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The fashion concept we all forgot, ‘See Now, Buy Now’ is set for a rerun. The fashion folly driven by the internet around a decade ago, when brands thought people couldn’t wait – or was it the novelty? – and switched their catwalks to show immediately available product rather than a season in advance, is back.
Italian luxury giant Gucci is rumoured to be unveiling a See Now, Buy Now collection by new creative director Demna Gvasalia in September. More about business pressures than experimenting with the supply chain (when it was first tested brands thought pulling off a successful See Now, Buy Now strategy would simply be a case of tinkering with production timelines but it was far more complex), this move has a feeling of desperation about it.
Gucci is Kering’s biggest brand and sales have been in free fall for the past couple of years. The luxury group obviously didn’t want to wait for the results of their new appointment to bear fruit by showing a collection in Milan in September then dropping product into stores in mid-December and into the new year. It would like, and needs, a serious sales spike especially for Q4 (Christmas).
After such a controversial appointment and the resulting press energy that will result around Demna’s first show – fashion social media will be running red hot – it is looking to capitalise. And why not?
The former Balenciaga designer is now in charge of Italy’s biggest luxury brand, famous for its leather bags and shoes. Known for his designer merch and provocative designs, the fashion industry is waiting with anticipation. Judging by the reaction to his appointment, it was a curveball to many.
Gucci’s new creative director Demna
See Now, Buy Now can be interpreted many ways. It can mean a full collection, which is highly ambitious. Only Christopher Bailey, in his final few years at Burberry ending in 2016, managed to master the concept, but it still highlighted its limitations.
See Now, Buy Now lost the magic of last-minute details that give the show collections life, often input by the styling teams. Many other fashion brands tried and quickly realised, aside from the novelty, it probably didn’t drive sales enough to warrant the hassle and stress it caused. It was very complicated and quietly shelved.
What Gucci and Kering are doing is giving themselves a jumpstart in time. This approach is about making money and fast, and it feels like they haven’t learnt anything from the past few years.
This collection could be full of cut-and-sew items with iron-on logos and lazily adorned sportswear for Stock X-types who want to be the first on the list. It feels like it’s 2021 all over again. Alternatively, it could be a small capsule and include many of the runway items.
But Gucci wants sales, which means volume. Limited-edition won’t cut it, and with Gucci’s around 530 stores globally, the production will need to be vast to make the 20 September deadline. On the other hand, we could be pleasantly surprised and it surpasses the level Burberry got to.
An option they could go for is focusing on current product and stock; Jackie bags, snaffle logos, could all easily be updated. If clever, they could rework unsold inventory. But none of this feels like a fashion moment is incoming.
Gucci never wanted to do See Now, Buy Now in the past and it feels like they’re doing it for the wrong reasons now. People aren’t that desperate for Demna’s Gucci; it feels very much wait and see.
Gucci could be making a mistake by restricting the first collection with a See Now, Buy Now concept. Desperate times call for desperate measures, but if they do just product more extortionately priced merch then industry and consumer complaints of late will have fallen on deaf ears and it won’t have the desired effect on Kering’s 2026 stock market update.
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