Renzo Rosso
Encyclopedia
Renzo Rosso is an Italian fashion entrepreneur. Referred to as the "Jeans Genius" by Suzy Menkes
, he is the founder and President of fashion brand Diesel
. Rosso is also the founder of OTB (Only the Brave), the holding group for iconic brands like Diesel, Maison Martin Margiela, Viktor & Rolf
, and Staff International (who manufactures and distributes DSquared2, Just Cavalli, Vivienne Westwood
, and Marc Jacobs Men) and the founder of its not-for-profit organization, the Only The Brave Foundation. Rosso is also the President of the Red Circle investment group; the Diesel Farm in Marostica
, Veneto
; the Pelican hotel in Miami; and Bassano Virtus 55 S.T.
, the professional soccer club of his hometown Bassano del Grappa
, Veneto
.
in the Northeastern Italian region of Veneto
. His parents were farmers and he grew up under simple conditions, regularly helping his father after school. Having seen the laborious life required for a farmer, Rosso aspired to do something different from his parents and in 1970 began studying industrial Textile Manufacturing at the Marconi Technical Institute, a newly established fashion school in Padua
. There, he produced, at the age of 15, his first self-designed garment, a pair of low-waist bell-bottomed jeans using his mother's Singer sewing machine. He kept experimenting with different jeans models and would give each pair to friends or sell them at school for about 3500 lire
(equivalent of 1,80 Euro in current prices). In 1973 he began studying Economics at the University of Venice, where in addition to helping his father on the farm, he also financed his studies by working as a mechanic and as a carpenter.
in 1975 and began to work as a Production Manager at Moltex, a local clothing manufacturer that produced trousers for various Italian clothing labels. Moltex’ parent company, the Genius Group, was run by Adriano Goldschmied who would eventually become Rosso's mentor and future business partner. During Rosso's first two years at Moltex the company grew rapidly. In 1978, after Rosso had managed to increase the company's production beyond what Goldschmied actually considered possible, Rosso wanted to leave the company in order to start a new business on his own. However, Goldschmied convinced Rosso to stay by offering him a 40% stake in Moltex and by agreeing to form a new company together, thus forming Diesel. Following the new partnership, Rosso also became shareholder of the Genius Group, which gathered brands such as Replay, King Jeans and Vivai, among others.
The brand name Diesel was chosen because 'diesel' was considered to be the 'alternative fuel' in the current oil crisis, and Rosso and Goldschmied liked the idea of their brand being perceived as an alternative jeans brand in contrast to the prevalent casual wear brands. Furthermore, since the word was an international term pronounced equally all over the world, it appealed to Rosso’s view and that the global fashion market was not segmented by national borders, but by people's lifestyle. In 2004, after having followed those core values for nearly 20 years, CNN
accredited Diesel for not being "the first brand to believe truly in the global village and to embrace it with open arms."
, the world's leading awards in advertising. Later on that same year Diesel launched the campaign on TV and would eventually become part of the company's global communication work for a decade to come, bringing in multiple advertising awards across the world.
, province of Veneto
, where he began producing wine and olive oil under the name Diesel Farm. Initially the purchase was meant as a gift to his father, who until then had questioned his choice of career, but then for the first time understood that his son had in fact become a successful business entrepreneur. At the time of the purchase the farm and its land was at risk of getting divided in to separate lots for multiple buyers, but Rosso was able to prevent this by taking charge of the whole estate. Today the land and the old farm buildings are considered a nature reserve.
, which was inspired by the passion for snowboarding he shared with his sons. The first collection was titled 'FW94, Subzero Winter' and consisted of 55 pieces. That same year, 55DSL became one of the first clothing lines to endorse snowboard competitions around the world, starting with competitions in Riksgransen
, Sweden
. The competitions featured several now legendary snowboards pioneers like Todd Richards and Peter Line
. In the following years 55DSL progressively became an independent brand and in 1999 moved from Diesel's headquarters in Molvena, Italy, to Balerna, Switzerland. There it remained until 2005 when its headquarters re-located back in Italy. Since the mid-2000's it has been spearheaded by its Creative Director
and Rosso's eldest son, Andrea Rosso, who, after learning to sew at the age of 13 and starting to work as a quality controller in the Diesel factories at the age of 16, went on to New York City
where he completed his graduate studies at the Fashion Institute of Technology
. Since then 55DSL has established itself as a globally recognized urban and street brand that is well known for its vast variety of collaborations. This includes collaborations with independent artists like Eric Haze
, Alex Fakso, and Turbokrafen; action sports legends Joel Tudor
, Tony Hawk
, Steve Berra
and Lukas Hoffman; musicians Steve Aoki
and Bloody Beetroots; art foundations Poo on Art and Two Steps Back, and global brands like Adidas
, Coca-Cola Zero
, MTV
, EA Sports
, Yoox
, Manhattan Portage and Panini.
as one of the world's "best fashion hotels". Other brands included in the list were hotels by Missoni
, Armani, Bulgari
and Ralph Lauren
, which had all been opened after the Pelican.
, Terry Richardson
, Ellen von Unwerth
, Rankin
, and Erwin Olaf
.
In 1995, Diesel became the first major fashion brand to embrace the Internet
with the launch of www.diesel.com, which two years later was followed by the first online store of any fashion brand. Later in 1995 the company also launched one of its most popular yet provocative campaigns ever, featuring two kissing sailors staged at the peace celebration of WWII. Shot by photographer David LaChapelle
, it was the first major public advertisement to show a homosexual couple kissing and was published at height of the Don't ask, Don't tell
debates in USA, which had led the U.S. Government to refuse entry for openly gay, lesbian, or bisexual persons from military service. In a long article published by Frieze
in 1996, the advertisement was credited for its “overarching tone of heavy-handed humor and sarcasm”.
In the late 1990s, Diesel began opening a large number of stores around the world, starting with its first ever mono-brand store, located on Lexington Avenue in New York in 1996, which was followed by stores in Milan
, Paris
and Rome
. In contrast to common retail norms of the time, Rosso decided that each Diesel store should be styled independently. Occasionally, he would also collaborate with famous artists in this progress, as in 2003 when he let the artist Stephen Sprouse
personalize the Union Square
Diesel store in New York with graffiti. Rosso also opened up new locations to showcase the creativity of the Diesel Creative Team, such as the Diesel Denim Gallery in New York and Osaka
, Japan
. The galleries showcased hand-treated denim of the highest quality and gave exhibition space to young, local artists. The Diesel Denim Galleries were much acclaimed by the fashion press and were described by The New York Times
Suzy Menkes
simply as "super-cool".
on a denim collection for the designer's Lagerfeld Gallery. The collection, which was titled Lagerfeld Gallery by Diesel, was co-designed by Lagerfeld and then developed by Diesel's Creative Team. It consisted of five pieces that were presented during the designer’s catwalk shows during Paris Fashion Week
and then sold in very strict limited editions at the Lagerfeld Galleries in Paris
and Monaco
, and at the Diesel Denim Galleries in New York
and Tokyo
. During the first week of sales in New York, more than 90% of the trousers had already been sold out, even though prices ranged from as high as $240 to $1840. In a statement after the show in Paris, Rosso said "I am honored to have met this fashion icon of our time. Karl represents creativity, tradition and challenge, and the fact that he thought of Diesel for this collaboration is a great gift and acknowledgement of our reputation as the prêt-à-porter of casual wear."
In 2003, Rosso asked legendary street and graffiti artist Stephen Sprouse
to do a take over of Diesel’s Union Square store for New York Fashion Week
in the following September. As part of the collaboration Sprouse designed a series of limited edition jeans, t-shirts and hats, and made a complete makeover of the Diesel store, which meant adding his renowned Day-Glo design to windows, interiors, and outer building exteriors. At the launch of the event, Rosso explained the project as "first and foremost a tribute that we wish to pay to one of the most groundbreaking and far-reaching artists of our time, someone who went beyond categorizations, means of expressions, and gender- a common approach at Diesel."
for the production of Diesel's first fragrance, titled Fuel For Life. This was followed by a partnership with Italian carmaker FIAT
in early 2008 to re-design the classic Fiat 500
. Originally being one of FIAT's most popular models ever, the new version, simply titled '500 by Diesel', featured several unique design details throughout the car’s interior and exterior and was only produced in 10,000 units.
In the spring of 2008, Rosso launched a collaboration between Diesel and sportswear giant Adidas
. After Diesel made a special denim collection for Adidas that was exclusively available at Adidas Originals
stores, called Adidas Originals by Diesel, the collaboration then developed into a number of additional product collaborations between Diesel, as well as its sister brand 55DSL
, and Adidas.
In January 2011, Rosso took Diesel into its first sponsorship of the Grand Prix
motorcycle racing, the MotoGP, through a partnership with the iconic Italian manufacturer Ducati. Following the deal, Rosso said "This season in particular is extraordinary and with the arrival of Valentino Rossi
, the association between our brands is perfectly in line with our 'Only the Brave' philosophy".
In May 2011, Rosso launched the first ever Diesel bicycle, together with award-winning bicycle manufacturer Pinarello
. Built as a single-speed, city bicycle with a hydro formed aluminum frame, the collaboration marked one of the first true collaborations between the bicycle and the fashion industry.
came onboard as the line's new head designer, and received great acclaim as her first collection was presented in 2010 at New York Fashion Week
.
, For Successful Living from Diesel was credited by Wallpaper
magazine for its style and comfort when it premiered at Salone del Mobile
in April, 2009.
, called the Uffie x Diesel Capsule Collection. The collection featured 12 female pieces of denim and leather, that all were modeled by Uffie herself and available for purchase on the Diesel website.
, much of Diesel's successful growth in the early 2000's was accredited to this mindset. The study concluded that "Diesel is an experience which interacts with and entertains its customers with a far deeper relationship than other brands", and that "It is always about engaging with the customer as opposed to selling at them: creating an enjoyable two-way dialogue as opposed to a hollow one-way monologue."
In 2007 this approach took another step, leading to the infamous 'Heidies'. It mocked the phenomenon of reality TV and was one of the first ever campaigns by a fashion brand solely based on the Internet. It featured two models that were locked inside a room and who did whatever the online viewers suggested. The models played two mentally crazy women who, wanting to claim their 15 minutes of fame
, had taken an intimate Diesel sales guy as hostage, closed themselves up in a hotel room and hijacked the company’s website; requesting that they be selected for the next Diesel advertising campaign. The employee was said to work for Diesel Intimate, as the campaign was in fact the launch for the brand’s new line of intimate and beachwear. The campaign became a huge success, and reached over 100,000 views daily while it was live. It was awarded at the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival
that same year.
On October 11, 2008, Rosso and Diesel celebrated the company's 30th anniversary through hosting 17 parties around the world all broadcast live online and spanning across 24 hours. Following the opening in Tokyo
, the live stream continued to Beijing
, Dubai
, Athens
, Helsinki
, Amsterdam
, Milan
, Zurich
, Munich
, Paris
, Stockholm
, Copenhagen
, Barcelona
, Oslo
, London
, Sao Paolo and finally ended in New York
, with Rosso's attendance. The event featured live performances by Daft Punk
, Earth Wind and Fire, 2manydjs, Mark Ronson
, New Young Pony Club
, and a pregnant M.I.A
that that broke her retirement for the occasion. In addition there were neverseen before mash-ups with Chaka Khan
feat. Franz Ferdinand and N.E.R.D. feat. Hot Chip
.
The event was advertised through the release of a video titled ‘Diesel SFW XXX Party Video’, which immediately went viral and spread rapidly across the Internet, mostly due to its ironic take on 80’s style pornography
. By 2011 it had been viewed more than 20 million times online and classified as one of the most successful viral campaigns ever. Additionally, the anniversary event also featured the production of a limited edition pair of jeans, called ‘The Dirty Thirty’. The denim, which were for sale for one day only (on the date of the birth of the brand) at the extremely discounted price of €30 and modeled by Daisy Lowe
, caused ‘hysteria’ and lead to consumers to form mile-log lines outside Diesel stores around the world. These jeans were sold out within just a few hours worldwide.
Throughout the 2000’s Rosso and the Diesel Creative Team also continued working with a number of famous photographers and agencies, including Jean Pierre Khazem, Carl de Keyzer
, Finlay McKay, Elaine Constantine
, Mert Alas & Marcus Piggott, Johan Renck
, and Terry Richardson
, the latter for the celebrated “Global Warning Ready’ campaign of 2007. In 2001, 2007, 2009, and 2010 Diesel was given Grand Prix awards at Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival
.
In 2001, Diesel:U:Music was founded with a vision to support unsigned bands and as a reaction to an overly commercialized music industry. Consisting of an independent jury with artists and producers such as Ian McCulloch
, Mark Ronson
, and Ronnie Wood, the jury annually reviewed thousands of demos from around the world and selected winning, unsigned bands. By partnering with record labels like Warner Music or media publishers like Vice
, the winning artists were offered records deals and media publicity. In 2006, the project consisted of an awards show that was broadcast live on Channel 4
in Great Britain and featured legendary avant-garde rock band Roxy Music
. In 2009, the project hosted a global tour and radio station. The tour featured live performances by artists like Kanye West
and The Roots
, who supported the competition’s winning younger bands, The Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt! and HEARTSREVOLUTION. Produced in London
, The Diesel:U:Music radio station as hailed by The Guardian
and The Daily Telegraph
for its unique quality programming, and had shows hosted by everyone from Grandmaster Flash
to Franz Ferdinand. In an interview with Dazed & Confused, Rosso explained the purpose of the project, stating that “It’s about giving people the tools and the seeing them succeed and excel in their creativity”. Through its 10 year history, the Diesel:U:Music winners included Diplo, Mylo
, DJ Yoda
and The Cool Kids
.
In 2002 Rosso and Diesel became founding partners of ITS (International Talent Support), a competition for young designers and fashion photographers. While Rosso has often been a member of the jury, Diesel sponsors the competition financially. In 2005, the founder of i-D Magazine, Terry Jones
, credited ITS for “dedicating so much passion and commitment to the selection of designers, like no other organization.”
In 2003 and 2004, Diesel began supporting local, young artists through the the Diesel New Art and Diesel Wall competitions. Diesel New Art was open to graduating artists working across various media, and would sponsor winning artists with solo exhibitions, shows at international art fairs, or promotion through internationally published catalogues. In Diesel Wall the company purchased large, unused facades in major cities and transformed them into popular exhibition spaces. Winning artworks were then selected by an independent jury, and displayed on the walls for a longer period of time throughout the year. During the years a few of the jury members have included curator Hans Ulrich Obrist
, film director Bigas Luna
, art director and graphic designer Peter Saville, artist Patrick Tuttofuoco, art director Jérôme Sans and editors Helena Kontova
and Stefano Boeri
.
, and Staff International, the latter being the manufacturer and distributor for a number of other fashion labels.
and Martin Margiela
. Thanks to its production skills, effective logistics, distribution expertise and creative talent, Staff International has gained a strong reputation in the prêt-a-porter sector, enabling it to work designers and brands such as Karl Lagerfeld
, Emanuel Ungaro
, Valentino
, Costume National
, Clements Ribeiro and Missoni
, among others, whilst keeping the production for Viktor & Rolf
and Maison Martin Margiela. Following the purchase, Rosso brought onboard licenses for DSquared2 in 2001, Marc Jacobs Men in 2008, and Just Cavalli in 2011.
had quietly left the fashion house.
In an interview with Women’s Wear Daily in 2004, Rosso explained his admiration for Maison Martin Margiela: “It’s about being unique, and it appeals to people with strong personalities who don’t want to follow the crowd.” Following an investment phase by Rosso to improve production and sales, open more boutiques and add product lines, Maison Martin Margiela had by 2005 increased their sales to € 30 million, compared to € 15 million in 2002. In 2008 the company showed profitability for the first time since the acquisition, reaching sales above € 60 million. In an interview with Suzy Menkes
in 2005, Rosso explained the success as the result of a new management structure within the company, which Rosso had initiated in order to give Martin Margiela more freedom and time for creativity. “He can just create, I take care of all the rest." Further on, Rosso explained that Martin Margiela himself was always fully independent, saying that "It is still 100 percent Margiela - he checks every single fabric and fitting, and I can propose but he can refuse."
During the first years following the acquisition there were various rumors of problems between the two. However, this was frequently denied from both sides.
In a unique letter dialogue between Malcolm McLaren
and Martin Margiela, published by The New York Times
in 2005, McLaren asked how it was working for the “tough, swaggering cowboy” Renzo Rosso. Margiela’s response was “We are very, very happy with the way our collaboration with Renzo is building. Renzo has brought us more stability, financial and spiritual -- we are growing together in the best way possible.”
. Following the deal, Rolf Snoeren, of Viktor & Rolf said to the The New York Times
"We have high ambitions. We talked for two years because it is such an important step. We wanted to make sure we marry the right partner. Renzo understands creativity and has the vision and power to make a success."
Rosso’s ability to do the unexpected is evident in the history of Viktor & Rolf as well, who have been described as the fashion industry’s most ‘unpredictable showmen’. While their collections are always highly anticipated for their level of entertainment and amusement, their shows tend to utilize astonishing techniques. For instance once they had models wearing clothing upside down and carrying their own bulky lighting structures. In their famous “One Woman Show” in 2003, they employed actress Tilda Swinton
, and models that resembled her, for the complete catwalk. For the spring/summer presentation in Paris
, 2009, the duo controversially opted to broadcast their show solely on the Internet, instead of doing a live runway. In 2008, the same year that the brand was purchased by Rosso, a retrospective exhibition of their work was held at the Barbican Centre
in London, Europe’s largest performing arts center. Too much acclaim of the press, the show included many pieces of the designers famous dolls.
credited Rosso for making it a globally recognized brand.
Additionally, many of the designers have acknowledged Rosso for how he has respected their creative freedom. In 2005, Martin Margiela himself said in a public statement how much he appreciated working with Rosso. In 2010, Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren of Viktor & Rolf said “Rosso is unique, a businessman who is also creative and would not interfere with our aesthetic and quality-control. He is the perfect fit”.
, Rosso has been credited for establishing the market for premium denim and creating the prêt-a-porter of casual wear.
, Marlon Brando
, Coca-Cola
and, of course, jeans. I was completely fascinated by that world, as most kids were. So, when I created Diesel, it was natural for me to concentrate on the product that I felt was close to my mentality, denim.”
At the time, denim had only recently evolved from a working-class uniform and was still relatively cheap. After Rosso acquired full control of Diesel in 1985 he began focusing on hand-treated denim, which meant he would ‘age’ the denim himself by scrubbing it with stones and sandpaper.
In an interview with Suzy Menkes
in 2003, Rosso explains the difficulty he had in the beginning with selling treated vintage-styled jeans. “When I started a vintage collection, nobody had heard about it. Today it is easy to talk about ‘vintage’; 25 years ago when we did stonewashed jeans, customers sent them back. What guy wanted $99 jeans when $50 was the normal U.S. price? Every style step was difficult.” Today Rosso is recognized for having transformed the jeans market, and Diesel is renowned for its technical innovation in product development, techniques for distressing the denim and capability in creating new fabrics. In 2004 Rosso explained this process: “When you are stonewashing jeans, you can add chemicals, which reduces the process to a half hour in the machine. Or, you can use just water and stones, which takes at least three and a half hours. We use the second solution.“
In 2001 Rosso’s ambition to elevate the status of denim took another step when Diesel launched the Diesel Denim Gallery in New York
, Tokyo
and Osaka
. After the Diesel Creative Team had independently handcrafted each pair, the denim was showcased as art pieces part of very limited edition collections, alongside art installations made by local or international artists. A few years later, Rosso explained this ambition, saying “My strongest aspiration has always been to make good and quality things. I’ve never worked for money in my life. My passion, my strength, my enthusiasm comes from the will of making something before- and better- than others”
Besides ‘vintage’, Rosso has often said his biggest inspiration is his family, street fashion of the world, and popular culture, confessing that he regularly reads 150 magazines a month to stay up to date.
, 2011). Published in both Italian and English versions, ‘Be Stupid: For Successful Living’ is a manual of practical and theoretical business advice that draws on his experience as a creative entrepreneur, where he explains how the braveness to make brave decisions and the ability to see things for how they could be has helped him build a successful company. It follows the concept of Diesel’s award-winning ‘Be Stupid’ campaign from 2009, which is based on a philosophy Rosso has practiced much throughout his life and career.
Published for Rosso’s 40th respectively 50th birthdays, ‘Forty’ and ‘Fifty’ look at the key moments in Diesel's history, from its "jeans & workwear" beginnings followed by its years of groundbreaking advertising, to its current premium positioning. The latter publication includes contributions from the Dalai Lama
, Vivienne Westwood
, Paul Smith
, Alexander McQueen
, Maison Martin Margiela, Bono
, Vincent Gallo
, Naomi Campbell
, Terry Jones
, Kevin Roberts
, Peter Saville, Dazed & Confused, Numéro
and Vogue
.
in 1992, Rosso wanted to play a prank on the organizers. When he was asked to come onstage, he surprised the 3,000 guests by bringing his Creative Team on stage; all dressed the same way and wearing identical wigs that mimicked his curly hair. Before accepting the award, he introduced everyone in his team one-by-one to the audience, and explained that the prize in fact belonged to his hard-working team, not just himself.
Rosso often refers to the company “as his other family” and would until the late 1990s hire every new employee himself, often by looking for creative people at unexpected locations and simply ask if they would come and work for him. Since 2000, Rosso has used Diesel’s partnership with ITS as a method for scouting talented young designers, by welcoming the winning designer to complete a paid six-month internship at the company’s design headquarters.
Throughout his career, Rosso has encouraged his employees to feel comfortable in expressing themselves, and to dare to make risky decisions. In the book Fifty, Rosso’s management style was explained by some of Diesel’s employees as “he listens to you and appreciates your advice, and even though he remains the boss, he’s not inflexible. The whole concept of the brand is freedom and self-expression, so he’s tried to see it that we can express ourselves through our work.”
During the 2000’s, Rosso became known for throwing major parties for the companies employees and fans, to thank them for their contribution to the company’s success. In September 2003, Rosso and Diesel organized a large party for its employees and people living in Rosso’s hometown, Bassano del Grappa
, to celebrate the company’s 25th anniversary. During a 15-hour festival that featured performances by Moby
, Jovanotti
, Puppetmastaz and DJ Yoda
, among others, 25,000 square meters of parkland had been transformed into a “Dieseland”. The event entertained more than 40,000 visitors, including celebrities like Naomi Campbell
, who not only had flown in just for the occasion.
In October 2008, when Diesel was about to celebrate its 30th anniversary, Rosso had requested the company ”once and for all show the world how to throw a good party”. This resulted in a massive event that took place across 17 major cities around the world during 24 hours. It featured performances by artists like M.I.A
., Chaka Khan
, and N.E.R.D., and totaled more than 80,000 visitors onsite, and more than one million viewers online.
In 2010, Rosso threw a large party to celebrate the company’s new headquarters in Breganze
, for all of the headquarters employees. The party, which hosted more than a thousand guests, featured live performances by some of Rosso’s personal friends and favorite artists, including Wyclef Jean
, Pharrell Williams
and Jovanotti
.
- Hailed by The New York Times
to have “innovation his permanent state of mind”4764 and by Business Week to have achieved “one of the greatest marketing success stories in the fashion world”, Rosso was in 2004 credited to have the “high-voltage vision that lifted advertising out of its moody doldrums, swept international awards and kept fashion hounds thirsting.” Starting with Diesel's first ads in 1991, his irreverent approach has shocked the advertising establishment, won accolades, and inspired a generation of copycats. Diesel was the first to poke fun at the marketing of fashion, starting with campaigns that pictured exaggerated overweight people wearing Diesel jeans.
According to Rosso, this courage is also why he is frequently praised for foreseeing and setting trends, whether it is for design, advertising or business ventures, saying that “…being brave, being confident with oneself, wanting to innovate and challenge, and never being satisfied. It means being open to new things and listening to your intuition”. One such example is when the brand was experiencing great financial growth and success in the late 90’s, and Rosso decided to narrow the distribution points of sales from 10,000 to 5,000 in order to gain better control over the consumer’s general brand experience. In an interview with the founder of i-D magazine, Terry Jones
, Rosso explained “I actually prevented Diesel from growing too big, because I wanted us to maintain our credibility… We don’t want to be the biggest- we want to be the coolest of the biggest.”
Another example of how Rosso has done things differently can be found in the concept of the Diesel stores, which have been independently styled to mirror local creativity and taste. “Years ago, taking the opposite approach to that of our competitors, we decided that we would make each of our stores different, to reflect the tastes of local consumers. We would seek advice from people who would be working in the stores and from local designers. That’s why the store in London
is so different from the store in Paris
, and the store in Carnaby Street
is different from the one in King’s Road. We don’t treat consumers like some formless mass who blindly follow the same dress code.” Rosso explained in 2005.
and François Pinault
, the chairmen of the LVHH and PPR
conglomerates respectively, who own several of the world’s leading luxury brands. However, in an interview in April, 2011 with Italian daily newspaper Corriere della Sera
, Rosso stated that he never intended to follow their route, but that he instead wanted to build a conglomerate that is “more democratic” and almost an alternative. "I have great respect for luxury, a sector that is doing very well, but it is too conservative. My dream, however, is to be a meeting point for the brands of new generations, who will be future leaders."
Rosso’s first investment through Red Circle S.R.L. was made in March 2009, when he purchased 4,9% of the stocks in Yoox
, an online mail-order retailer of multi-brand clothing. In the spring of 2011 he increased his shares to 6% and later stated that he was looking to purchase more shares, if anyone else was willing to sell.
In April 2011, Rosso purchased a 20% stake of the start-up incubator H-Farm. The investment was one of the first major investments where a businessman from the fashion industry chose to invest in the high-tech market. Founded in 2005 and based outside Venice
, H-Farm makes seed investments in new startups. With offices in Seattle, Mumbai
and London
, it invested $13.62 million in 26 startups during its first five years. Following the deal, Rosso said ”I’m a great fan of H-Farm which I always associate to the Silicon Valley
: 250 young people connected with thousands of creative people all over the world. It’s like a hothouse of ideas and innovation that constantly stimulates my vision of the world and of the way to do business. The digital world fascinates and excites me, my personal investment choices are clearly showing it.”
In 2009, Rosso, together with Millennium Promise
, the The Earth Institute
at Columbia University
, and UNDP, launched the Only The Brave Millennium Village, in Dioro, Mali
. Following the model of the Millennium Villages, which helps communities lift themselves out of extreme poverty, the first steps in Mali included distributing seeds and fertilizers to boost agriculture, providing bed nets to decrease malaria, and the constructing a new health clinics. Additionally, a new primary school, equipped and run with solar panels, was built with expanded classrooms, latrines for boys and girls and a new school kitchen. In the spring of 2010 Rosso visited the village to personally oversee the development. At a press conference in September, the CEO of Millennium Promise, John McArthur, said "Renzo and the Only the Brave Foundation bring an extraordinary spirit of creativity and entrepreneurship to this collaboration, all driven by passion to end extreme poverty."
Later that year, Rosso was named a Millennium Promise
Millennium Development Goals
Global Leader at the United Nations
in conjunction with the Millennium Development Goals
Summit, alongside Senegalese musician and UNICEF ambassador Youssou Ndour, Microsoft-founder Bill Gates
, musician and activist Bob Geldoff, Queen Rania of Jordan, Nobel Prize
winner Muhammad Yunus
, and Philanthropist
Ted Turner
, among others. Established in 2005, Millennium Promise is the leading international non-profit organization solely committed to supporting the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals to halve extreme poverty by 2015.
Since 2011 the Only The Brave Foundation supports and develops projects like The Village (Mali
); Water.org
(Ethiopia
, Kenya
, Uganda
); Doctors With Africa Cuamm (Ethiopia
); Associazione Uomo Mondo Onlus (Burundi
, Senegal
); Ethiopian Education Foundation (Ethiopia
); and Lo Spirito di Stella (Italy
).
. The funds were provided to Yéle Haiti
, a foundation established by Rosso’s long-term acquaintance, Wyclef Jean
.
In June 2008, Rosso donated 2,000,000 HKD ($250,000) to the Special Relief Fund for Children Affected by the 2008 Sichuan earthquake
, established by UNICEF to help children affected by the tremor in southwest China
on May 12.
Throughout the 2000’s, Rosso has been a supporter of AmfAR
, The Foundation for AIDS Research. ,
, North East Italy. This includes bringing free public Wi-Fi
and initiating restoration projects in his hometown of Bassano del Grappa
.
In October 2011, Rosso was knighted Cavaliere del Lavoro by the President of Italy, Giorgio Napolitano
. The award ceremony took place at the Quadriennale in Rome
and was broadcast live on RAI
in Italy
.
Rosso has received the Advertiser of the Year in 1998 and Grand Prix awards in 2010, 2009, 2007, 2001 1997, and 1992, at Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival
.
In 2008, Rosso was named a Millennium Promise
Millennium Development Goals
Global Leader in conjunction with the Millennium Development Goals
Summit, at the United Nations
in New York
.
In 2006 Hollywood Life magazine prized Rosso with the “Fashion Visionary” award in Los Angeles
, and cited Diesel “as one of the most innovative and successful brands in fashion.”
In 2005, Rosso was named "Man of the Year" by the German edition of GQ; received the Pitti Imagine Award, in Florence
; the Creative Vision of Business Award by the Mayor of Rome
, Walter Veltroni
; and the Textilwirtschaft Forum Preis in Heidelberg
, for his “outstanding personal and business achievements in the fashion and textile industry.”
In 2004 Rosso received the International Leading Entrepreneur Award in Monte Carlo
. Presented at the Monaco Investors Week it honors the efforts of a businessman who represents vision, professional ethics and the courage to undertake a particular venture.
In 2003 Rosso received Movieline
’s Hollywood Life’s Annual Breakthrough of the Year Award in Los Angeles
, acknowledging how Diesel had managed to break through into the American market. 48108
In 1997, the English music and trend magazine Select cited Renzo as one of “The 100 most important people in the world who will contribute to the shape of the new millennium.” That same year Ernst & Young
nominated Rosso as “Entrepreneur of the Year” for Diesel’s strong development in the U.S.
In 1996, Rosso and Diesel received the "Premio Risultati" award for “Best Italian Company of the Year” from Bocconi University
in Milan
.
Rosso has received honorary degrees from University of Verona
, Italy, in 2005; and from the CUOA Foundation
of Altavilla Vicentina
, Italy, in 2000, who cited Diesel as "one of the entrepreneurial phenomena of the 1990’s.”
, Veneto. In an interview with CNN
in 2004, Rosso said he usually spends his free time practicing yoga, playing soccer, jogging, and snowboarding.
Besides work, Rosso has explained his biggest passion and inspiration in life is his family. He is the father of six children and his two eldest sons are currently active in the OTB Group.
In 2001 Rosso officially began manufacturing and selling wine and olive oil under his own name. The products, titled Rosso di Rosso (Merlot
& Cabernet), Nero di Rosso (Pinot Noir
), Bianco di Rosso (Chardonnay
), Grappa di Rosso (grappa
), and Olio di Rosso (extra virgin olive oil) are produced at the 105-hectare Diesel Farm in Marostica
, Veneto
, a few kilometers from his home.
Rosso is an avid art collector and enthusiast, and frequently travels to exhibitions and art fairs all around the world. Besides owning works of Andy Warhol
and contemporary Italian artist Francesco Vezzoli, Rosso has continuously pushed Diesel to support younger, talented artists, by initiating and sponsoring a wide range of projects across the arts, including Diesel New Art and Diesel Wall.
In 1996, Rosso was asked to take charge of Bassano Virtus 55 S.T.
, the soccer team of his hometown Bassano del Grappa
. As a thanks for all the local support that he has received when building the Diesel company, he began to support the team financially and also agreed to help manage the club. Since then, the team has successfully advanced from Italy’s lower divisions to the country’s third highest division, the Lega Pro Prima Divisione.
Suzy Menkes
Suzy Menkes, OBE has been head fashion reporter and Editor for the International Herald Tribune since 1988. In that time she has written over 1.7 million words in the paper....
, he is the founder and President of fashion brand Diesel
Diesel (clothing company)
Diesel S.p.A. is an Italian design company. It is best known for luxury, pret-a-porter clothing aimed at the young adult market. The company is owned by its founder Renzo Rosso, and is based in Breganze in northern Italy.-History:...
. Rosso is also the founder of OTB (Only the Brave), the holding group for iconic brands like Diesel, Maison Martin Margiela, Viktor & Rolf
Viktor & Rolf
Viktor & Rolf is an Amsterdam-based fashion house. The company was founded in 1993 by designers Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren .- History :...
, and Staff International (who manufactures and distributes DSquared2, Just Cavalli, Vivienne Westwood
Vivienne Westwood
Dame Vivienne Westwood, DBE, RDI is a British fashion designer and businesswoman, largely responsible for bringing modern punk and new wave fashions into the mainstream.-Early life:...
, and Marc Jacobs Men) and the founder of its not-for-profit organization, the Only The Brave Foundation. Rosso is also the President of the Red Circle investment group; the Diesel Farm in Marostica
Marostica
Marostica , is a town and comune in the province of Vicenza, Veneto, northern Italy. It is mostly famous for its living chess event and for the local cherry variety.-History:...
, Veneto
Veneto
Veneto is one of the 20 regions of Italy. Its population is about 5 million, ranking 5th in Italy.Veneto had been for more than a millennium an independent state, the Republic of Venice, until it was eventually annexed by Italy in 1866 after brief Austrian and French rule...
; the Pelican hotel in Miami; and Bassano Virtus 55 S.T.
Bassano Virtus 55 S.T.
Bassano Virtus 55 Soccer Team is an Italian association football club, based in Bassano del Grappa, Veneto.The club currently plays in Lega Pro Prima Divisione...
, the professional soccer club of his hometown Bassano del Grappa
Bassano del Grappa
Bassano del Grappa is a city and comune in the province of Vicenza, region Veneto, in northern Italy. It bounds the communes of Cassola, Marostica, Solagna, Pove del Grappa, Romano d'Ezzelino, Campolongo sul Brenta, Conco, Rosà, Cartigliano and Nove...
, Veneto
Veneto
Veneto is one of the 20 regions of Italy. Its population is about 5 million, ranking 5th in Italy.Veneto had been for more than a millennium an independent state, the Republic of Venice, until it was eventually annexed by Italy in 1866 after brief Austrian and French rule...
.
Early life
Rosso was born in the village of BrugineBrugine
Brugine is a comune in the Province of Padua in the Italian region Veneto, located about 50 km west of Venice and about 25 km west of Padua...
in the Northeastern Italian region of Veneto
Veneto
Veneto is one of the 20 regions of Italy. Its population is about 5 million, ranking 5th in Italy.Veneto had been for more than a millennium an independent state, the Republic of Venice, until it was eventually annexed by Italy in 1866 after brief Austrian and French rule...
. His parents were farmers and he grew up under simple conditions, regularly helping his father after school. Having seen the laborious life required for a farmer, Rosso aspired to do something different from his parents and in 1970 began studying industrial Textile Manufacturing at the Marconi Technical Institute, a newly established fashion school in Padua
Padua
Padua is a city and comune in the Veneto, northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Padua and the economic and communications hub of the area. Padua's population is 212,500 . The city is sometimes included, with Venice and Treviso, in the Padua-Treviso-Venice Metropolitan Area, having...
. There, he produced, at the age of 15, his first self-designed garment, a pair of low-waist bell-bottomed jeans using his mother's Singer sewing machine. He kept experimenting with different jeans models and would give each pair to friends or sell them at school for about 3500 lire
Lire
Lire is a French literary magazine covering both French and foreign literature. It was founded in 1975 by Jean-Louis Servan-Schreiber and Bernard Pivot.-External links:*...
(equivalent of 1,80 Euro in current prices). In 1973 he began studying Economics at the University of Venice, where in addition to helping his father on the farm, he also financed his studies by working as a mechanic and as a carpenter.
Beginnings of Diesel
Rosso dropped out of the University of VeniceUniversity of Venice
Ca' Foscari University is a university in Venice, northern Italy. It was founded in 1868 as the first Italian business college. The main building of the University, Ca’ Foscari Palace, is placed in a strategic position on the bend of the Grand Canal, in the heart of the city...
in 1975 and began to work as a Production Manager at Moltex, a local clothing manufacturer that produced trousers for various Italian clothing labels. Moltex’ parent company, the Genius Group, was run by Adriano Goldschmied who would eventually become Rosso's mentor and future business partner. During Rosso's first two years at Moltex the company grew rapidly. In 1978, after Rosso had managed to increase the company's production beyond what Goldschmied actually considered possible, Rosso wanted to leave the company in order to start a new business on his own. However, Goldschmied convinced Rosso to stay by offering him a 40% stake in Moltex and by agreeing to form a new company together, thus forming Diesel. Following the new partnership, Rosso also became shareholder of the Genius Group, which gathered brands such as Replay, King Jeans and Vivai, among others.
The brand name Diesel was chosen because 'diesel' was considered to be the 'alternative fuel' in the current oil crisis, and Rosso and Goldschmied liked the idea of their brand being perceived as an alternative jeans brand in contrast to the prevalent casual wear brands. Furthermore, since the word was an international term pronounced equally all over the world, it appealed to Rosso’s view and that the global fashion market was not segmented by national borders, but by people's lifestyle. In 2004, after having followed those core values for nearly 20 years, CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
accredited Diesel for not being "the first brand to believe truly in the global village and to embrace it with open arms."
Diesel acquisition
In 1985 Rosso wanted to achieve creative freedom over the brand's direction and took complete control of the company, by trading his shares in the Genius Group, at the time Diesel's parent company, for Goldschmied's remaining shares in Diesel. Following the launch of Diesel Kids the year prior, at the time called Dieselito, sales of the Diesel-branded clothing had by that point reached about $5 million annually. Wanting to focus on denim, Rosso began experimenting with different ways of treating the fabric with stones and washes. Then, after handpicking team of likeminded designers in the late 1980's, the company began a period of remarkable growth and expansion.Diesel in the 1990's
During the first of the 1990's Rosso brilliantly pioneered Diesel into the fashion world and set the grounds for its establishment in global markets. In 1991 the company launched its first international marketing effort with the highly successful 'guides for successful living' campaign series. In 1992 the campaign, which was Diesel's first advertising campaign ever, won a Grand Prix at the Cannes Lions International Advertising FestivalCannes Lions International Advertising Festival
The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity is a global event for those working in advertising and related fields. The seven-day festival, incorporating the awarding of the Lions awards, is held yearly at the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès in Cannes, France...
, the world's leading awards in advertising. Later on that same year Diesel launched the campaign on TV and would eventually become part of the company's global communication work for a decade to come, bringing in multiple advertising awards across the world.
Diesel Farm
In late 1992 Rosso purchased a farm close to the Diesel headquarters in MolvenaMolvena
Molvena is a town in the province of Vicenza, Veneto, Italy. It is northwest of Via Panica. It is the location of the headquarters of Diesel S.p.A..-Sources:*...
, province of Veneto
Veneto
Veneto is one of the 20 regions of Italy. Its population is about 5 million, ranking 5th in Italy.Veneto had been for more than a millennium an independent state, the Republic of Venice, until it was eventually annexed by Italy in 1866 after brief Austrian and French rule...
, where he began producing wine and olive oil under the name Diesel Farm. Initially the purchase was meant as a gift to his father, who until then had questioned his choice of career, but then for the first time understood that his son had in fact become a successful business entrepreneur. At the time of the purchase the farm and its land was at risk of getting divided in to separate lots for multiple buyers, but Rosso was able to prevent this by taking charge of the whole estate. Today the land and the old farm buildings are considered a nature reserve.
55DSL
In 1994 Rosso created a new sports line and sub-brand, called 55DSL55dsl
55DSL is a company founded in Italy as a 1994 spinoff from Diesel Clothing that sells male and female clothing in stores all around the world, including in the brand's own proprietary stores.-History:...
, which was inspired by the passion for snowboarding he shared with his sons. The first collection was titled 'FW94, Subzero Winter' and consisted of 55 pieces. That same year, 55DSL became one of the first clothing lines to endorse snowboard competitions around the world, starting with competitions in Riksgransen
Riksgränsen
Riksgränsen, The National Border in Swedish, is a ski-resort in Kiruna Municipality, Lappland, Sweden, 200 km north of the Arctic Circle. The skiing season is from February to June...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. The competitions featured several now legendary snowboards pioneers like Todd Richards and Peter Line
Peter Line
Peter Line is a professional snowboarder from Bellevue, WA. He is a member of the Forum Snowboarding team and was the founder of the original Forum 8. The Forum 8 were: JP Walker, Jeremy Jones , Joni Malmi, Wille Yli-Luoma, Bjorn Leines, Devun Walsh, Chris Dufficy, and Peter Line and were seen on...
. In the following years 55DSL progressively became an independent brand and in 1999 moved from Diesel's headquarters in Molvena, Italy, to Balerna, Switzerland. There it remained until 2005 when its headquarters re-located back in Italy. Since the mid-2000's it has been spearheaded by its Creative Director
Creative Director
A creative director is a position often found within the graphic design, film, music, fashion, advertising, media or entertainment industries, but may be useful in other creative organizations such as web development and software development firms as well....
and Rosso's eldest son, Andrea Rosso, who, after learning to sew at the age of 13 and starting to work as a quality controller in the Diesel factories at the age of 16, went on to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
where he completed his graduate studies at the Fashion Institute of Technology
Fashion Institute of Technology
The Fashion Institute of Technology, generally known as FIT, is a State University of New York college of art, business, design, and technology connected to the fashion industry, with an urban campus located on West 27th Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in the Chelsea neighborhood of...
. Since then 55DSL has established itself as a globally recognized urban and street brand that is well known for its vast variety of collaborations. This includes collaborations with independent artists like Eric Haze
Eric Haze
Eric Haze is a well known graffiti artist and designer from New York City. During his early years as graffiti writer in the 1970s Haze was tagging the name "SE3" before taking on his more popular identity as "Haze"...
, Alex Fakso, and Turbokrafen; action sports legends Joel Tudor
Joel Tudor
Joel Tudor is a surfer, primarily known for longboarding, and competitive grappler from San Diego, California.-Early life:His father, Joe, who ignored the shortboard revolution himself and never abandoned his longboard, first put his Joel on a surfboard during a family trip to Puerto Vallarta...
, Tony Hawk
Tony Hawk
Anthony Frank "Tony" Hawk , nicknamed "The Birdman" is an American retired professional skateboarder and actor. Hawk gained significant fame for completing the first 900 as well as his licensed video game titles distributed by Activision...
, Steve Berra
Steve Berra
-Career:Steve Berra began his skateboarding career in Omaha, Nebraska at the age of 14. In 1989, Steve Berra met skating legend Tony Hawk in Nebraska. The two forged a friendship over their love for all things skateboarding. At the age of 18,Berra quit his affiliation with Blockhead to turn pro for...
and Lukas Hoffman; musicians Steve Aoki
Steve Aoki
Steve Aoki is an American electro house musician, record producer and the founder of Dim Mak Records.-Early life:...
and Bloody Beetroots; art foundations Poo on Art and Two Steps Back, and global brands like Adidas
Adidas
Adidas AG is a German sports apparel manufacturer and parent company of the Adidas Group, which consists of the Reebok sportswear company, TaylorMade-Adidas golf company , and Rockport...
, Coca-Cola Zero
Coca-Cola Zero
Coca-Cola Zero or Coke Zero is a product of the Coca-Cola Company. It is a low-calorie variation of Coca-Cola specifically marketed to males, who were shown to associate 'diet' drinks with women....
, MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
, EA Sports
EA Sports
EA Sports is a brand of Electronic Arts that creates and develops sports video games. Formerly a marketing gimmick of Electronic Arts, in which they tried to mimic real-life sports networks by calling themselves "EA Sports Network" with pictures or endorsements of real commentators such as John...
, Yoox
Yoox
YOOX Group S.p.A is an Italian internet mail order retailer of men's and women's multibrand clothing and accessories. Founded by Federico Marchetti, a former investment banker, in Zola Predosa near Bologna in 2000, Yoox Group has become a profitable e-commerce company that serves "more than 100...
, Manhattan Portage and Panini.
The Pelican Hotel
Also in 1994, Rosso reopened the Pelican Hotel on Miami's South Beach strip. The hotel, which was an historical Art Deco building constructed in 1939, had been restored under the direction of his Creative Team after Rosso had fallen in love with the building in 1991 and purchased it one month later. Its kitsch, retro-styled interior with each room being independently designed and different from the others, was considered unique for its time and contributed to Diesel's image of the 'Successful Living' lifestyle. Several years later the hotel was listed by British daily newspaper The IndependentThe Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
as one of the world's "best fashion hotels". Other brands included in the list were hotels by Missoni
Missoni
Missoni is an Italian fashion house based in Varese. It is famous for its unique knitwear, made from a variety of fabrics in colourful patterns. The company was founded by Ottavio and Rosita Missoni in 1953.-Brands:...
, Armani, Bulgari
Bulgari
Bulgari is an Italian jeweler and luxury goods retailer which has been owned by the French firm LVMH since October 2011. The trademark is usually written "BVLGARI" in the classical Latin alphabet , and is derived from the surname of the company's Greek founder, Sotirio Voulgaris...
and Ralph Lauren
Ralph Lauren
Ralph Lauren is an American fashion designer and business executive; best known for his Polo Ralph Lauren clothing brand.-Early life:...
, which had all been opened after the Pelican.
Diesel in the late 1990s
In the second half of the 1990s, Diesel continued to shatter common marketing rules and began to establish itself as a major brand in the global fashion market. This was a result of Rosso's ambition to always break new grounds and his aspiration to work with most creative agencies and photographers around, including David LaChapelleDavid LaChapelle
David LaChapelle is a photographer and director who works in the fields of fashion, advertising, and fine art photography, and is noted for his surreal, unique, sexualized, and often humorous style.-Early life:...
, Terry Richardson
Terry Richardson
Terrence "Terry" Richardson is an American fashion photographer.-Early life:Richardson was born in New York City, the son of Bob Richardson, a fashion photographer who struggled with schizophrenia and drug abuse...
, Ellen von Unwerth
Ellen von Unwerth
Ellen von Unwerth is a photographer and director, specializing in erotic femininity. She worked as a fashion model for ten years herself before moving behind the camera, and now makes fashion, editorial, and advertising photographs.Ellen von Unwerth found fame when she first photographed Claudia...
, Rankin
Rankin
-Places:*In Australia:**Division of Rankin, an electoral district in the Australian Federal House of Representatives, in Queensland*In Canada:**Rankin Inlet, Nunavut**Rankin Inlet Airport, Nunavut**Rankin River, Ontario...
, and Erwin Olaf
Erwin Olaf
Erwin Olaf is a Dutch photographer.Olaf is most famous for his commercial and personal work. He has been commissioned to photograph advertising campaigns for large international companies such as Levi's, Microsoft and Nokia. Some of his most famous photographic series include "Grief", "Rain", and...
.
In 1995, Diesel became the first major fashion brand to embrace the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
with the launch of www.diesel.com, which two years later was followed by the first online store of any fashion brand. Later in 1995 the company also launched one of its most popular yet provocative campaigns ever, featuring two kissing sailors staged at the peace celebration of WWII. Shot by photographer David LaChapelle
David LaChapelle
David LaChapelle is a photographer and director who works in the fields of fashion, advertising, and fine art photography, and is noted for his surreal, unique, sexualized, and often humorous style.-Early life:...
, it was the first major public advertisement to show a homosexual couple kissing and was published at height of the Don't ask, Don't tell
Don't ask, don't tell
"Don't ask, don't tell" was the official United States policy on homosexuals serving in the military from December 21, 1993 to September 20, 2011. The policy prohibited military personnel from discriminating against or harassing closeted homosexual or bisexual service members or applicants, while...
debates in USA, which had led the U.S. Government to refuse entry for openly gay, lesbian, or bisexual persons from military service. In a long article published by Frieze
Frieze
thumb|267px|Frieze of the [[Tower of the Winds]], AthensIn architecture the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon...
in 1996, the advertisement was credited for its “overarching tone of heavy-handed humor and sarcasm”.
In the late 1990s, Diesel began opening a large number of stores around the world, starting with its first ever mono-brand store, located on Lexington Avenue in New York in 1996, which was followed by stores in Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
. In contrast to common retail norms of the time, Rosso decided that each Diesel store should be styled independently. Occasionally, he would also collaborate with famous artists in this progress, as in 2003 when he let the artist Stephen Sprouse
Stephen Sprouse
Stephen Sprouse was a fashion designer and artist credited with pioneering the 1980s mix of "uptown sophistication in clothing with a downtown punk and pop sensibility" .-Career:...
personalize the Union Square
Union Square
Union Square may refer to:Asia* Union Square * Union Square station on Dubai MetroCanada* Union Square, Nova ScotiaUnited States* Union Square, Baltimore, Maryland* Union Square * Union Square, San Francisco, California...
Diesel store in New York with graffiti. Rosso also opened up new locations to showcase the creativity of the Diesel Creative Team, such as the Diesel Denim Gallery in New York and Osaka
Osaka
is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. The galleries showcased hand-treated denim of the highest quality and gave exhibition space to young, local artists. The Diesel Denim Galleries were much acclaimed by the fashion press and were described by The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
Suzy Menkes
Suzy Menkes
Suzy Menkes, OBE has been head fashion reporter and Editor for the International Herald Tribune since 1988. In that time she has written over 1.7 million words in the paper....
simply as "super-cool".
Diesel in the 2000s
Throughout the 2000's Rosso increased Diesel's share in the global fashion market, mainly through opening more company owned stores, embarking on a series of brand collaborations, and by expanding on the business of Diesel.Collaborations
In 2002, Rosso was asked to collaborate with Karl LagerfeldKarl Lagerfeld
Karl Lagerfeld is a German fashion designer, artist and photographer based in Paris. He has collaborated on a variety of fashion and art related projects, most notably as head designer and creative director for the fashion house Chanel...
on a denim collection for the designer's Lagerfeld Gallery. The collection, which was titled Lagerfeld Gallery by Diesel, was co-designed by Lagerfeld and then developed by Diesel's Creative Team. It consisted of five pieces that were presented during the designer’s catwalk shows during Paris Fashion Week
Paris Fashion Week
Paris Fashion Week is a famous fashion week held semi-annually in Paris, France with Spring/Summer and Autumn/Winter events held each year. Dates are determined by the French Fashion Federation...
and then sold in very strict limited editions at the Lagerfeld Galleries in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and Monaco
Monaco
Monaco , officially the Principality of Monaco , is a sovereign city state on the French Riviera. It is bordered on three sides by its neighbour, France, and its centre is about from Italy. Its area is with a population of 35,986 as of 2011 and is the most densely populated country in the...
, and at the Diesel Denim Galleries in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
. During the first week of sales in New York, more than 90% of the trousers had already been sold out, even though prices ranged from as high as $240 to $1840. In a statement after the show in Paris, Rosso said "I am honored to have met this fashion icon of our time. Karl represents creativity, tradition and challenge, and the fact that he thought of Diesel for this collaboration is a great gift and acknowledgement of our reputation as the prêt-à-porter of casual wear."
In 2003, Rosso asked legendary street and graffiti artist Stephen Sprouse
Stephen Sprouse
Stephen Sprouse was a fashion designer and artist credited with pioneering the 1980s mix of "uptown sophistication in clothing with a downtown punk and pop sensibility" .-Career:...
to do a take over of Diesel’s Union Square store for New York Fashion Week
New York Fashion Week
The semi-annual New York Fashion Week, branded Mercedes-Benz FashionWeek in 2009, is held in February and September of each year in New York City. It is one of four major fashion weeks held around the world .-History:The first New York Fashion Week, then called Press Week, was the world's first...
in the following September. As part of the collaboration Sprouse designed a series of limited edition jeans, t-shirts and hats, and made a complete makeover of the Diesel store, which meant adding his renowned Day-Glo design to windows, interiors, and outer building exteriors. At the launch of the event, Rosso explained the project as "first and foremost a tribute that we wish to pay to one of the most groundbreaking and far-reaching artists of our time, someone who went beyond categorizations, means of expressions, and gender- a common approach at Diesel."
Business partnerships
In 2007, Rosso and Diesel partnered with L'OrealL'Oréal
The L'Oréal Group is the world's largest cosmetics and beauty company. With its registered office in Paris and head office in the Paris suburb of Clichy, Hauts-de-Seine, France, it has developed activities in the field of cosmetics...
for the production of Diesel's first fragrance, titled Fuel For Life. This was followed by a partnership with Italian carmaker FIAT
Fiat
FIAT, an acronym for Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino , is an Italian automobile manufacturer, engine manufacturer, financial, and industrial group based in Turin in the Italian region of Piedmont. Fiat was founded in 1899 by a group of investors including Giovanni Agnelli...
in early 2008 to re-design the classic Fiat 500
Fiat 500
The Fiat 500 is a car produced by the Fiat company of Italy between 1957 and 1975, with limited production of the Fiat 500 K estate continuing until 1977. The car was designed by Dante Giacosa....
. Originally being one of FIAT's most popular models ever, the new version, simply titled '500 by Diesel', featured several unique design details throughout the car’s interior and exterior and was only produced in 10,000 units.
In the spring of 2008, Rosso launched a collaboration between Diesel and sportswear giant Adidas
Adidas
Adidas AG is a German sports apparel manufacturer and parent company of the Adidas Group, which consists of the Reebok sportswear company, TaylorMade-Adidas golf company , and Rockport...
. After Diesel made a special denim collection for Adidas that was exclusively available at Adidas Originals
Adidas Originals
Adidas Originals is a line of casual sports apparel, and is the heritage line of Adidas The brand uses the famous Trefoil logo, which was originally used on all adidas products until the company decided in 1997 that the trefoil logo would thereafter only be used on heritage products, and was...
stores, called Adidas Originals by Diesel, the collaboration then developed into a number of additional product collaborations between Diesel, as well as its sister brand 55DSL
55dsl
55DSL is a company founded in Italy as a 1994 spinoff from Diesel Clothing that sells male and female clothing in stores all around the world, including in the brand's own proprietary stores.-History:...
, and Adidas.
In January 2011, Rosso took Diesel into its first sponsorship of the Grand Prix
Grand Prix motorcycle racing
Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix is the premier championship of motorcycle road racing currently divided into three distinct classes: 125cc, Moto2 and MotoGP. The 125cc class uses a two-stroke engine while Moto2 and MotoGP use four-stroke engines. In 2010 the 250cc two-stroke was replaced...
motorcycle racing, the MotoGP, through a partnership with the iconic Italian manufacturer Ducati. Following the deal, Rosso said "This season in particular is extraordinary and with the arrival of Valentino Rossi
Valentino Rossi
Valentino Rossi, , is an Italian professional motorcycle racer and multiple MotoGP World Champion. He is one of the most successful motorcycle racers of all time, with nine Grand Prix World Championships to his name – seven of which are in the premier class.Following his father, Graziano Rossi,...
, the association between our brands is perfectly in line with our 'Only the Brave' philosophy".
In May 2011, Rosso launched the first ever Diesel bicycle, together with award-winning bicycle manufacturer Pinarello
Pinarello
Cicli Pinarello S.p.A. is an Italian bicycle manufacturer in Treviso, Italy. It supplies mostly hand-made bicycles for road racing, track racing and cyclo-cross.-Models:-Montello SLX:...
. Built as a single-speed, city bicycle with a hydro formed aluminum frame, the collaboration marked one of the first true collaborations between the bicycle and the fashion industry.
Diesel Black Gold
In February 2008, Rosso launched a new, premium line extension called Diesel Black Gold. The new lined combined Diesel's original expertise in denim and casual wear with the craftsmanship of tailoring. Through its collections of artfully distressed denim and leather, new twists on traditional garments and iconic blends of past and future, Diesel Black Gold has become the largest non-designer label in the contemporary high-end fashion market, and has successfully managed to become a casual alternative to other luxury brands In 2009, Greek designer Sophia KokosalakiSophia Kokosalaki
Sophia Kokosalaki is a Greek fashion designer with her own label based in London. A graduate of London's Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, she was chosen to design the opening and closing ceremonial outfits for the 2004 Summer Olympic Games, which were staged in her home town of...
came onboard as the line's new head designer, and received great acclaim as her first collection was presented in 2010 at New York Fashion Week
New York Fashion Week
The semi-annual New York Fashion Week, branded Mercedes-Benz FashionWeek in 2009, is held in February and September of each year in New York City. It is one of four major fashion weeks held around the world .-History:The first New York Fashion Week, then called Press Week, was the world's first...
.
For Successful Living from Diesel
In 2009, Rosso launched Diesel's first home collection, called For Successful Living from Diesel. Produced together with pioneering Italian manufacturers Moroso, Foscarini and ZucchiZucchi
Zucchi is a surname, and may refer to:* Antonio Zucchi , Italian painter* Jacopo Zucchi , Florentine painter* Niccolò Zucchi , Italian Jesuit astronomer and physicist...
, For Successful Living from Diesel was credited by Wallpaper
Wallpaper
Wallpaper is a kind of material used to cover and decorate the interior walls of homes, offices, and other buildings; it is one aspect of interior decoration. It is usually sold in rolls and is put onto a wall using wallpaper paste...
magazine for its style and comfort when it premiered at Salone del Mobile
Salone del Mobile
The Milan Furniture Fair is a furniture fair held annually in Milan. It is the largest trade fair of its kind in the world. The show showcases the latest in furniture and design from countries around the world....
in April, 2009.
Uffie x Diesel Capsule Collection
In 2010, Diesel launched a collaboration with the young electro-popstar UffieUffie
Anna-Catherine Hartley , better known by her stage name Uffie , is a Paris-based underground electronic musician, rapper, fashion designer and socialite signed to French electronic music record label Ed Banger Records. She has been described as a muse for French DJs, and is known for working with...
, called the Uffie x Diesel Capsule Collection. The collection featured 12 female pieces of denim and leather, that all were modeled by Uffie herself and available for purchase on the Diesel website.
Advertising and campaigns
In the early 2000's Rosso and Diesel began to implement a mindset into their global marketing strategy that "put sales and profit second to building something special for customers, often by creating interactive user experiences that are not directly connected to retail, sales or stores." In a research study of innovative businesses presented by The TimesThe Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
, much of Diesel's successful growth in the early 2000's was accredited to this mindset. The study concluded that "Diesel is an experience which interacts with and entertains its customers with a far deeper relationship than other brands", and that "It is always about engaging with the customer as opposed to selling at them: creating an enjoyable two-way dialogue as opposed to a hollow one-way monologue."
In 2007 this approach took another step, leading to the infamous 'Heidies'. It mocked the phenomenon of reality TV and was one of the first ever campaigns by a fashion brand solely based on the Internet. It featured two models that were locked inside a room and who did whatever the online viewers suggested. The models played two mentally crazy women who, wanting to claim their 15 minutes of fame
15 minutes of fame
15 minutes of fame is short-lived, often ephemeral, media publicity or celebrity of an individual or phenomenon. The expression was coined by Andy Warhol, who said in 1968 that "In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes." The phenomenon is often used in reference to...
, had taken an intimate Diesel sales guy as hostage, closed themselves up in a hotel room and hijacked the company’s website; requesting that they be selected for the next Diesel advertising campaign. The employee was said to work for Diesel Intimate, as the campaign was in fact the launch for the brand’s new line of intimate and beachwear. The campaign became a huge success, and reached over 100,000 views daily while it was live. It was awarded at the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival
Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival
The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity is a global event for those working in advertising and related fields. The seven-day festival, incorporating the awarding of the Lions awards, is held yearly at the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès in Cannes, France...
that same year.
On October 11, 2008, Rosso and Diesel celebrated the company's 30th anniversary through hosting 17 parties around the world all broadcast live online and spanning across 24 hours. Following the opening in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, the live stream continued to Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
, Dubai
Dubai
Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...
, Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
, Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
, Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
, Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, Zurich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
, Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
, Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
, Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Sao Paolo and finally ended in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, with Rosso's attendance. The event featured live performances by Daft Punk
Daft Punk
Daft Punk are an electronic music duo consisting of French musicians Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter . Daft Punk reached significant popularity in the late 1990s house movement in France and met with continued success in the years following, combining elements of house with synthpop...
, Earth Wind and Fire, 2manydjs, Mark Ronson
Mark Ronson
Mark Daniel Ronson is an English DJ, guitarist, music producer, artist and co-founder of Allido Records. He currently works with his band under the music alias of Mark Ronson & The Business Intl....
, New Young Pony Club
New Young Pony Club
New Young Pony Club are an English electronic band from London, consisting of members from London, Hereford, Cambridge and Bromley. Their influences are prominently from post-punk and New Wave....
, and a pregnant M.I.A
M.I.A. (artist)
Mathangi "Maya" Arulpragasam , better known by her stage name M.I.A. , is an English singer-songwriter, rapper, record producer, painter and director of Sri Lankan Tamil descent. Her compositions combine elements of hip hop, electronica, dance, alternative and world music. M.I.A...
that that broke her retirement for the occasion. In addition there were neverseen before mash-ups with Chaka Khan
Chaka Khan
Chaka Khan , frequently known as the Queen of Funk, is a 10-time Grammy Award winning American singer-songwriter who gained fame in the 1970s as the frontwoman and focal point of the funk band Rufus. While still a member of the group in 1978, Khan embarked on a successful solo career...
feat. Franz Ferdinand and N.E.R.D. feat. Hot Chip
Hot Chip
Hot Chip are an English electronic indie band. They have released four studio albums—Coming on Strong, The Warning, Made in the Dark and One Life Stand.-Formation:...
.
The event was advertised through the release of a video titled ‘Diesel SFW XXX Party Video’, which immediately went viral and spread rapidly across the Internet, mostly due to its ironic take on 80’s style pornography
Pornography
Pornography or porn is the explicit portrayal of sexual subject matter for the purposes of sexual arousal and erotic satisfaction.Pornography may use any of a variety of media, ranging from books, magazines, postcards, photos, sculpture, drawing, painting, animation, sound recording, film, video,...
. By 2011 it had been viewed more than 20 million times online and classified as one of the most successful viral campaigns ever. Additionally, the anniversary event also featured the production of a limited edition pair of jeans, called ‘The Dirty Thirty’. The denim, which were for sale for one day only (on the date of the birth of the brand) at the extremely discounted price of €30 and modeled by Daisy Lowe
Daisy Lowe
Daisy Rebecca Lowe is an English fashion model who has modelled for editorial photo shoots and commercial advertising campaigns and has worked as a runway model...
, caused ‘hysteria’ and lead to consumers to form mile-log lines outside Diesel stores around the world. These jeans were sold out within just a few hours worldwide.
Throughout the 2000’s Rosso and the Diesel Creative Team also continued working with a number of famous photographers and agencies, including Jean Pierre Khazem, Carl de Keyzer
Carl de Keyzer
Carl de Keyzer is a Belgian contemporary photographer. He was nominated to the Magnum Photos agency in 1990, became an associated member in 1992 and a full member in 1994.-Career:...
, Finlay McKay, Elaine Constantine
Elaine Constantine
·Elaine Constantine , is a photographer and filmmaker known for her colourful and upbeat imagery of British youth culture.-Photography:...
, Mert Alas & Marcus Piggott, Johan Renck
Johan Renck
Bo Johan Renck is a Swedish director of music videos, TV and film. He is an occasional recording artist using the moniker Stakka Bo.-Music videos:...
, and Terry Richardson
Terry Richardson
Terrence "Terry" Richardson is an American fashion photographer.-Early life:Richardson was born in New York City, the son of Bob Richardson, a fashion photographer who struggled with schizophrenia and drug abuse...
, the latter for the celebrated “Global Warning Ready’ campaign of 2007. In 2001, 2007, 2009, and 2010 Diesel was given Grand Prix awards at Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival
Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival
The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity is a global event for those working in advertising and related fields. The seven-day festival, incorporating the awarding of the Lions awards, is held yearly at the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès in Cannes, France...
.
Talent support
In the early 2000s, Rosso pushed Diesel to start reinvesting part of the company’s marketing budgets back into the creative community, by financially supporting young, creative talent. This led to Diesel initiating projects like Diesel:U:Music,4560 Diesel New Art and Diesel Wall, and become a founding partner of ITS (International Talent Support). Furthermore, the company also helped launch Pocko’s affordable art books in 1999, and for a number of years sponsored projects like Online Flash Film Fest and Semi-Permanent.In 2001, Diesel:U:Music was founded with a vision to support unsigned bands and as a reaction to an overly commercialized music industry. Consisting of an independent jury with artists and producers such as Ian McCulloch
Ian McCulloch
Ian McCulloch may refer to:* Ian McCulloch , British actor* Ian McCulloch , English singer, notably of Echo and the Bunnymen* Ian McCulloch , English snooker player...
, Mark Ronson
Mark Ronson
Mark Daniel Ronson is an English DJ, guitarist, music producer, artist and co-founder of Allido Records. He currently works with his band under the music alias of Mark Ronson & The Business Intl....
, and Ronnie Wood, the jury annually reviewed thousands of demos from around the world and selected winning, unsigned bands. By partnering with record labels like Warner Music or media publishers like Vice
Vice
Vice is a practice or a behavior or habit considered immoral, depraved, or degrading in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a defect, an infirmity, or merely a bad habit. Synonyms for vice include fault, depravity, sin, iniquity, wickedness, and corruption...
, the winning artists were offered records deals and media publicity. In 2006, the project consisted of an awards show that was broadcast live on Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
in Great Britain and featured legendary avant-garde rock band Roxy Music
Roxy Music
Roxy Music was a British art rock band formed in 1971 by Bryan Ferry, who became the group's lead vocalist and chief songwriter, and bassist Graham Simpson. The other members are Phil Manzanera , Andy Mackay and Paul Thompson . Former members include Brian Eno , and Eddie Jobson...
. In 2009, the project hosted a global tour and radio station. The tour featured live performances by artists like Kanye West
Kanye West
Kanye Omari West is an American rapper, singer, and record producer. West first rose to fame as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records, where he eventually achieved recognition for his work on Jay-Z's album The Blueprint, as well as hit singles for musical artists including Alicia Keys, Ludacris, and...
and The Roots
The Roots
The Roots is an American hip hop/neo soul band formed in 1987 by Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are famed for beginning with a jazzy, eclectic approach to hip hop which still includes live instrumentals...
, who supported the competition’s winning younger bands, The Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt! and HEARTSREVOLUTION. Produced in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, The Diesel:U:Music radio station as hailed by The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
and The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
for its unique quality programming, and had shows hosted by everyone from Grandmaster Flash
Grandmaster Flash
Joseph Saddler better known as King Grandmaster Flash, is an American hip hop musician and DJ; one of the pioneers of hip-hop DJing, cutting, and mixing....
to Franz Ferdinand. In an interview with Dazed & Confused, Rosso explained the purpose of the project, stating that “It’s about giving people the tools and the seeing them succeed and excel in their creativity”. Through its 10 year history, the Diesel:U:Music winners included Diplo, Mylo
Mylo
Myles MacInnes , better known by the stage name Mylo, is a Scottish electronic musician and record producer.-Career:...
, DJ Yoda
DJ Yoda
Duncan Beiny , better known as DJ Yoda, is a hip hop turntablist who uses samples to create a cartoony musical style.-Biography:From 1995 to 1998, he studied English and American literature at the University of Warwick...
and The Cool Kids
The Cool Kids
The Cool Kids is an American hip hop group. Consisting of rappers Antoine "Sir Michael Rocks" Reed and Evan "Chuck Inglish" Ingersoll , the group is based in Chicago, Illinois and Detroit, Michigan...
.
In 2002 Rosso and Diesel became founding partners of ITS (International Talent Support), a competition for young designers and fashion photographers. While Rosso has often been a member of the jury, Diesel sponsors the competition financially. In 2005, the founder of i-D Magazine, Terry Jones
Terry Jones
Terence Graham Parry Jones is a Welsh comedian, screenwriter, actor, film director, children's author, popular historian, political commentator, and TV documentary host. He is best known as a member of the Monty Python comedy team....
, credited ITS for “dedicating so much passion and commitment to the selection of designers, like no other organization.”
In 2003 and 2004, Diesel began supporting local, young artists through the the Diesel New Art and Diesel Wall competitions. Diesel New Art was open to graduating artists working across various media, and would sponsor winning artists with solo exhibitions, shows at international art fairs, or promotion through internationally published catalogues. In Diesel Wall the company purchased large, unused facades in major cities and transformed them into popular exhibition spaces. Winning artworks were then selected by an independent jury, and displayed on the walls for a longer period of time throughout the year. During the years a few of the jury members have included curator Hans Ulrich Obrist
Hans Ulrich Obrist
Hans Ulrich Obrist is a contemporary art curator, critic and historian of art. He is currently Co-director of Exhibitions and Programmes and Director of International Projects at the Serpentine Gallery, London...
, film director Bigas Luna
Bigas Luna
Juan José Bigas Luna is a Spanish film director. He began his professional career in the design world, creating the Estudio Gris with Carlos Riart in 1969. In his earlier exhibitions, at the beginning of the sixties, he showed a great interest in conceptual art and the emerging visual technologies...
, art director and graphic designer Peter Saville, artist Patrick Tuttofuoco, art director Jérôme Sans and editors Helena Kontova
Helena Kontova
Helena Kontova is an art critic and curator born on November 16, 1955 in Prague, Czech Republic. She has lived in Milan, Italy since 1977 and has been the editor of Flash Art International since 1979...
and Stefano Boeri
Stefano Boeri
Stefano Boeri is an Italian architect and editor, born in 1956. Since September 2007, Boeri is editor-in-chief of the international magazine Abitare, from 2004 to 2007 he was editor-in-chief of Domus magazine...
.
Only the Brave
In the early 2000’s, Rosso began investing in other fashion designers and companies that he admired for their creativity, but which often lacked financial stability; he independently emerged as a major player in the world of fashion. In 2000, Rosso made his first acquisition when he purchased Staff International and in 2008 created the holding group, OTB (Only The Brave). In September 2011, the group consists of Diesel, Maison Martin Margiela, Viktor & RolfViktor & Rolf
Viktor & Rolf is an Amsterdam-based fashion house. The company was founded in 1993 by designers Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren .- History :...
, and Staff International, the latter being the manufacturer and distributor for a number of other fashion labels.
Staff International
In October 2000, Rosso purchased Staff International, an Italian fashion manufacturing and distributing company that licensed brands such as Vivienne WestwoodVivienne Westwood
Dame Vivienne Westwood, DBE, RDI is a British fashion designer and businesswoman, largely responsible for bringing modern punk and new wave fashions into the mainstream.-Early life:...
and Martin Margiela
Martin Margiela
Martin Margiela is a Belgian fashion designer. He studied at Antwerp's Royal Academy of Fine Arts along with the legendary avantgarde fashion collective the Antwerp Six. Many still consider him to be the "7th" member of the collective.- Life and work:After graduation in 1980 he worked as a...
. Thanks to its production skills, effective logistics, distribution expertise and creative talent, Staff International has gained a strong reputation in the prêt-a-porter sector, enabling it to work designers and brands such as Karl Lagerfeld
Karl Lagerfeld
Karl Lagerfeld is a German fashion designer, artist and photographer based in Paris. He has collaborated on a variety of fashion and art related projects, most notably as head designer and creative director for the fashion house Chanel...
, Emanuel Ungaro
Emanuel Ungaro
Emanuel Ungaro is a French fashion designer.-Early life:Ungaro's Italian father fled to France from Francavilla Fontana of Brindisi province because of the fascist uprising in Italy...
, Valentino
Valentino
Valentino Clemente Ludovico Garavani , best known as Valentino, is an Italian fashion designer and founder of the Valentino SpA brand and company. His main lines were Valentino, Valentino Garavani, Valentino Roma, and R.E.D...
, Costume National
CoSTUME NATIONAL
CoSTUME NATIONAL is an Italian fashion house founded in 1986 by Ennio Capasa, Creative Director, and his brother Carlo, CEO of the Maison, which has its head offices in Milan...
, Clements Ribeiro and Missoni
Missoni
Missoni is an Italian fashion house based in Varese. It is famous for its unique knitwear, made from a variety of fabrics in colourful patterns. The company was founded by Ottavio and Rosita Missoni in 1953.-Brands:...
, among others, whilst keeping the production for Viktor & Rolf
Viktor & Rolf
Viktor & Rolf is an Amsterdam-based fashion house. The company was founded in 1993 by designers Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren .- History :...
and Maison Martin Margiela. Following the purchase, Rosso brought onboard licenses for DSquared2 in 2001, Marc Jacobs Men in 2008, and Just Cavalli in 2011.
Maison Martin Margiela
In 2002 Rosso purchased the majority of the stakes in the Maison Martin Margiela fashion house. Like Rosso, Maison Martin Margiela always had a profound admiration for vintage and authenticity. In the 1990’s he became famous for his concept of deconstruction, where he made re-designs of old wigs, canvases and vintage silk scarves, which were transformed into hand-made couture garments. Other similarities between the two can be seen in Maison Martin Margiela’s alternative methods in marketing and communication, where the designer continuously refused to partake in face-to-face interviews or photos, and always enforced media relations to be conducted by fax or email. Since the early 2000s’ he has been widely acknowledged as one of the most influential and enigmatic designers on the global fashion stage. In December 2009, it was reported that Martin MargielaMartin Margiela
Martin Margiela is a Belgian fashion designer. He studied at Antwerp's Royal Academy of Fine Arts along with the legendary avantgarde fashion collective the Antwerp Six. Many still consider him to be the "7th" member of the collective.- Life and work:After graduation in 1980 he worked as a...
had quietly left the fashion house.
In an interview with Women’s Wear Daily in 2004, Rosso explained his admiration for Maison Martin Margiela: “It’s about being unique, and it appeals to people with strong personalities who don’t want to follow the crowd.” Following an investment phase by Rosso to improve production and sales, open more boutiques and add product lines, Maison Martin Margiela had by 2005 increased their sales to € 30 million, compared to € 15 million in 2002. In 2008 the company showed profitability for the first time since the acquisition, reaching sales above € 60 million. In an interview with Suzy Menkes
Suzy Menkes
Suzy Menkes, OBE has been head fashion reporter and Editor for the International Herald Tribune since 1988. In that time she has written over 1.7 million words in the paper....
in 2005, Rosso explained the success as the result of a new management structure within the company, which Rosso had initiated in order to give Martin Margiela more freedom and time for creativity. “He can just create, I take care of all the rest." Further on, Rosso explained that Martin Margiela himself was always fully independent, saying that "It is still 100 percent Margiela - he checks every single fabric and fitting, and I can propose but he can refuse."
During the first years following the acquisition there were various rumors of problems between the two. However, this was frequently denied from both sides.
In a unique letter dialogue between Malcolm McLaren
Malcolm McLaren
Malcolm Robert Andrew McLaren was an English performer, impresario, self-publicist and manager of the Sex Pistols and the New York Dolls...
and Martin Margiela, published by The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
in 2005, McLaren asked how it was working for the “tough, swaggering cowboy” Renzo Rosso. Margiela’s response was “We are very, very happy with the way our collaboration with Renzo is building. Renzo has brought us more stability, financial and spiritual -- we are growing together in the best way possible.”
Viktor & Rolf
In July 2008, Rosso purchased the majority of the stakes in Viktor & RolfViktor & Rolf
Viktor & Rolf is an Amsterdam-based fashion house. The company was founded in 1993 by designers Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren .- History :...
. Following the deal, Rolf Snoeren, of Viktor & Rolf said to the The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
"We have high ambitions. We talked for two years because it is such an important step. We wanted to make sure we marry the right partner. Renzo understands creativity and has the vision and power to make a success."
Rosso’s ability to do the unexpected is evident in the history of Viktor & Rolf as well, who have been described as the fashion industry’s most ‘unpredictable showmen’. While their collections are always highly anticipated for their level of entertainment and amusement, their shows tend to utilize astonishing techniques. For instance once they had models wearing clothing upside down and carrying their own bulky lighting structures. In their famous “One Woman Show” in 2003, they employed actress Tilda Swinton
Tilda Swinton
Katherine Mathilda "Tilda" Swinton is a British actress known for both arthouse and mainstream films. She has appeared in a number of films including The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Burn After Reading, The Beach, We Need to Talk About Kevin and was nominated for a Golden Globe for her...
, and models that resembled her, for the complete catwalk. For the spring/summer presentation in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, 2009, the duo controversially opted to broadcast their show solely on the Internet, instead of doing a live runway. In 2008, the same year that the brand was purchased by Rosso, a retrospective exhibition of their work was held at the Barbican Centre
Barbican Centre
The Barbican Centre is the largest performing arts centre in Europe. Located in the City of London, England, the Centre hosts classical and contemporary music concerts, theatre performances, film screenings and art exhibitions. It also houses a library, three restaurants, and a conservatory...
in London, Europe’s largest performing arts center. Too much acclaim of the press, the show included many pieces of the designers famous dolls.
Results
In retrospect, the acquisitions by Rosso have widely been considered financially and artistically successful on mutual levels. For Staff International the turnover grew from €25 million to €200 million following the first years of the acquisition. As DSquared2 emerged from underground status to a major brand in 2003, Rosso was credited to be one of its key factors to success and in 2009, British daily newspaper The TimesThe Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
credited Rosso for making it a globally recognized brand.
Additionally, many of the designers have acknowledged Rosso for how he has respected their creative freedom. In 2005, Martin Margiela himself said in a public statement how much he appreciated working with Rosso. In 2010, Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren of Viktor & Rolf said “Rosso is unique, a businessman who is also creative and would not interfere with our aesthetic and quality-control. He is the perfect fit”.
Style and vision
Called the ‘denim-god’ by British cult magazine Pop and the ‘King of high-end casual wear’ by the The New York TimesThe New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, Rosso has been credited for establishing the market for premium denim and creating the prêt-a-porter of casual wear.
Creative vision
In Rosso’s original idea for Diesel he envisioned creating denim-centric casual wear that had its own distinctive style, and which lead but didn’t follow common trends. In 2008, Rosso explained: “I was born in the 50’s, and I grew up with the ‘American myth’ in my head and in my eyes: James DeanJames Dean
James Byron Dean was an American film actor. He is a cultural icon, best embodied in the title of his most celebrated film, Rebel Without a Cause , in which he starred as troubled Los Angeles teenager Jim Stark...
, Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando, Jr. was an American movie star and political activist. "Unchallenged as the most important actor in modern American Cinema" according to the St...
, Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...
and, of course, jeans. I was completely fascinated by that world, as most kids were. So, when I created Diesel, it was natural for me to concentrate on the product that I felt was close to my mentality, denim.”
At the time, denim had only recently evolved from a working-class uniform and was still relatively cheap. After Rosso acquired full control of Diesel in 1985 he began focusing on hand-treated denim, which meant he would ‘age’ the denim himself by scrubbing it with stones and sandpaper.
In an interview with Suzy Menkes
Suzy Menkes
Suzy Menkes, OBE has been head fashion reporter and Editor for the International Herald Tribune since 1988. In that time she has written over 1.7 million words in the paper....
in 2003, Rosso explains the difficulty he had in the beginning with selling treated vintage-styled jeans. “When I started a vintage collection, nobody had heard about it. Today it is easy to talk about ‘vintage’; 25 years ago when we did stonewashed jeans, customers sent them back. What guy wanted $99 jeans when $50 was the normal U.S. price? Every style step was difficult.” Today Rosso is recognized for having transformed the jeans market, and Diesel is renowned for its technical innovation in product development, techniques for distressing the denim and capability in creating new fabrics. In 2004 Rosso explained this process: “When you are stonewashing jeans, you can add chemicals, which reduces the process to a half hour in the machine. Or, you can use just water and stones, which takes at least three and a half hours. We use the second solution.“
In 2001 Rosso’s ambition to elevate the status of denim took another step when Diesel launched the Diesel Denim Gallery in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
and Osaka
Osaka
is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
. After the Diesel Creative Team had independently handcrafted each pair, the denim was showcased as art pieces part of very limited edition collections, alongside art installations made by local or international artists. A few years later, Rosso explained this ambition, saying “My strongest aspiration has always been to make good and quality things. I’ve never worked for money in my life. My passion, my strength, my enthusiasm comes from the will of making something before- and better- than others”
Influences
Rosso’s deep passion for vintage items has been evident in every Diesel collection since he took charge of the company in 1985. In the first Diesel collections that came in the years that followed, Rosso would mix Americana and vintage clothes with everything from science fiction to the Wild West, using props that ranged from old detergent packages to objects found in junk shops. The style created an atmosphere that enhanced the collections, store décors and advertising campaigns. In a famous interview with Women’s Wear Daily, Rosso once said “I don’t believe in the concept of new. An older object has more charm than a new one, so do the stores, even when they are new they must not look so.” It was also this passion for vintage that became the common ground on which Rosso’s background from Diesel met with the aesthetics of Maison Martin Margiela, who has used authentic vintage garments in all of his collections since 1989.Besides ‘vintage’, Rosso has often said his biggest inspiration is his family, street fashion of the world, and popular culture, confessing that he regularly reads 150 magazines a month to stay up to date.
Autobiographies
During his life Rosso has published three books, titled ‘Forty’ (Diesel, 1996), ‘Fifty’ (Gestalten Verlag, 2005) and ‘Be Stupid: For Successful Living’ (RizzoliRizzoli
Rizzoli is an Italian surname. It may refer to:*Angelo Rizzoli , an Italian publisher*Achilles Rizzoli , an American artist*Nicola Rizzoli , an Italian football referee...
, 2011). Published in both Italian and English versions, ‘Be Stupid: For Successful Living’ is a manual of practical and theoretical business advice that draws on his experience as a creative entrepreneur, where he explains how the braveness to make brave decisions and the ability to see things for how they could be has helped him build a successful company. It follows the concept of Diesel’s award-winning ‘Be Stupid’ campaign from 2009, which is based on a philosophy Rosso has practiced much throughout his life and career.
Published for Rosso’s 40th respectively 50th birthdays, ‘Forty’ and ‘Fifty’ look at the key moments in Diesel's history, from its "jeans & workwear" beginnings followed by its years of groundbreaking advertising, to its current premium positioning. The latter publication includes contributions from the Dalai Lama
Dalai Lama
The Dalai Lama is a high lama in the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" branch of Tibetan Buddhism. The name is a combination of the Mongolian word далай meaning "Ocean" and the Tibetan word bla-ma meaning "teacher"...
, Vivienne Westwood
Vivienne Westwood
Dame Vivienne Westwood, DBE, RDI is a British fashion designer and businesswoman, largely responsible for bringing modern punk and new wave fashions into the mainstream.-Early life:...
, Paul Smith
Paul Smith
Paul Smith may refer to:In music:*Paul Smith , British record label manager and art event producer*Paul Smith , prominent composer of American film music*Paul Smith , Los Angeles jazz pianist...
, Alexander McQueen
Alexander McQueen
Lee Alexander McQueen, CBE was a British fashion designer and couturier best known for his in-depth knowledge of bespoke British tailoring, his tendency to juxtapose strength with fragility in his collections, as well as the emotional power and raw energy of his provocative fashion shows...
, Maison Martin Margiela, Bono
Bono
Paul David Hewson , most commonly known by his stage name Bono , is an Irish singer, musician, and humanitarian best known for being the main vocalist of the Dublin-based rock band U2. Bono was born and raised in Dublin, Ireland, and attended Mount Temple Comprehensive School where he met his...
, Vincent Gallo
Vincent Gallo
Vincent Gallo is an Italian-American film director and actor. Though he has had minor roles in mainstream films such as Goodfellas, he is most associated with independent movies, including Buffalo '66, which he wrote, directed, did the music for and starred in; The Brown Bunny, which he also...
, Naomi Campbell
Naomi Campbell
Naomi Campbell is a British model. Scouted at the age of 15, she established herself among the top three most recognisable and in-demand models of the late 1980s and early 1990s, and she was one of six models of her generation declared "supermodels" by the fashion world...
, Terry Jones
Terry Jones
Terence Graham Parry Jones is a Welsh comedian, screenwriter, actor, film director, children's author, popular historian, political commentator, and TV documentary host. He is best known as a member of the Monty Python comedy team....
, Kevin Roberts
Kevin Roberts
Kevin John Roberts has been the Chief Executive Officer Worldwide of the advertising agency Saatchi & Saatchi since 1997. In September 2006, Saatchi & Saatchi won a US$430 million JC Penney contract because of the idea of lovemarks, which was invented and promoted by Roberts.-Early life and career...
, Peter Saville, Dazed & Confused, Numéro
Numéro
Numéro is an international fashion magazine published by the Groupe Alain Ayache. It has a circulation of 80,000. The women's publication has reached its 100th issue...
and Vogue
Vogue (magazine)
Vogue is a fashion and lifestyle magazine that is published monthly in 18 national and one regional edition by Condé Nast.-History:In 1892 Arthur Turnure founded Vogue as a weekly publication in the United States. When he died in 1909, Condé Montrose Nast picked up the magazine and slowly began...
.
Management style
After taking charge of Diesel in 1985, Rosso strived to build a team of international, like-minded designers. Thereafter, and ever since Diesel established itself on the international market, Rosso has consistently credited the company’s success to his hard-working staff. When Diesel was awarded with a Grand Prix at the Cannes Lions International Advertising FestivalCannes Lions International Advertising Festival
The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity is a global event for those working in advertising and related fields. The seven-day festival, incorporating the awarding of the Lions awards, is held yearly at the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès in Cannes, France...
in 1992, Rosso wanted to play a prank on the organizers. When he was asked to come onstage, he surprised the 3,000 guests by bringing his Creative Team on stage; all dressed the same way and wearing identical wigs that mimicked his curly hair. Before accepting the award, he introduced everyone in his team one-by-one to the audience, and explained that the prize in fact belonged to his hard-working team, not just himself.
Rosso often refers to the company “as his other family” and would until the late 1990s hire every new employee himself, often by looking for creative people at unexpected locations and simply ask if they would come and work for him. Since 2000, Rosso has used Diesel’s partnership with ITS as a method for scouting talented young designers, by welcoming the winning designer to complete a paid six-month internship at the company’s design headquarters.
Throughout his career, Rosso has encouraged his employees to feel comfortable in expressing themselves, and to dare to make risky decisions. In the book Fifty, Rosso’s management style was explained by some of Diesel’s employees as “he listens to you and appreciates your advice, and even though he remains the boss, he’s not inflexible. The whole concept of the brand is freedom and self-expression, so he’s tried to see it that we can express ourselves through our work.”
During the 2000’s, Rosso became known for throwing major parties for the companies employees and fans, to thank them for their contribution to the company’s success. In September 2003, Rosso and Diesel organized a large party for its employees and people living in Rosso’s hometown, Bassano del Grappa
Bassano del Grappa
Bassano del Grappa is a city and comune in the province of Vicenza, region Veneto, in northern Italy. It bounds the communes of Cassola, Marostica, Solagna, Pove del Grappa, Romano d'Ezzelino, Campolongo sul Brenta, Conco, Rosà, Cartigliano and Nove...
, to celebrate the company’s 25th anniversary. During a 15-hour festival that featured performances by Moby
Moby
Richard Melville Hall , better known by his stage name Moby, is an American musician, DJ, and photographer. He is known mainly for his sample-based electronic music and his outspoken liberal political views, including his support of veganism and animal rights.Moby gained attention in the early...
, Jovanotti
Jovanotti
Lorenzo Cherubini, better known as Jovanotti, is an Italian singer-songwriter and rapper.The name Jovanotti derives from the plural form of the Italian word giovanotto , i.e. giovanotti. Lorenzo Cherubini originally auditioned a band with the name "I Giovanotti", but the record producer only was...
, Puppetmastaz and DJ Yoda
DJ Yoda
Duncan Beiny , better known as DJ Yoda, is a hip hop turntablist who uses samples to create a cartoony musical style.-Biography:From 1995 to 1998, he studied English and American literature at the University of Warwick...
, among others, 25,000 square meters of parkland had been transformed into a “Dieseland”. The event entertained more than 40,000 visitors, including celebrities like Naomi Campbell
Naomi Campbell
Naomi Campbell is a British model. Scouted at the age of 15, she established herself among the top three most recognisable and in-demand models of the late 1980s and early 1990s, and she was one of six models of her generation declared "supermodels" by the fashion world...
, who not only had flown in just for the occasion.
In October 2008, when Diesel was about to celebrate its 30th anniversary, Rosso had requested the company ”once and for all show the world how to throw a good party”. This resulted in a massive event that took place across 17 major cities around the world during 24 hours. It featured performances by artists like M.I.A
M.I.A. (artist)
Mathangi "Maya" Arulpragasam , better known by her stage name M.I.A. , is an English singer-songwriter, rapper, record producer, painter and director of Sri Lankan Tamil descent. Her compositions combine elements of hip hop, electronica, dance, alternative and world music. M.I.A...
., Chaka Khan
Chaka Khan
Chaka Khan , frequently known as the Queen of Funk, is a 10-time Grammy Award winning American singer-songwriter who gained fame in the 1970s as the frontwoman and focal point of the funk band Rufus. While still a member of the group in 1978, Khan embarked on a successful solo career...
, and N.E.R.D., and totaled more than 80,000 visitors onsite, and more than one million viewers online.
In 2010, Rosso threw a large party to celebrate the company’s new headquarters in Breganze
Breganze
Breganze is a town in the province of Vicenza, Veneto, Italy. It is northeast of Via Roma. During World War II, the Germans were on one side of the river and the Allies were on the other, and a firefight occurred across the river.-Breganze DOC:...
, for all of the headquarters employees. The party, which hosted more than a thousand guests, featured live performances by some of Rosso’s personal friends and favorite artists, including Wyclef Jean
Wyclef Jean
Wyclef Jean is a Haitian musician, record producer, and politician. At age nine, Jean moved to the United States with his family and has spent much of his life in the country...
, Pharrell Williams
Pharrell Williams
Pharrell Williams , commonly known simply as Pharrell, is an American rapper, singer, record producer, composer, and fashion designer. Williams and Chad Hugo make up the record production duo The Neptunes, producing hip hop and R&B music...
and Jovanotti
Jovanotti
Lorenzo Cherubini, better known as Jovanotti, is an Italian singer-songwriter and rapper.The name Jovanotti derives from the plural form of the Italian word giovanotto , i.e. giovanotti. Lorenzo Cherubini originally auditioned a band with the name "I Giovanotti", but the record producer only was...
.
Business strategy
Ever since Diesel established itself as a global fashion brand, many have seen Rosso’s brave vision and bold mind as one the key factors to Diesel’s breakthroughs and overall success.The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
to have “innovation his permanent state of mind”4764 and by Business Week to have achieved “one of the greatest marketing success stories in the fashion world”, Rosso was in 2004 credited to have the “high-voltage vision that lifted advertising out of its moody doldrums, swept international awards and kept fashion hounds thirsting.” Starting with Diesel's first ads in 1991, his irreverent approach has shocked the advertising establishment, won accolades, and inspired a generation of copycats. Diesel was the first to poke fun at the marketing of fashion, starting with campaigns that pictured exaggerated overweight people wearing Diesel jeans.
According to Rosso, this courage is also why he is frequently praised for foreseeing and setting trends, whether it is for design, advertising or business ventures, saying that “…being brave, being confident with oneself, wanting to innovate and challenge, and never being satisfied. It means being open to new things and listening to your intuition”. One such example is when the brand was experiencing great financial growth and success in the late 90’s, and Rosso decided to narrow the distribution points of sales from 10,000 to 5,000 in order to gain better control over the consumer’s general brand experience. In an interview with the founder of i-D magazine, Terry Jones
Terry Jones
Terence Graham Parry Jones is a Welsh comedian, screenwriter, actor, film director, children's author, popular historian, political commentator, and TV documentary host. He is best known as a member of the Monty Python comedy team....
, Rosso explained “I actually prevented Diesel from growing too big, because I wanted us to maintain our credibility… We don’t want to be the biggest- we want to be the coolest of the biggest.”
Another example of how Rosso has done things differently can be found in the concept of the Diesel stores, which have been independently styled to mirror local creativity and taste. “Years ago, taking the opposite approach to that of our competitors, we decided that we would make each of our stores different, to reflect the tastes of local consumers. We would seek advice from people who would be working in the stores and from local designers. That’s why the store in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
is so different from the store in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, and the store in Carnaby Street
Carnaby Street
Carnaby Street is a pedestrianised shopping street in London, United Kingdom, located in the Soho district, near Oxford Street and Regent Street. It is home to numerous fashion and lifestyle retailers, including a large number of independent fashion boutiques...
is different from the one in King’s Road. We don’t treat consumers like some formless mass who blindly follow the same dress code.” Rosso explained in 2005.
Investments
At the end of the 2000’s Rosso began to make investments through his private investment company, Red Circle S.R.L. This, together with the successful growth of his Only The Brave holding group, lead to media often comparing him to the French businessmen Bernard ArnaultBernard Arnault
Bernard Arnault is a French business magnate who is best known as the chairman and CEO of the French conglomerate LVMH. According to Forbes Magazine, Arnault is the world's 4th and Europe's richest person, with a 2011 net worth of US$41 billion.-Education and business career:Arnault was born...
and François Pinault
François Pinault
François Pinault is a French businessman who runs the retail company PPR. He is a friend of former French President Jacques Chirac....
, the chairmen of the LVHH and PPR
PPR (company)
PPR is a French multinational holding company specializing in retail shops and luxury brands. The company was founded in 1963 by the businessman François Pinault and is now run by his son François-Henri Pinault. It is quoted on Euronext Paris and is a constituent of the CAC 40 index...
conglomerates respectively, who own several of the world’s leading luxury brands. However, in an interview in April, 2011 with Italian daily newspaper Corriere della Sera
Corriere della Sera
The Corriere della Sera is an Italian daily newspaper, published in Milan.It is among the oldest and most reputable Italian newspapers. Its main rivals are Rome's La Repubblica and Turin's La Stampa.- History :...
, Rosso stated that he never intended to follow their route, but that he instead wanted to build a conglomerate that is “more democratic” and almost an alternative. "I have great respect for luxury, a sector that is doing very well, but it is too conservative. My dream, however, is to be a meeting point for the brands of new generations, who will be future leaders."
Rosso’s first investment through Red Circle S.R.L. was made in March 2009, when he purchased 4,9% of the stocks in Yoox
Yoox
YOOX Group S.p.A is an Italian internet mail order retailer of men's and women's multibrand clothing and accessories. Founded by Federico Marchetti, a former investment banker, in Zola Predosa near Bologna in 2000, Yoox Group has become a profitable e-commerce company that serves "more than 100...
, an online mail-order retailer of multi-brand clothing. In the spring of 2011 he increased his shares to 6% and later stated that he was looking to purchase more shares, if anyone else was willing to sell.
In April 2011, Rosso purchased a 20% stake of the start-up incubator H-Farm. The investment was one of the first major investments where a businessman from the fashion industry chose to invest in the high-tech market. Founded in 2005 and based outside Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
, H-Farm makes seed investments in new startups. With offices in Seattle, Mumbai
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
and London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, it invested $13.62 million in 26 startups during its first five years. Following the deal, Rosso said ”I’m a great fan of H-Farm which I always associate to the Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley
Silicon Valley is a term which refers to the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California in the United States. The region is home to many of the world's largest technology corporations...
: 250 young people connected with thousands of creative people all over the world. It’s like a hothouse of ideas and innovation that constantly stimulates my vision of the world and of the way to do business. The digital world fascinates and excites me, my personal investment choices are clearly showing it.”
Only the Brave Foundation
In 2008, Rosso launched the Only The Brave Foundation, a not-for-profit organization and foundation. Originally focused on redressing the balance of disadvantaged young people in North East Italy, the foundation's main purpose naturally shifted to focus on Africa, the most disadvantaged and youngest continent in the world, given its high demographic preponderance of young people. Though Rosso is not a Buddhist, he stated in 2008 that he had been inspired to start the foundation after having met His Holiness the Dalai Lama in 2005, who suggested Rosso use his global business possibilities to create a foundation to help the needy.In 2009, Rosso, together with Millennium Promise
Millennium Promise
Millennium Promise, or The Millennium Promise Alliance, Inc., is a non-profit organization incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware, dedicated to ending extreme poverty within our lifetime...
, the The Earth Institute
The Earth Institute
The Earth Institute was established at Columbia University in 1995. The research institute's stated mission is to address complex issues facing the planet and its inhabitants, with particular focus on sustainable development and the needs of the world's poor...
at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, and UNDP, launched the Only The Brave Millennium Village, in Dioro, Mali
Mali
Mali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Western Africa. Mali borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its size is just over 1,240,000 km² with...
. Following the model of the Millennium Villages, which helps communities lift themselves out of extreme poverty, the first steps in Mali included distributing seeds and fertilizers to boost agriculture, providing bed nets to decrease malaria, and the constructing a new health clinics. Additionally, a new primary school, equipped and run with solar panels, was built with expanded classrooms, latrines for boys and girls and a new school kitchen. In the spring of 2010 Rosso visited the village to personally oversee the development. At a press conference in September, the CEO of Millennium Promise, John McArthur, said "Renzo and the Only the Brave Foundation bring an extraordinary spirit of creativity and entrepreneurship to this collaboration, all driven by passion to end extreme poverty."
Later that year, Rosso was named a Millennium Promise
Millennium Promise
Millennium Promise, or The Millennium Promise Alliance, Inc., is a non-profit organization incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware, dedicated to ending extreme poverty within our lifetime...
Millennium Development Goals
Millennium Development Goals
The Millennium Development Goals are eight international development goals that all 193 United Nations member states and at least 23 international organizations have agreed to achieve by the year 2015...
Global Leader at the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
in conjunction with the Millennium Development Goals
Millennium Development Goals
The Millennium Development Goals are eight international development goals that all 193 United Nations member states and at least 23 international organizations have agreed to achieve by the year 2015...
Summit, alongside Senegalese musician and UNICEF ambassador Youssou Ndour, Microsoft-founder Bill Gates
Bill Gates
William Henry "Bill" Gates III is an American business magnate, investor, philanthropist, and author. Gates is the former CEO and current chairman of Microsoft, the software company he founded with Paul Allen...
, musician and activist Bob Geldoff, Queen Rania of Jordan, Nobel Prize
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
winner Muhammad Yunus
Muhammad Yunus
Muhammad Yunus is a Bangladeshi economist and founder of the Grameen Bank, an institution that provides microcredit to help its clients establish creditworthiness and financial self-sufficiency. In 2006 Yunus and Grameen received the Nobel Peace Prize...
, and Philanthropist
Philanthropist
A philanthropist is someone who engages in philanthropy; that is, someone who donates his or her time, money, and/or reputation to charitable causes...
Ted Turner
Ted Turner
Robert Edward "Ted" Turner III is an American media mogul and philanthropist. As a businessman, he is known as founder of the cable news network CNN, the first dedicated 24-hour cable news channel. In addition, he founded WTBS, which pioneered the superstation concept in cable television...
, among others. Established in 2005, Millennium Promise is the leading international non-profit organization solely committed to supporting the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals to halve extreme poverty by 2015.
Since 2011 the Only The Brave Foundation supports and develops projects like The Village (Mali
Mali
Mali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Western Africa. Mali borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its size is just over 1,240,000 km² with...
); Water.org
Water.org
Water.org is an American nonprofit developmental aid organization resulting from the merger between H2O Africa, co-founded by Matt Damon, and WaterPartners, co-founded by Gary White...
(Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
, Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
, Uganda
Uganda
Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...
); Doctors With Africa Cuamm (Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
); Associazione Uomo Mondo Onlus (Burundi
Burundi
Burundi , officially the Republic of Burundi , is a landlocked country in the Great Lakes region of Eastern Africa bordered by Rwanda to the north, Tanzania to the east and south, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west. Its capital is Bujumbura...
, Senegal
Senegal
Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
); Ethiopian Education Foundation (Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
); and Lo Spirito di Stella (Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
).
Donations
In January 2010, Rosso donated $250,000 to the people affected by the earthquake in HaitiHaiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
. The funds were provided to Yéle Haiti
Yéle Haiti
Yéle Haiti is a charitable organization found by Wyclef Jean, Jerry Duplessis and Hugh Locke in January 2005, in the wake of Hurricane Jeanne which devastated the island...
, a foundation established by Rosso’s long-term acquaintance, Wyclef Jean
Wyclef Jean
Wyclef Jean is a Haitian musician, record producer, and politician. At age nine, Jean moved to the United States with his family and has spent much of his life in the country...
.
In June 2008, Rosso donated 2,000,000 HKD ($250,000) to the Special Relief Fund for Children Affected by the 2008 Sichuan earthquake
2008 Sichuan earthquake
The 2008 Sichuan earthquake or the Great Sichuan Earthquake was a deadly earthquake that measured at 8.0 Msand 7.9 Mw occurred at 14:28:01 CST...
, established by UNICEF to help children affected by the tremor in southwest China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
on May 12.
Throughout the 2000’s, Rosso has been a supporter of AmfAR
AmfAR
amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research, is an international nonprofit organization dedicated to the support of AIDS research, HIV prevention, treatment education, and the advocacy of sound AIDS-related public policy.-History:...
, The Foundation for AIDS Research. ,
Additional projects
Since 2010 Rosso has personally also invested in projects focused on his home region of VenetoVeneto
Veneto is one of the 20 regions of Italy. Its population is about 5 million, ranking 5th in Italy.Veneto had been for more than a millennium an independent state, the Republic of Venice, until it was eventually annexed by Italy in 1866 after brief Austrian and French rule...
, North East Italy. This includes bringing free public Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi or Wifi, is a mechanism for wirelessly connecting electronic devices. A device enabled with Wi-Fi, such as a personal computer, video game console, smartphone, or digital audio player, can connect to the Internet via a wireless network access point. An access point has a range of about 20...
and initiating restoration projects in his hometown of Bassano del Grappa
Bassano del Grappa
Bassano del Grappa is a city and comune in the province of Vicenza, region Veneto, in northern Italy. It bounds the communes of Cassola, Marostica, Solagna, Pove del Grappa, Romano d'Ezzelino, Campolongo sul Brenta, Conco, Rosà, Cartigliano and Nove...
.
Awards and honors
Since the early 1990’S Rosso has won multiple awards across fashion, advertising and business.In October 2011, Rosso was knighted Cavaliere del Lavoro by the President of Italy, Giorgio Napolitano
Giorgio Napolitano
Giorgio Napolitano is an Italian politician who has been the 11th President of Italy since 2006. A long-time member of the Italian Communist Party and later the Democrats of the Left, he served as President of the Chamber of Deputies from 1992 to 1994 and as Minister of the Interior from 1996 to...
. The award ceremony took place at the Quadriennale in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
and was broadcast live on RAI
RAI
RAI — Radiotelevisione italiana S.p.A. known until 1954 as Radio Audizioni Italiane, is the Italian state owned public service broadcaster controlled by the Ministry of Economic Development. Rai is the biggest television company in Italy...
in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
.
Rosso has received the Advertiser of the Year in 1998 and Grand Prix awards in 2010, 2009, 2007, 2001 1997, and 1992, at Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival
Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival
The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity is a global event for those working in advertising and related fields. The seven-day festival, incorporating the awarding of the Lions awards, is held yearly at the Palais des Festivals et des Congrès in Cannes, France...
.
In 2008, Rosso was named a Millennium Promise
Millennium Promise
Millennium Promise, or The Millennium Promise Alliance, Inc., is a non-profit organization incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware, dedicated to ending extreme poverty within our lifetime...
Millennium Development Goals
Millennium Development Goals
The Millennium Development Goals are eight international development goals that all 193 United Nations member states and at least 23 international organizations have agreed to achieve by the year 2015...
Global Leader in conjunction with the Millennium Development Goals
Millennium Development Goals
The Millennium Development Goals are eight international development goals that all 193 United Nations member states and at least 23 international organizations have agreed to achieve by the year 2015...
Summit, at the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
.
In 2006 Hollywood Life magazine prized Rosso with the “Fashion Visionary” award in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, and cited Diesel “as one of the most innovative and successful brands in fashion.”
In 2005, Rosso was named "Man of the Year" by the German edition of GQ; received the Pitti Imagine Award, in Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
; the Creative Vision of Business Award by the Mayor of Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, Walter Veltroni
Walter Veltroni
Walter Veltroni, Knight Grand Cross, is an Italian writer, journalist and politician, who served as the first leader of the Democratic Party within the centre-left opposition, until his resignation on 17 February 2009. He served as Mayor of Rome from 2001 to 2008.-Biography:Walter Veltroni was...
; and the Textilwirtschaft Forum Preis in Heidelberg
Heidelberg
-Early history:Between 600,000 and 200,000 years ago, "Heidelberg Man" died at nearby Mauer. His jaw bone was discovered in 1907; with scientific dating, his remains were determined to be the earliest evidence of human life in Europe. In the 5th century BC, a Celtic fortress of refuge and place of...
, for his “outstanding personal and business achievements in the fashion and textile industry.”
In 2004 Rosso received the International Leading Entrepreneur Award in Monte Carlo
Monte Carlo
Monte Carlo is an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco....
. Presented at the Monaco Investors Week it honors the efforts of a businessman who represents vision, professional ethics and the courage to undertake a particular venture.
In 2003 Rosso received Movieline
Movieline
Movieline is a website, formerly a Los Angeles-based film and entertainment magazine, started in 1985 as a local magazine and went national in 1989. Known for its cult status and popularity among film critics, the magazine eventually was retooled and named Movieline's Hollywood Life. The magazine...
’s Hollywood Life’s Annual Breakthrough of the Year Award in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, acknowledging how Diesel had managed to break through into the American market. 48108
In 1997, the English music and trend magazine Select cited Renzo as one of “The 100 most important people in the world who will contribute to the shape of the new millennium.” That same year Ernst & Young
Ernst & Young
Ernst & Young is one of the largest professional services networks in the world and one of the "Big Four" accountancy firms, along with Deloitte, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers ....
nominated Rosso as “Entrepreneur of the Year” for Diesel’s strong development in the U.S.
In 1996, Rosso and Diesel received the "Premio Risultati" award for “Best Italian Company of the Year” from Bocconi University
Bocconi University
Bocconi University is a private university located in central Milan, beside Parco Ravizza. Bocconi provides undergraduate, graduate and post-graduate education, in addition to a range of double degree programs, in the fields of economics, management, finance and law. According to many university...
in Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
.
Rosso has received honorary degrees from University of Verona
University of Verona
The University of Verona is a university located in Verona, Italy. It was founded in 1982 and is organized in 8+2 Faculties.-History:In Verona, at the beginning of the 1950s, a group of Catholic intellectuals established the "Ludovico Antonio Muratori" Free High School of Historical Science...
, Italy, in 2005; and from the CUOA Foundation
CUOA Foundation
CUOA Foundation is one of the first Business School born in Italy in the 50’s, in an important period for managerial training in Italy....
of Altavilla Vicentina
Altavilla Vicentina
Altavilla Vicentina is a town and comune in the province of Vicenza, Veneto, northern Italy. It is located southwest of Vicenza.The town originates from a castle built in the Middle Ages over a hill at the feet of the Colli Berici, and now in ruins.In the communal territory is the Villa Morosini,...
, Italy, in 2000, who cited Diesel as "one of the entrepreneurial phenomena of the 1990’s.”
Personal life
Since the mid 1970’s Rosso resides in Bassano del GrappaBassano del Grappa
Bassano del Grappa is a city and comune in the province of Vicenza, region Veneto, in northern Italy. It bounds the communes of Cassola, Marostica, Solagna, Pove del Grappa, Romano d'Ezzelino, Campolongo sul Brenta, Conco, Rosà, Cartigliano and Nove...
, Veneto. In an interview with CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
in 2004, Rosso said he usually spends his free time practicing yoga, playing soccer, jogging, and snowboarding.
Besides work, Rosso has explained his biggest passion and inspiration in life is his family. He is the father of six children and his two eldest sons are currently active in the OTB Group.
In 2001 Rosso officially began manufacturing and selling wine and olive oil under his own name. The products, titled Rosso di Rosso (Merlot
Merlot
Merlot is a darkly blue-coloured wine grape, that is used as both a blending grape and for varietal wines. The name Merlot is thought to derive from the Old French word for young blackbird, merlot, a diminutive of merle, the blackbird , probably from the color of the grape. Merlot-based wines...
& Cabernet), Nero di Rosso (Pinot Noir
Pinot Noir
Pinot noir is a black wine grape variety of the species Vitis vinifera. The name may also refer to wines created predominantly from Pinot noir grapes...
), Bianco di Rosso (Chardonnay
Chardonnay
Chardonnay is a green-skinned grape variety used to make white wine. It is originated from the Burgundy wine region of eastern France but is now grown wherever wine is produced, from England to New Zealand...
), Grappa di Rosso (grappa
Grappa
Grappa is an alcoholic beverage, a fragrant, grape-based pomace brandy of Italian origin that contains 35%–60% alcohol by volume...
), and Olio di Rosso (extra virgin olive oil) are produced at the 105-hectare Diesel Farm in Marostica
Marostica
Marostica , is a town and comune in the province of Vicenza, Veneto, northern Italy. It is mostly famous for its living chess event and for the local cherry variety.-History:...
, Veneto
Veneto
Veneto is one of the 20 regions of Italy. Its population is about 5 million, ranking 5th in Italy.Veneto had been for more than a millennium an independent state, the Republic of Venice, until it was eventually annexed by Italy in 1866 after brief Austrian and French rule...
, a few kilometers from his home.
Rosso is an avid art collector and enthusiast, and frequently travels to exhibitions and art fairs all around the world. Besides owning works of Andy Warhol
Andy Warhol
Andrew Warhola , known as Andy Warhol, was an American painter, printmaker, and filmmaker who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art...
and contemporary Italian artist Francesco Vezzoli, Rosso has continuously pushed Diesel to support younger, talented artists, by initiating and sponsoring a wide range of projects across the arts, including Diesel New Art and Diesel Wall.
In 1996, Rosso was asked to take charge of Bassano Virtus 55 S.T.
Bassano Virtus 55 S.T.
Bassano Virtus 55 Soccer Team is an Italian association football club, based in Bassano del Grappa, Veneto.The club currently plays in Lega Pro Prima Divisione...
, the soccer team of his hometown Bassano del Grappa
Bassano del Grappa
Bassano del Grappa is a city and comune in the province of Vicenza, region Veneto, in northern Italy. It bounds the communes of Cassola, Marostica, Solagna, Pove del Grappa, Romano d'Ezzelino, Campolongo sul Brenta, Conco, Rosà, Cartigliano and Nove...
. As a thanks for all the local support that he has received when building the Diesel company, he began to support the team financially and also agreed to help manage the club. Since then, the team has successfully advanced from Italy’s lower divisions to the country’s third highest division, the Lega Pro Prima Divisione.