Sebastian Suhl to Exit Valentino
Suhl joined the couture house in January 2018 as managing director of global markets.
by Luisa ZarganiBYE-BYE VALENTINO: Sebastian Suhl will leave Valentino at the end of January, WWD has learned.
Suhl joined the couture house in January 2018 as managing director of global markets, reporting to chief executive officer Stefano Sassi.
Before Valentino, Suhl was chief executive officer of Marc Jacobs International, which he left after a three-year stint, during which he was charged with, among other things, readying the house for an initial public offering. Suhl spearheaded the elimination of the Marc by Marc Jacobs label launched in 2000, consolidating the signature brand, focusing on accessories and tightening the label’s vertical retail footprint.
Suhl arrived at Marc Jacobs in 2014 from Givenchy, at a moment of profound change for the brand as Jacobs had just wrapped up his 16-year stint at Louis Vuitton and was set to focus solely on his namesake label.
Suhl joined Givenchy in 2012 after an 11-year career at Prada Group, and saw the Milan-based company go through a lengthy process to publicly list. Prada eventually launched its IPO on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2011. At Prada, Suhl was promoted to ceo in the Asia-Pacific region in 2005 and then named group chief operating officer in 2009, reporting to ceo Patrizio Bertelli, and heading the retail, wholesale, e-commerce and marketing departments for the Prada, Miu Miu and Car Shoe brands.
Born in New York, Suhl holds an MBA from the Barcelona business school Esade, and joined Prada in 2001 as general manager of France, following stints at Deloitte & Touche and the fashion houses Courrèges and Thimister.
Suhl was tasked with supporting Valentino’s ongoing expansion globally and his arrival was seen by industry observers as signaling Sassi’s potential increased focus on an IPO, which was eventually put on hold. Valentino is controlled by the Qatar-based Mayhoola.