Guccio Giovanbattista Giacinto Dario Maria Gucci (1881–1953) left Florence for Paris, and settled in London in 1897 to work at the high-end Savoy Hotel.

While working as a bellhop there, he would load/unload the luggage of the hotel's wealthy clients, learning about their tastes in fashion, quality, fabrics, and traveling conditions.

Leather became scarce, pushing Guccio Gucci to introduce other fabrics in the composition of the products, such as raffia, wicker, wood, linen and jute.

He convinced his father to grow by opening a new shop in Rome (21 Via Condotti) in 1938, and launched more Gucci accessories (gloves, belts, wallets, keychains).

[12][11] The company made handbags of cotton canvas rather than leather during World War II as a result of material shortages.

After the war, the Gucci crest, which showed a shield and armored knight surrounded by a ribbon inscribed with the family name, became synonymous with the city of Florence.

Gucci's breakthrough in the United States led to its global development in Asia (Tokyo opening in 1972, Hong Kong in 1974) and the Middle East.

The Gucci Sportabout wagon became one of the first American cars to offer a special luxury trim package created by a famous fashion designer.

Maurizio Gucci was blamed for spending extravagant amounts of money on the company's headquarters in Florence (Via delle Caldaie palazzo) and in Milan.

Through the deal, PPR also purchased Yves Saint Laurent from Sanofi and sold it back for the same price to the Gucci Group.

[49] In 2010, Gucci launched a partnership with the auction house Christie's to develop a wider repository of the brand's archives and provide an authenticity certification service.

Alessandro Michele had been working for Gucci since 2002, and he served as Frida Giannini's deputy and head accessories designer.

During the Fall show of February 2015, Alessandro Michele introduced "a different Gucci",[54][55] one with a "sophisticated, intellectual and androgynous feel".

[56] He revived Gucci classics, such as the double-G logo,[57] the Jackie O. bag,[58] and more; he also created iconic products like the Dionysus handbag.

[59] With a feminized menswear line, a strong feminist stance, and a 'geek-chic' style, Alessandro Michele introduced postgender props for Gucci.

[62] In April 2018, Gucci inaugurated the ArtLab, a 37,000-square-metre center of innovation outside Florence in Italy, where new leather goods and materials, footwear, metal hardware, and packaging are developed and tested.

[72] For The New York Times' fashion journalist Vanessa Friedman, the collection was "not a major statement, but rather a cleansing interregnum after the overblown muchness of Mr. Michele's tenure",[73] marking the dawn of a "new era of pragmatism" for the brand.

[74] During this creative reboot, the company launched a phase of restructuring and consolidation[71] and in July 2023, Jean-François Palus replaced Marco Bizzarri as CEO of Gucci to drive the transition.

[10] De Sarno's tenure at Gucci concluded on February 6, 2025, when the company announced his departure from the Creative Director position.

[95] In November 2022, Gucci pledged a three-year donation to help restore and preserve the Gyeongbokgung Palace in South Korea.

[100] Chime for Change was founded in February 2013 by Frida Giannini, Salma Hayek and Beyoncé as a global campaign for the improvement of education, health and justice for women worldwide.

[102] In December 2013, Gucci inked a partnership with Twitter and Women Who Code to create the women-focused hackathon Chime Hack.

[104] In July 2013, activist Lydia Emily was commissioned to paint a mural on Skid Row, Los Angeles of a woman named Jessica, who is a survivor of human trafficking.

[105] In January 2019, Chime for Change launched the murals campaign "To Gather Together" promoting gender equality and designed by the artist MP5.

[107] During the COVID-19 pandemic, Gucci pledged €2 million to two crowdfunding campaigns, the first to support the Italian Civil Protection Department, and the second for the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund.

[116] In 2023, Gucci obtained the Ellen MacArthur Foundation Award for Circular Economy at the Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana (CNMI).

[128] House of Gucci's world premiere took place at the Odeon Luxe Leicester Square in London on November 9, 2021.

[143] In April 2016, the UK's Advertising Standards Authority banned a Gucci online video ad because it starred an "unhealthily thin" model.

[144] In February 2019, Gucci removed a black balaclava sweater with a rollup collar and a cut-out red-lipped mouth from its shelves after it had been compared to a blackface costume[145][146] (Michele was inspired by Leigh Bowery but still apologized).

[148] Two months later, the Sikhs community in India criticized Gucci's cultural appropriation of a religious item when the Italian brand commercialized turbans at $800 apiece.