The house of Gucci is an iconic Italian leather goods maker recognized as one of the most prestigious, famous fashion brands in the world, making Gucci handbags a favorite of sophisticated women everywhere.

Gucci is consistently ranked as one of the world’s most recognizable and best selling brands. Gucci handbags are just one part of an extensive product line and retailing empire.  Gucci operates hundreds of its own retail stores and also sells its goods through franchisees and high-end department stores.

Gucci’s Early Origins

Guccio Gucci founded the house of Gucci in 1906, as a tack and saddle shop that also sold leather bags to horsemen. The brand’s first major expansion came in 1938, when Gucci opened a leather goods boutique in Rome. The founder also dabbled in design, creating the signature Gucci bamboo handle handbag that is still popular today. Guccio Gucci’s other major contributions to the brand had an equestrian flair reminiscent of his work in the saddle shop, including the brand’s trademark striped webbing, resembling a saddle girth, and the classic suede Gucci moccasin, trimmed with a metal bit.

After Guccio’s death in 1953, his sons fostered further expansion of the brand into a full line of fashion accessories, and the famous GG logo soon appeared on Gucci luggage, Gucci handbags, and Gucci silk scarves. In the late 1970s, the brand split between brothers Aldo and Rodolfo Gucci, with Aldo branching off into a line of lower-priced accessories and Rodolfo maintaining overall operation of the company.

Gucci In The ’80s

The brand underwent further changes in the 1970s when a venture into automobile design proved unsuccessful. By the 1980s, scores of counterfeit Gucci handbags and other knockoff products flooded the marketplace, tarnishing the brand and reducing demand for genuine Gucci goods.

Careful management, however, turned the company around, and by the early 1990s, Gucci handbags were again in demand, and Gucci was one of the world’s great fashion brands. The company went public in 1995 and was named “European Company Of The Year” in 1998 for its strategic vision and innovative management.

Gucci Today

Gucci’s current management team continues to produce great-looking Gucci handbags and accessories season after season. Gucci has penetrated popular culture; the brand is frequently mentioned in rap music by rappers bragging about their luxurious lifestyles. The brand also pops up in movie scripts, having been mentioned in well-known films like Pretty Woman, Pret A Porter, Monster-In-Law, The Devil Wears Prada, and in the hit TV series, Ugly Betty.

Filed under: Designer Handbags

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