Fashion spotlight shines on Ferragamo’s Giornetti

PARIS (AP) - He’s come out of the shadows and into the world spotlight. But Massimiliano Giornetti, Salvatore Ferragamo’s creative director since 2010, says that he’s still a “down to earth” guy _ despite having tea with Meryl Streep and hanging out with Angelina Jolie.

The humility is perhaps surprising considering that Giornetti, who has breathed life into the 84-year-old fashion house, made history this week with the biggest catwalk coup in recent times: taking over the arcades of the Louvre for the 900-year-old building’s first fashion show.

While the Louvre venue might be new, the Hollywood A-list has been linked for an eternity to the storied Italian brand.

“The link between Salvatore Ferragamo and Hollywood is as old as the company,” Giornetti told The Associated Press. “It was probably the first house (in the 1920’s) to create this link between fashion and celebrities.”

It was patronage of actresses _ such as Marilyn Monroe and Greta Garbo _ that ensured Salvatore Ferragamo’s “fairytale” rise from a humble shoe repair shop in California into the leather “shoemaker of the stars.”

The ongoing Marilyn Monroe exhibit in Florence’s Museo Salvatore Ferragamo is proof enough of the brand’s star quality. It features 14 pairs of the house’s shoes once worn or purchased by the screen siren.

Today, Ferragamo is one of the world’s biggest fashion empires_ spanning leather goods, watches, perfumes and ready-to-wear for men and women. Sales last year were $1.37 billion.

Giornetti says Ferragamo’s a natural hit because of a simple and universal concept: beauty with functionality.

“The first time Greta Garbo visited the Ferragamo headquarters,” Giornetti recounted, “the diva said `I want to have shoes to walk with.’”

That eye for comfort, stamped on the house from the beginning, was what made the shoes so famous. Salvatore Ferragamo _ the founder of the house who died in 1960 _ even studied human anatomy to master how to make elegant shoes truly wearable.

From this know-how sprang the famous wedge heel in 1936. Then later came the classic staple bestseller _ the Vara Bow Pump.

Ferragamo ensured this philosophy was carried on to Giornetti, half a century later.

A native of Tuscany, Giornetti studied in Florence. After 10 years designing Ferragamo’s menswear, Giornetti was named creative director in 2010, giving him control of the women’s side, too.

With Ferragamo’s headquarters situated in Florence’s Palazzo Spini Feroni _ a fortified medieval edifice _ it’s clear that both the designer and the brand have the city in their hearts.

Florence’s hands-on artisanal tradition has existed since the Renaissance. Giornetti says it’s key to the house and to his own personal style, mixing aesthetics with practicality.

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