For Prada and Gucci, a Similar View of Fall Fashion

Luca Bruno/AP Prada, fall 2014.

What do Prada and Gucci have in common? Milan, fleets of P.R. people. Both brands are also designed by women — Miuccia Prada and, at Gucci, Frida Giannini — but this scarcely accounts for their remarkable agreement this season at the men’s fall shows.

Luca Bruno/AP Gucci, fall 2014.

Both designers offered a scaled-down silhouette that emphasized realism, both used fresh colors like baby blue and plum and mixed them with fleshy beige and both used a minimum of brand identifiers, like prints. Even accessories were restrained. Ms. Giannini sent out thick-soled brogues, and limited Gucci flash to dark bamboo handles on bags squashed against the body.
For Gucci, more than Prada, the change marked a new direction. Although Ms. Giannini’s clothing was precisely drawn, with high-quality materials like nappa leather and wool, the thrust was casual, with blazers shown with slim-fitting, 1960s-style pants. Alternatives were tailored leather shirts in dusty pastels or sage, often with a fine turtleneck underneath. On the whole, the shapes were boxy, both in jackets and outerwear, which consisted of Gucci classics like pea coats and unembellished motorcycle jackets. Simple pullovers looked fresher than Ms. Giannini’s version of sweatshirts (essentially a knit stiffened with bonding). The collection certainly looked polished, but there was a move, perhaps, to address a casual lifestyle, as well as cuts that might entice young customers.