Gucci Has the Formula for Dressing Like the Best-Dressed Women in Milan

From references to its equestrian beginnings to Tom Ford's years at the brand, Gucci’s Spring 2027 collection had plenty to say about the house under Demna. But perhaps its most compelling takeaway was much simpler: how to dress like a Milanese woman.

Shown during Milan Fashion Week, the “Store Show” felt less like a runway and more like an afternoon of shopping with Gucci's most fabulous VICs. For his third show as artistic director, Demna presented his “complete personal vision.” With that in mind, rather than reduce the womenswear collection to a single theme, he populated it with a series of characters, a continuation of La Famiglia, his first project for Gucci featuring archetypes like La Bomba, La Diva, and L'Influencer.

This time, there was the horse girl, the party girl, the donna. In the notes, Demna said that “Gucci’s history is carried by personalities, identities, and lifestyles, not purely by design codes.” There were, as he put it, examples of both “good taste and bad taste,” a fitting philosophy for a collection built around women with strong ideas about how they want to look, and seemingly unlimited funds to do so.

The models who looked as though they could have walked straight off Via Monte Napoleone served some of the collection’s best styling lessons, embodying superlatives that make Italian style distinctly its own: pulled-together, glamorous, and a bit flashy. The looks featured statement coats worn over cigarette pants, pencil skirts topped with ladylike jackets, and animal prints. Accessories were equally Italian glamour-forward: croc-embossed handbags, tall black riding boots, and plenty of horsebit motifs and "GG" monogram patterns.

In Milan, the best-dressed women have long understood that restraint doesn’t have to mean minimalism. This was on full display on the runway, where beautiful pieces of outerwear, whether a trench coat or a shaggy coat, were further complemented by an enormous pair of sunglasses, a pop of leopard, or a chunky chain or earring. Unlike in Paris, where the prevailing ideal often favors Coco Chanel's rule of taking one thing off, Milanese style is about knowing exactly how much you can add without veering into costume.

Demna pushed those instincts even further as the show progressed. The finale veered into full-throttle Dolce Vita glamour, with lace, furry textures, and body-conscious, dramatically cut eveningwear worn by models like Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Anok Yai, and Alex Consani. Throughout it all, the collection retained the underlying idea of what distinguishes Italian style: unapologetic glamour and a finishing touch that might feel like too much anywhere else in the world.

In the notes, Demna said he wants Gucci to be “a place where those who may appear to have nothing in common can meet. Because Gucci is… a place where anyone can become whoever they choose to be.” We are taking this as a cue to dress like an Italian donna this spring.