Dean and Dan Keithen. They studied at New York’s Parsons School of Design, were creative directors of the Ports 1961 brand and interned at Gianni Versace.

The twins had several attempts to create their own brands, but almost all of them ended in failure, except for DSquared2. It was 1994. Then, with the financial support of the Diesel Group, the Keitens began to engage in men’s clothing, and in 2003 they expanded the brand to include women’s clothing.

BCBG Max Azria Group

Founded in 1989, BCBG Max Azria Group is the realization of one man’s dream: founder, designer and chief executive officer Max Azria. After years of success designing womenswear in his native Paris as well as in Los Angeles, Azria decided to pursue his dream and open a design house focused on the modern woman, thus BCBGMAXAZRIA was born. The name of the company comes from the phrase “Bon chic, bon genre”, which translates into English as “Good style, good attitude”.

Two years later, he met his future wife Lyubov, a Ukrainian ballerina and a graduate of the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising. Currently, she is the head of the brand’s design team, the chief marketer and merchandiser of all the brands that are part of the firm.