Guccification: redefining luxury through art The Gucci revolution

The relationship between art and luxury is not a simple coincidence (Chailan, 2018). Indeed, art arguably can enhance both the symbolic and the aesthetic aspects of brand perceptions and may help overcome the problems associated with the industrialization of luxury (Chailan, 2018; Lee et al., 2015; Kapferer, 2014). Among the companies attempting to invest in their relationship with art, Gucci presents a focused, innovative example. This case study shows how a company constituting a significant part of a global group has grown in a fragmented global luxury market characterized by a few large multi-brand groups and small independent players competing in different segments. In particular, Gucci’s artistic directors have tried to bring together ethics and aesthetics and to use art to create exclusive experiences linked to the brand also drawing attention to the brand’s heritage trough contamination