<\/p>\n
\n\tRemo Ruffini always knew Moncler could be more than just puffer jackets. That\u2019s why he stepped up to buy the business in 2003 when it was a sleepy ski brand with sales of around 50 million euros.<\/p>\n
\n\tBut the Italian entrepreneur, who had cut his teeth in the fashion world with a brand he created in the 1980s called New England, envisioned a brighter future for Moncler and systematically set out to recreate it.<\/p>\n
\n\tAnd it worked. Today, Moncler is part of a publicly held group that posted 3.13 billion euros in sales in 2025.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cI evolved the approach, I evolved the attitude, I wanted to attract different communities,\u201d he said in a conversation with WWD\u2019s Milan bureau chief Luisa Zargani.<\/p>\n
\n\tAmong Ruffini\u2019s most impactful moves was to collaborate with designers ranging from Junya Watanabe and Nicolas Ghesqui\u00e8re to Thom Browne as well as hitting the catwalk in Paris and other cities.<\/p>\n
\n\tBut by 2018, he said, he was \u201cbored,\u201d and came up with Moncler Genius, a collaborative project where he would work with different designers, artists, singers, sports figures and others to reshape the brand.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cI needed something to give more energy to my communities and to me as well,\u201d he said. So he created \u201can imaginary house with eight windows, and every two years, we called eight designers to interpret the history, but always looking toward the future.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tThe process, he said, was to identify people who had a design aesthetic he admired and then hold intense conversations to ensure they understood the history and legacy of Moncler while also providing them the \u201cfreedom to express their own creativity. For me, it\u2019s very important to merge the two cultures. Most of the time, the process results in something very interesting.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tIn addition, Ruffini said expanding Moncler\u2019s distribution was key to its growth. In order to help customers understand how the business had expanded beyond down jackets, he felt it was important to open his own stores. So starting in 2008, Ruffini began doing just that as a way to \u201cexplain exactly what\u2019s happening with the brand,\u201d and showcase the products, categories and stories that were integral to the company.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cWe can talk every day in the store with the people to explain our strategy, our attitude, our history,\u201d he said. Moncler traces its roots to 1952 in Monestier-de-Clermont in France.<\/p>\n
\n\tThe first store opened in Paris and was \u201cvery tiny,\u201d less than 900 square feet, he said, but customers immediately embraced it, lining up to enter the space.<\/p>\n
\n\tOver the years, Moncler, which now operates more than 300 stores globally, has also evolved its retail presence, as evidenced by the 23,000-square-foot flagship the brand opened on Fifth Avenue in New York in September.<\/p>\n
\n\tRuffini said he has long felt a kinship with the city, and the U.S., since his father moved to New York in 1968 and the young Ruffini visited him several times a year. After he finished school, he continued to visit, driving up and down the East Coast to Nantucket, Martha\u2019s Vineyard, Rhode Island and other places he loved. It was this experience that inspired him to return to Italy and launch New England, a preppy-inspired brand that was \u201cvery Brooks Brothers, but with Italian creativity.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tHe continued to produce the brand for two decades until 2001, when he sold it and then bought Moncler.<\/p>\n
\n\tHe said that the success of New England proved he had the ability to build a brand. \u201cI invented it myself,\u201d he said. \u201cI built my own dream with no history.\u201d It was shortly after selling the brand that he heard Moncler was available.<\/p>\n
\n\tHe was living near Como at the time, very close to the mountains, and would go skiing every weekend. \u201cThen one day, someone told me Moncler is on the market; you can buy the brand. I was in love because this was my first jacket when I was 15 years old. I thought this could be an incredible opportunity. I basically started from scratch because the company was very small at that time and I started to rebuild the brand into what it is today.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tAlthough Ruffini has significantly expanded Moncler since buying it, there\u2019s still room for additional growth, particularly in the Americas, which currently account for just 14 percent of overall sales. In addition to the new flagship in New York, the company also held a runway show in Aspen in February for its high-end performance line, Moncler Grenoble, as it works to heighten its exposure in the U.S.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cWe\u2019ve been here many years, but, for us, the U.S. has always been underpenetrated,\u201d he said. \u201cBut it\u2019s a super important country. I love the different micro communities around the U.S. I feel we have to be more important as a brand.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tHe said two or three years ago, he changed his strategy to focus on Moncler as one brand with three dimensions: the core collection, which represents the largest part of the company\u2019s sales, as well as Grenoble and Genius. He said the Aspen show represented a \u201cturning point for the brand in the U.S. It was a very good experience for us; we have a lot of friends there and I think we improved our brand perception.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tThen he decided to open \u201cthe biggest store in the world\u201d in New York in the former FAO Schwarz site that he remembered fondly from his youth. \u201cIt was very important to open a place to explain my strategy. When you go into the store, I hope you understand what Moncler is.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tThe store clearly distinguishes the three collections with the main collection on the ground floor, segmented by aesthetic, along with Genius, and then Grenoble housed on the second floor for customers seeking mountain, hiking or biking clothes.<\/p>\n
\n\tRuffini believes Moncler is underpenetrated in the U.S. because it is perceived as a mountain brand and much of the country sports warmer climates. \u201cThis is what we want to explain \u2014 that we are not only a skiwear company, but we have a collection that is 360 degrees. We always try to reset.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tThat includes investing in more warm-weather products \u2014 and the customer is responding. \u201cSpring is quite strong,\u201d Ruffini said. \u201cIt\u2019s not as strong as winter, but it\u2019s growing fast. Knitwear, all the ready-to-wear, shoes \u2014 it\u2019s not like it was five, six or seven years ago. But we\u2019re not in a rush. For me, the long-term strategy is the most important thing, and I think we can grow step by step.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tWhile Ruffini will continue to provide creative direction for Moncler, in April, former Bottega Veneta chief executive officer Bartolomeo (Leo) Rongone joined the company as CEO with Ruffini becoming executive chairman. He said he wasn\u2019t pressured into bringing someone in, but he believes the time is right.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cI found the company 23 years ago, and it\u2019s grown to 3 billion euros revenue and I was involved in almost everything. My background is more product, more designing, more creativity, and I felt it was the right moment to have a strong person to follow the business day-by-day. I\u2019m still involved in the company a lot but I care more about the long-term vision.\u201d<\/p>\n
#Remo #Ruffini #Transforming #Moncler #Global #Lifestyle #Brand<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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