IN CONTROL:

Alessandra
Facchinetti has
the brand's ethos
in mind as she
works her
creative vibes.

Talent Watch

A Winner All the Way

She is being compared to Clines Phoebe Philo, and the brands last
collection was termed a Cline moment in Milan. What does Alessandra
Facchinetti of Tods have to say about the prospects?

ALL PICTURES COURTESY OF TOD'S

BY SINDHU NAIR

SURROUNDED BY a flurry of anxious activity in the

aftermath of the Autumn Winter show in Milan,
Alessandra Facchinetti seemed to be just a tiny bit
affected by all the media attention. This was her second
collection as Tods creative director. The seasons
direction and designs would make or break it for the
designer who did not have an easy career path despite
her having worked with the best and fostering an interest
for her creations in the industry. A day after the show and
with reviews that would make any designer preen with
pleasure, Facchinetti takes all the attention in her stride.
Developing a womens ready-to-wear line to accompany
Tods shoes and bags has brought her praise from fashion
critic Suzy Menkes who described her collection as,

precise and chic in the International New York Times,

and hailed her second collection as streamlined, modern,
and women-friendly, concluding that Tods seems to
have found a winner.
Thinking back to the moment when she was asked to
be the creative force behind Tods, Facchinetti agrees that
it was a challenge, albeit an entirely different one. I was
ready for change, Facchinetti says. This profile was
something I enjoyed because of the Italian connection
and also because the ideals of Tods, detailing and quality,
which were similar to mine.
Facchinetti had worked with big names earlier in her
career and already revealed her creative streak; as Tom
Fords successor at Gucci and later as the creative

September-October 2014

47

Lookout Qatar

Talent Watch
DEEP COLOR
Clockwise from far left:
Selections from Tod's
Autumn/ Winter
collection 2014; the
designer sketches the
shoes and then
coordinates it with
designs for clothes; the
show was held at the
Padiglione d'Arte
Contemporanea in
Milan and Facchinetti's
sketches show how she
detailed the interiors of
this museum.

director at Valentino. While her work at both of these

houses was lauded, neither appointment proved the right
fit, and she soon left the brands.
I have taken away something from each of the houses
that I have worked in, says Facchinetti. All of them
come with so much history and I can see that I have
imbibed some qualities of each of them. I have had very
invigorating discussions with these designers and I will
value all that was shared.
At Tods, she has to go about designing from the foot
up. And this was a challenge that Facchinetti loved taking
on. This proved to be much more exciting, she says. A
tan-blue leather high boot paired with a leather coat, the
historic Tods moccasins in colors that stimulate,
chocolate-red, a rich navy blue and a very subtle pink, all
celebrated in different metallic embellishments that do
not take the attention away from comfort or the material,
paired with trench coats, or the most classic of patterns,
the checks, applied in wool and silk, are just some
examples from the collection. For many the designs were
winners, for the simple reason that customers could see
themselves wearing the clothes that Tods made.
To Facchinetti her collection is hyper-feminine or
more graphic when exploring the sartorial style with a
sophisticated uni-sex flavor. Simplicity in spirit but with a
unique vision of being dressed with a purpose, she sums
it up. While seasonal clothing seems to have become a
staple with fashion houses, Facchinetti believes that
ready-to-wear has grown to be much more, straddling
climates and geographical barriers, adorning a Chinese
woman, being held by a Middle Eastern diva or fitting
perfectly onto an American foot. In this global fashion
world, brands like Tods scale territories and are as much
at home in Chinese markets as they are on Italian home
ground. I think you can wear the clothes I design in
many different ways, says Facchinetti.
I always think that my clothes come to life depending
on how the person wears it. Thats the beauty of clothes.

48

T Qatar: The New York Times Style Magazine

Leather is the staple for Tods and it is a celebration of

the material at the show. It swishes and moves
provocatively, shines like lacquer in some creations and
falls effortlessly from the shoulders as it comes to life at
the hands of the designer. Thin yet light, stretchable
nevertheless taking on the form, the leather has taken
much more physical and chemical composition to become
almost like cotton at the hands of the designer. Laser-cut
skirts, a flowing coat, stand testimony to the new
material.Leather is cotton, and shiny like silk, says
Facchinetti about this new material and to perfect it she
was assisted by the age-old artisans at Tods.
I worked with our artisans and explained to them
what I wanted from leather, to lacquer it to look like
waxed cloth, and they helped me attain what I had
envisioned.
Leather is like the heart of the brand, and I find it
especially enthralling to experiment with the age-old
tradition of the brand, she says. You can say that I gave
it a new spirit.
While Facchinetti is all in for innovation, she is firmly
guided by tradition, and thats what makes her association
with Tods unique. She believes that the love for heritage,
the respect for labor and creativity makes her work at
Tods more like a vocation than an occupation. How about
the pressures that comes with a creative heads role?
While the best designers have cracked under duress, what
makes Facchinetti feel positive about the industry?
With a great team and respect for each other, I feel
anything can be achieved. I also love my work so much
that I have never thought about it as pressure,
Facchinetti says.
And if she was not designing clothes, Facchinetti
would be doing so many things, browsing through art
shows, attending cultural gigs, designing her home
(which she has already perfected in the unique
Facchinetti way), but she emphasizes that fashion
will always be her first love.