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The recent death of Yves St. Laurent brought to mind how the world of high fashion has been changing in recent years. Today multinational conglomerates own readily identifiable brand names such as Yves St. Laurent.

In Italy, one of the most dominant names for decades had been Gucci. While members of the Gucci family actually started the company and managed it for most of its existence, today no member of the family plays a direct role in the management of the company. What’s more, the last member of the family to head the company was killed by his wife (through the use of contract killers).

In her book The House Of Gucci, Sara Gay Forden chronicles the high and low points of Gucci as it rose to a position of great influence in the fashion world. Through her extensive research, she succeeds in detailing precisely who did what to make Gucci successful. From Florence, to Milan, to New York, and to London, she tracks not only the movement of family members, but also the development of various products bearing the Gucci name.

In particular, she focuses attention on the key role played by Aldo Gucci in getting the company established in the United States.

Anyone intrigued by the behind the scenes maneuvering that takes place in the fashion world would benefit from reading Forden’s book.

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