Gucci to merge men's and women's shows

Gucci has revealed it will merge its men's and women's shows from next year and is working with Milan Fashion Week owner Camera Nazionale della Moda to determine a suitable dateline to support its commitment to "see now, buy later".

Speaking at the New York Times International Luxury Conference today, Gucci president and CEO Marco Bizzarri, said: “Maintaining two separate, disconnected calendars has been a result of tradition rather than practicality.” The first unified show will take place at the company headquarters in Milan next year.

The move follows the lead of British luxury brand Burberry which announced earlier this year that it would be merging its men's and women's shows from next season but that it would moving to a "see now, buy now" schedule. Tom Ford quickly followed suit with a similar announcement, while several other designers such as Michael Kors and Rebecca Minkoff in New York showed in-season capsules alongside next season's collection.

Gucci's decision to maintain its commitment to see now, buy later follows comments from François-Henri Pinault chairman and CEO of parent group Kering who said in February that he believed showing in-season "negates the dream of luxury". After that statement it was believed that Paris and Milan may hold out against the tide turning towards see now, buy now and stick with showing a season ahead.

The shifting purpose of some catwalks from a trade preview to a consumer-focused marketing exercise prompted New York Fashion Week owner the CFDA to commission a report into the matter earlier this year. The results of the report concluded the industry was "ripe for change".