DELLA VALLE SHOW: Tod’s is keeping up with the times, believes its chairman and chief executive officer Diego Della Valle. Surrounded by a mob of reporters and cameras, he could have been mistaken for yet another celebrity. Asked about one global celeb — Kendall Jenner — opening the brand’s fashion show, he said Tod’s “is a global brand that must use a language fit for the times. Also, she is elegant and fun and well represents the label.” Her mother, Kris Jenner, was among the attendees.
The entrepreneur stood by the comments made last year about the role of the creative director. “The concept of the designer in the old sense is over. Today, it’s more about speed, doing partnerships, delivering capsule collections and limited editions. It’s like with editor in chiefs, they have 12 covers to deal with, and we have to have new products in stores every month. The job has changed, it’s more difficult but better,” Della Valle elaborated. To wit, Tod’s longtime design team took a collective bow at the end of the show. Emphasizing the role of Milan and fashion week, Della Valle wished for the shows to be extended by one day, “inviting people to stay, spend some time here, show them our lifestyle — which includes a good plate of pasta done just right.”
He also gave an update on the manufacturing plant that the group is building in Arquata del Tronto, in the Marche region in central Italy and not far from Tod’s headquarters, a region hard hit by a devastating earthquake last year. “The plant will be able to produce shoes by Christmas. We wanted to give a strong and concrete signal and do something useful for our territory and we hope it will be a stimulus for locals to stay,” he said.