SimplyAbuDhabi IX

8 1 S I M P LY A B U DH A B I D olce & Gabbana is a luxury brand distinguished by its stylistic originality combined with the superior sartorial content of its creations. The strong identity of the Dolce & Gabbana brand has evolved over the years while always remaining faithful to its inherent standards: an unmistakable style, the expression of unconventional luxury that, season after season, combines strong innovation with the powerful Mediterranean flavour of its origins. This is a brand whose essence lies in its contrasting features. Simply Abu Dhabi Editor Jordana Lynch caught up with Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana to learn how the designers met, what fuels their creative inspiration, and what they love about Abu Dhabi. Dolce & Gabbana are famed as the dynamic duo in fashion. How did you two meet? SG: We met in Milan. I had just finished studying to be graphic designer, but had a big passion for fashion. A friend told me that a Milanese fashion designer, Giorgio Corregiari, was looking for an assistant, so I sent my resume and they called me for an interview. It so happened that Corregiari was out of town and so his first assistant, Domenico Dolce, interviewed me. DD: We started working together immediately. After a while, we decided to do consultancy for various brands. Our first office was in a small apartment in a building where there were many lawyer’s studios. We put a plaque outside the door and it was in this way that we founded Dolce & Gabbana. Who would you say is your main inspiration for pursuing your fashion dream? DD: Everyone knows that my father was a tailor and my mother had a store in the country where I was born. I thus grew up between needle and thread, and I always felt a calling for the world of fashion - especially when I started sewing my first clothes. SG: For me fashion has been a surprise. I did not study fashion and I never thought to be a fashion designer as my career. At one point in Milan, I do not remember when, probably during the early ‘80s, everyone started talking about fashion, fashion, fashion. What I can say is that I had an obsession with Fiorucci and I loved buying used clothes imported from America because I could not find things I liked from anywhere else. Everything I know about fashion I learned from Domenico. Tell us about the journey to start your brand 25 years ago. Was it tough? SG: Fantastic! There were exciting moments, happy and difficult moments. In the meantime, we have matured, grown and changed. We are no longer the same as when we started and such an experience makes you see things from a different point of view. DD: We now have a very precise identity; we know who we are, what is Dolce &Gabbana and what it is not. We can try to do something else, but then the DNA of our brand always comes back to the surface. What advice would you pass to young designers and fashionistas who are in the position you were in 25 years ago? SG: Young designers very often have the power to get involved, to take risks and to show things from a completely different perspective. We believe they have to be supported. DD: A lot has changed. While today, life for a young designer might be easier thanks to new media, the logic of business has changed and few people invest in new talent. SG: That said, we strongly believe in young talent and that is why we decided to give them a real chance to show their collections in our historical boutique in Milan, which now is called Dolce & Gabbana Spiga 2.