Brand refreshment and retail design for a respected luxury children’s fashion brand

Gusella is a long-established luxury brand which designs, manufactures and markets babies’ and children’s shoes, clothing and accessories designed in Milan. Over 80 years the brand has built up an unrivalled understanding of crafting supportive and comfortable shoes for children. Having recently progressed into Asia, the brand sought to refresh its image to better introduce its products and services to Asian families. Italians already consider Gusella a national treasure, and the challenge was to deliver this message to new foreign customers and create an authentic upmarket perception among target consumers.

Established in Milan as a children’s shoemaker, Gusella combines orthopedics and fashion to offer parents beautiful and comfortable shoes for their children’s feet. Rather than the cartoon imagery commonly used in promoting children’s wear, we set out to strengthen Gusella’s positioning as an Italian heritage brand dedicated to providing unequalled fashion and comfort to the little ones. We ensured that the key elements of the brand DNA – Milan, shoemaking, and quality – were delivered in a consistent manner across all forms of communication. A comprehensive brand book was developed to delineate the requirements the brand needs to meet in future marketing activities.

Gusella’s reputation for excellence attracts parents in the middle to top income tiers who seek quality and style. With extensive research on the history of Milanese fashion and aesthetics, we created a brand identity containing numerous authentic touches that speak of the brand DNA and its heritage as a symbol of luxury, quality and being quintessentially Milanese.

The Gusella store concept was completely redesigned to capture the brand DNA and the level of style, quality and comfort associated with the brand. Classic furniture was selected so the outer form was the same as the Milan period style. Classic tables were matched with uber-chic chairs and sofas of contemporary design. We focused on using brighter shades of luxury colours to reflect the children’s elements while remaining cohesive with the overall style.