Dolce and Gabbana were built on the idea of a bold woman, a woman who knows who she is. These values reflect in each of the Dolce and Gabbana collections. It is a value consistent in every outfit right from their very first line. Dolce and Gabbana is a top fashion line that has crafted an empire that women worldwide covet. Many things go into making Dolce and Gabbana what it is today. In this article, we’ll study Dolce and Gabbana’s Brand Identity and what makes them one of the boldest brands ever. You’ll also discover how they built a brand that changed the fashion world. However, to fully understand Dolce and Gabbana’s brand identity, it is vital to understand what a brand identity is and its importance to any business.
Brand Identity – What It Is
Brand identity is the image a brand portrays to its customers. It is all the activities a company carries out so the audience can perceive them in a certain way, the accumulation of their association, voice, tagline, name, and personality. Many people confuse it with brand image. While both are intertwined, they are not the same. Brand identity is how the brand wants the customers to view it. However, brand image is how the customer views the brand. Brand image is usually dependent on the customer’s interaction with the brand. Although it comes from brand identity, the brand has little control over how the customer perceives it.
Brand Identity – Its Importance
Brand identity is what makes a brand memorable and identifiable. Therefore, we cannot overemphasize its importance in every brand. Below are some of the importance of brand identity.
Assists in Developing a Suitable Brand Image
Brand identity is how the brand expresses itself to the audience. In a way, your brand identity is essential for your business because it helps shape the brand image. The brand identity allows customers to form an idea of the brand. Markets help to shape this image to be similar to the identity.
Differentiates Your Brand
A brand identity is vital with many competitors in every industry because it differentiates the product from the competition. Brand identity is also a brand’s unique stance. It makes you stand out from others in the market. It also helps your brand develop a loyal customer base and can assist in developing a positioning strategy.
Builds Consistency
Consistency is a vital aspect of branding, and brand identity is what ensures consistency. Developing a consistent expression is essential to shaping how a brand wants to be perceived. It is what creates the brand’s personality, which is part of the visual representation tool.
The Story of Dolce & Gabbana
Dolce & Gabbana are known to be two of the most innovative minds in the fashion industry. To understand Dolce and Gabbana’s brand identity, there’s a need to understand their story. Therefore, their story will help you understand how they grew to be the global fashion brand they are today.
Their Birth
Domenico Dolce was born in Sicily in 1958, while Stefano Gabbana was born in 19962. Before making an entry into the fashion industry, Gabbana studied graphics. However, Dolce’s family owned a small clothing business. Therefore, unlike Gabbana, he gained exposure to fashion from an early age. However, both met at a fashion house where they were designers in the 70s. The connection didn’t begin immediately. But after a year, Dolce resigned from the fashion house, and the two reconnected when Gabbana needed a place to say. This way, the two became roommates, and that’s how the connection began. Living together, they began to note how excellently their designs meshed. Afterward, they explored their collaborative potentials and started creating designs together. It is from this moment they began to build the Dolce and Gabbana brand identity.
This brand started as a simple brand because it didn’t have substantial financial backing. They won a spot in Milan Fashion Week in 1985, and they called their debut collection real women. However, the designers didn’t have the funds to hire models and used their close friends to model for the show. A bedsheet served as their curtain, and friends brought their accessories. People called Dolce and Gabbana the boys because of their young age. However, it was this show that launched them into the limelight.
The real turning point for them was when they started a friendship with Madonna. This pop star ordered a corset made by Dolce and Gabbana and a jacket to wear to her film launch ‘Truth or Dare.’ Madonna also picked them herself to design the collection for her Girlie Show in 1993. It is from this moment that you can see the Sicilian influence in their every collection.
Dolce and Gabbana Business Growth
Apart from clothing, the company also launched a fragrance line include the Dolce and Gabbana Perfume, Dolce and Gabbana Men, and many more. They also introduced a line of eyewear and also D&G labels where they produced music CDs. For their 10th anniversary in 1996, they published a book titled Ten Years of Dolce and Gabbana. A few years later, in 1999, D&G Junior was created, including a collection for children. This collection debuted at the Children’s fashion show in Florence. In 2003, they launched a new store in Milan, and the store featured lamps made according to Dolce Domenico’s designs.
The Sicilian Influence
Dolce and Gabbana’s brand identity is influenced by a group of strong, stylistic, confident, and blessed women – the Sicilian women. Dolce was born in Sicily and therefore had a sizeable Sicilian influence. However, at the time, he wasn’t fond of the Sicilian woman style. Gabbana helped Dolce see how powerful the Sicilian style was, and that became their design inspiration. You can see this confident influence expressed in every Dolce and Gabbana design. Dolce and Gabbana muses included Madonna, Monica Vitti, Sophia Loren, and even Gina Lollobrigida. Every Dolce and Gabbana model had features and personalities like these muses. There was a contrast of sensual undergarment with pinstripes, and people always paired it with high heels.
Dolce and Gabbana Brand Identity
Dolce and Gabbana’s brand identity is quite strong within the fashion industry. It is represented in the logo D&G. The logo’s colors are white, gold, and black. The white represents purity and perfection, while the gold represents achievements and successes. However, black is the color of the hidden. Dolce and Gabbana’s brand identity reflects in their every design and action. They’re glamourous, sophisticated, and luxurious. Their two main product lines are womenswear and menswear. Through their product lines, the brand communicated their customers’ strong messages on presenting their products.
Although the brand expresses itself as the new luxury and unconventional, they never forget their Sicilian roots. Their innovative designs always include a cultural connection with their Mediterranean spirit. Their brand identity gives you an impression of passion. A Dolce and Gabbana woman is always elegant and dynamic. As one of them, you will always have the power of independence and beauty. On the other hand, a Dolce and Gabbana man always expresses that he cares about the details. The Dolce and Gabbana brand image is that of someone successful from inside and out.
Dolce and Gabbana Target Customer
Dolce and Gabbana’s brand identity is a brand that caters to high-end luxury customers. Therefore, its target customer needs to be sharing its value. Its target customer is people with distinctive personalities. They need to be trendsetters, innovators, and those who are addicted to fashion. The age range of Dolce and Gabbana’s target customers ranges from infant to 50 years old. The designs feature vivid colors and several other distinct features that many target customers would find easy to accept. Dolce and Gabbana’s designs come with beautiful features that have attracted royalty customers. Their customers include aristocrats, socialites, celebrities, and ordinary customers.
When it comes to lifestyle, the target customers live in luxurious hotels when traveling. They’re mostly those who have their private jets. The target customers are those who buy luxury goods from high-end customers. They are people who like fashion and would love to attend a variety of fashion shows. They enjoy luxury life and tend to live a luxury lifestyle. They’re people who pay attention to details and are pretty successful.
Dolce and Gabbana Iconic Designs
Dolce and Gabbana are famous for their elaborate animal prints, Italian staples, black lace, pinstripes, and many more. Since the designers established Dolce and Gabbana’s brand identity early in their careers, they have several iconic designs. These designs shaped the global fashion industry and continue to shape Italian fashion as well. Below are some of the top Dolce and Gabbana iconic designs you should note.
The Pantsuit
Dolce and Gabbana are famous for the influence of the strong, bold Sicilian women in their designs. Their designs include taking the traditional masculine suit and making it into the female symbol of confidence and power. At the start of their career, the designers designed a pantsuit made of leather, sequins, pinstripes, and many more.
However, Dolce and Gabbana prices are pretty steep. Therefore, a lot of the regular people cannot afford Dolce and Gabbana’s collection. Therefore, most of them resort to luxury consignment stores where various secondhand Dolce and Gabbana designs are sold.
Conclusion
Dolce and Gabbana’s brand identity was one of elegance, and it has evolved over the years. Dolce and Gabbana created an excellent reputation with known celebrities and integral part of most luxurious lifestyles. The brand encourages a positive emotion in its target audience by creating a luxury brand image that evokes a desire to buy into the brand. The Sicilian women greatly influenced Dolce and Gabbana, and despite their evolution, they haven’t forgotten their roots. Many factors influence Dolce and Gabbana’s brand, and it all begins from their story. This article examines the Dolce and Gabbana brand identity as a case study of a successful brand. It examines their story and how it was a strong influence over their brand.
