In March 2016, the Florentine luxury label, Salvatore Ferragamo, was without a creative director after the departure of Massimiliano Giornetti who was the menswear designer.

In August, Eraldo Poletto became the CEO, and began restructuring the creative direction of the Italian fashion label. Poletto split the creative department into three areas: menswear, womenswear, and accessories.

Paul Andrew was recently placed in charge of Ferragamo’s women’s shoes collection. At the women’ ready-to-wear show during the Milan Fashion Week at the end of September, Poletto unveiled the work and the name of Ferragamo’s new womenswear design director. It was Fulvio Rigoni (pictured), who worked with Christian Dior until 2015. The Milan Fashion Week in September was Rigoni’s debut for Ferragamo’s Spring/Summer 2017 collection.

The 40-year-old Rigoni of Venetian heritage grew up in Lombardy. His first job was with the Italian label Basile. He also worked with Prada, which he joined in 1993, before joining Gucci in 1999, then Bally in 2000. Three years later he moved to New York to work at Calvin Klein, until he teamed with Raf Simons in 2006 at Jil Sander. After working at Jil Sander for six years he joined the Parisian fashion label Christian Dior in 2012.

Poletto has not yet appointed a menswear designer at Salvatore Ferragamo to replace Giornetti.

Update – 18 November 2016. Guillaume Meilland has been appointed creative director of menswear. Meilland will debut his collection of menswear in January. 

Photographs: Top – from left, Paul Andrew, shoes; Fulvio Rigoni, womenswear, and Guillaume Meilland, menswear (from Salvatore Ferragamo website); below, ready-to-wear women’s fashion from Vogue