Moschino GM to Exit Brand
MILAN — It’s a time of changes at Moschino.
After the exit of creative director Jeremy Scott last week, general manager Stefano Secchi is parting ways with the fashion brand. The split is taking place by mutual consent, the company said on Wednesday, and is effective on Friday.
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The reason for the departure was attributed to divergent views over the strategy for Moschino going forward.
Massimo Ferretti, executive chairman of Moschino parent company Aeffe, thanked Secchi “for his professional contribution until today,” and the latter in turn expressed his gratitude at the “opportunity to lead this wonderful brand in the last four years; despite the pandemic and the adverse economic circumstances, we have completed important strategic projects for the brand.”
Aeffe executive Goffredo Palmerini will provide managerial and operational continuity at Moschino.
Secchi joined Moschino in the fall of 2019, succeeding Gabriele Maggio.
Secchi arrived at the Italian brand with experience in the luxury fashion industry on an international scale. He was previously commercial director at Etro for three years. Before that, he was global wholesale director at Versace. Secchi’s career began at the Giorgio Armani Group, with increased responsibilities over eight years, becoming group strategic marketing manager in 2011.
Aeffe’s board agreed to pay Secchi 317,000 euros gross as a termination incentive and 1,000 euros gross as settlement, to be made on April 10. Secchi is not bound to non-competition covenants.
The board also approved the absorption of the wholly-owned subsidiaries Moschino SpA and Aeffe Retail SpA as part of a corporate rationalization and reorganization process that began in 2022 with the absorption of Velmar SpA.
Aeffe said the move is meant to improve efficiency at the group and save costs.
After the exit of Scott, which market sources said was amicable, taking place at the natural end of Scott’s contract, it is understood Ferretti is still talking to candidates and that a successor to Scott has not been identified yet.
Aeffe also includes the Alberta Ferretti, Philosophy di Lorenzo Serafini and Pollini brands.
In 2022 Aeffe revenues amounted to 352 million euros, up 8.4 percent compared to 325 million euros in 2021. While the group does not break down sales by brand, sources say Moschino represents 70 percent of the total.
Moschino was founded by Franco Moschino in 1983 and Aeffe has held the license for the production and distribution of the brand’s women’s and men’s collections since then.
Following the designer’s death in 1994, Aeffe acquired a 70 percent stake in the company, further developing the brand globally. Aeffe took full control of Moschino in 2021, paying 66.6 million euros for the 30 percent stake in the brand it didn’t own. It also acquired the license to produce and distribute the Love Moschino collections of women’s apparel in-house for 3.6 million euros.
In 2021, Aeffe also took control of Moschino’s distribution in mainland China, signaling the increasing relevance of that market for the label, involving around 20 stores.
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