Coco Brandolini

REVOLUTIONALIZING FASHION IN MILAN. Coco Brandolini was nobly born in France. An Italian fashion executive, artist and designer, in 2022 she launched her own brand called d’AddA and established it in a charming apartment on Via Montenapoleone in Milano. She describes her enterprise as a joyous ode to her heritage transformed into limited edition pieces made from upcycled materials.

22 minutes read time.

You can listen to the podcast of this interview here.

Coco Brandolini, why did you turn to fashion after you studied philosophy and political science in Paris?  

I always loved clothing, and grew up in beautiful clothing thanks to my mom and my grandmother. This had a lot of influence on me, but I wasn’t sure when I was really young that I wanted to work in fashion. I had to do an internship for my university studies, and for some reason I ended up at Oscar de la Renta in New York. I thought it was going to be for three months and then I would go back to my studies and get my diploma, but in the end he hired me and I stayed there seven years! It was pretty unexpected. I was lucky to meet him and then we got along so well. Everything was very smooth and I learned so much with him. I got introduced to work in fashion through this internship that ended up being my first big job, because seven years is a long time.

But then you went back to school again?

Yes, I wanted to come back to Europe after another two years in New York doing styling for magazines. I knew at that point that fashion was going to be my work life and I wanted go back to school to learn more technicalities so I went to St. Martin’s to do a course. Then I worked with other brands, until eventually doing my own.

d’AddA’s charming appartement in Via Montenapoleone, Milano 

Coco Brandolini, you were raised between Paris and Venice, lived and worked in New York, studied also in London and then worked in Milano and still do. What is the difference between these cities for someone starting in the fashion world?

New York is a very good first experience because everything is very fast and you have to learn quick, a very good city to have a first job in because then you’re pretty much ready for everything. But I must say that Milano is the most extraordinary city I’ve ever worked in, precisely because it embodies the essence of “Made in Italy”. Here, everything is within reach: the silk mills of Como, centuries-old workshops, master artisans whose hands carry generations of knowledge. They are the guardians of techniques that give life to the most exquisite fabrics, the most beautifully constructed bags, objects that would simply not exist without their dedication. The level of craftsmanship is unparalleled, and it’s this deep reservoir of skill and artistry that makes Milano not only the most interesting but also the most efficient and inspiring place for me to work. Everything is here —heritage, innovation, and above all, the people who keep the tradition of excellence alive.

Why did you jump from being an employee of Dolce & Gabbana to starting your own business?  

I always had in mind to do something of my own because I had a very specific idea of what I like and my style. I had, and still do, a very close relationship with Dolce & Gabbana, and to go to another brand would have been too painful for me because I love them so much. I was really happy to go to my boss that I admired so much and from whom I learned so much and to say, “Listen, I’m going, but I’m going to do my own thing.” Working for them made me very proud and gave me the courage to do my own brand, because I knew that they were going to help me. 

Why did you want to do your own thing?

Because of working for many years in big established brands I knew I didn’t want a big brand. I don’t have the ambition to build an empire and to open stores everywhere, my concept was to have something small and exclusive. I like the idea that it’s not a store. It’s on Montenapoleone, which sounds very luxurious, but you actually have to go up three flights of stairs and then it’s like a little apartment that you go in. Clients make an appointment and only talk with me, so it’s very personal and very authentic. Everything that I do is only what I would wear, and I wear all my clothing all the time. 

D’AddA is ready to wear, not haute couture? 

It’s luxurious ready to wear in the sense that many brands don’t use these very high quality, crafted and beautiful fabrics for ready to wear because it’s too expensive.  I like exclusivity. It works really well, because now there are so many different clothing brands and so many creative directors that changed identity – and it is better to  have a strong identity. Dominico Dolce gave me amazing advice when I left, saying “You have a beautiful story of a very specific style that you like or you don’t like – but it’s very specific.” 

What is the very specific d’AddA style?  

Quite daring in the colours, and the mixing makes it very unique. My clients like to mix everything together and they also love the fact that I only made four of this skirt and five of this top. They like that it is very limited quantity and they’re not going to go to a wedding and find everybody dressed the same. 

What kind of woman is a d’AddA woman?   

Usually very strong women, travellers. I’ve met so many new people and it’s funny, we all have a similar sort of thing: moms, working, travellers, curious, quite eclectic in the way that they live and dress. It’s a luxurious relaxed style, comfortable and very feminine in the sense that the colours and shapes are feminine. It’s very womanly, not trying to be cool. 

You have a reputation for detail, particularly with buttons? 

I do a lot of research and use only old buttons, which is really fun because I have to go all over Italy to find them. I’ve met wonderful crazy people whose houses are full of boxes of buttons and interesting discoveries such as old trims that I get travelling and that I apply on the fabrics and prints I research.

Coco Brandolini, is yours a fashion for very young women or older women?  

It’s not young young, from 25 to 70, because it’s expensive, but I have some very cool artsy girls that bought, especially LA clients. It is really for woman like me, that work, that travel, that want to be comfortable but with beautiful quality – and that know quality, because the silks and all the fabrics I select are all of outstanding craftsmanship  These are women that know fashion already and are looking for something a bit different and a bit more exclusive They like the fact that it’s hidden away on Via Montanapoleone up flights of stairs. The whole experience really works. 

Has the recent crisis in the luxury world affected you? 

No, not at all, this is mostly because of the prices and also because there’s too much in the face of the customer. I don’t have shows and I only do two seasons – winter and summer. A whole new collection twice a year, but most of the big brands do four, sometimes six a year. Pricewise I’m like ready to wear Dolce & Gabbana or Prada, but the experience and the facts are very different for the clients who love that each piece is almost unique. That aspect is really important and that positioning is very different from the others. I have so many friends that work in the big brands and they all tell me all the time that you’re doing so well to keep it like this. People ask me to sell in other stores and to do wholesale and I have never done that. 

Do you want to grow?  

My business is very healthy. It’s growing slowly, and I make money. I’m completely free because I don’t depend on anybody else. If I find a fabric beautiful, I just make it. This freedom is a very important aspect of my business and a big luxury. I don’t think I’m going to grow so much because it’s going to ruin the whole concept and the whole idea that it’s exclusive, that there is freedom. It’s also very much linked to my being there in person. 

Do people have to make an appointment? 

They have to call me because otherwise they’re not going to find the place! So they have to make an appointment, and especially the Americans when you welcome them in the space, in a very sweet way say: “Thank you so much for receiving me.” They love that the designer is herself present. 

Have you seen Milano become much more international? 

These last years a lot of people come to Milano. I don’t have so many clients who are Milanese  women that live in Milano. There’s more international people, but life is pretty much the same. Italy and Milano specifically is so important for fashion because of all the artisans and all the factories and all the people that make the fabrics, the people that make the buttons (that I don’t use because I use old buttons) the zips, the shoes. Everything is in Italy. 

Talking about shoes you already did a collaboration with Christian Louboutin – will you do another? 

We are old friends, and I asked him to do it because I wanted my first collaboration to be with someone that I cared about and really admire. Christian was perfect and I love shoes,  so I asked him thinking at the worst he’s going to say no and nothing happens. Then he said yes, and the small first collaboration went really well, and now they asked me to do  a second one so I’m really happy. 

Are the shoes similar to the clothes?  

Yes, they are similar because he insisted to do a small collection like the clothing, so it’s only 150 or 200 pairs which for Louboutin is nothing, and we use only fabrics from my collection. Again, we do five pairs or seven pairs of each, with the concept of being very exclusive. 

Where do you sell the shoes?  

In my atelier and the Louboutin store on Madison Avenue. It was very successful and a lot of my clients bought the shoes. I’m very happy to collaborate with people who can help me do what I don’t know how to do, like shoes, for example, where I have my ideas but have neither the factory nor the technicalities. 

Are you going to do accessories?  

I do bags. It’s called the cherry bag because it’s a cherry shape and it’s been doing really well. 

How would we know if a woman is dressed by d’AddA?  

Because it’s quite different in the choices of fabrics and colours. You recognise these aspects, the colours and the fabrics used, and the buttons that are usually very original because they’re old and sculpted and sometimes hand painted. It’s a bit like a club, high quality but doesn’t look rich and not in your face, quite discrete – long skirts are the ones that are doing best for me.

d’AddA: Cherry Bag of Black and Blue Crocodile Leather.

d’AddA: Classic Cherry Bags, Italian leather bags with fabric insert and Embroidered Classic Cherry Bags with hand embroidered fabric insert.

d’AddA: Lea Top Hand Beaded Wool Crepe, Viola Brown Silk Skirt, d’AddA x Louboutin Cordelina Flat Rainbow shoes.

Coco Brandolini, is it your idea that in the morning a woman dresses for the whole day?   

I don’t really have night things, but if you wear one of my tops with the skirt and you wear it with flats, it can be the day; then you put on a heel and it becomes night. It’s quite versatile. 

How many people are you?  

Three. Me, plus two. 

Do you think your eldest daughter will follow the fashion tradition of the Brandolini family? 

She is almost 15, and no, I think my second one maybe will but I don’t think my first one. My first one likes clothing, but she wants to be comfortable and to be cool and she doesn’t think about clothes. My second one is more interested and comes with me to flea markets and comes to my office all the time, and I am trusting that the succession will be with her. But it’s funny because my  older daughter right now wears grey, black, white. She’s very monocolour, and I remember I was like this too. 

Today your use of colours is more like Christian Lacroix than Giorgio Armani?  

Yes, I like to dare to wear these beautiful fabrics during the day. People actually quite follow me in that aspect. It’s so nice to be feminine and to dress well. I always tell my daughters that it’s very nice to dress well and to make an effort. 

What about jewelry?  

I love jewelry, but I don’t do it, not yet. Jewelry works really well with my clothes. Since there’s so many colours, you can match everything quite easily. 

Ever since you were a child you have seen fashion shows and great couturiers like Valentino, Saint Laurent, Dior, and so on. Has fashion changed?  

Fashion is a witness of the time, of how people want to dress. Since decades now, for women there is more the working aspect. Women want to be more comfortable. They’re more confident, and so fashion has adapted. Fashion itself doesn’t change, but the business model has changed. 

Is it important to tell a story? 

Yes, and as Domenico advised me, especially if you’re a small business, to be a strong identity. In d’AddA the identity is so strong just because it’s only me, so it has to be strong because it is one person, and people really respond to this because there’s no fuss, no bullshit. It’s exactly Coco – what she would wear, what she likes. The message is very clear. 

You have no shop window so how does the word get around? 

In the beginning, the first six months, lots of word of mouth among my friends, and now a lot of Instagram, a lot. People say that Instagram works really well, and it’s true. It’s the way of communicating. I don’t have an online shop but they contact me through Instagram and then we send pictures and sometimes they come. If they don’t come we send pictures, measurements and they buy and then we ship. 

Are you your own model?  

Yes because it’s always me. That’s another thing that I would have never thought of, I always thought to use girls, models, and Dominico Dolce again said: “Promise me you’re going to put the clothing only on you always.” I understand his point. It’s not about being beautiful or whatever, it’s about the identity. In the beginning the trouble was that I hate taking pictures of myself, because it bores me, but now I got used to it. It’s not my motivation, but I like it. I understand it, especially. 

How many different sizes do you have?  

The usual, from 38 to 44. It’s four or five sizes, but my client is quite like me, body-wise. It’s like what Domenico was saying, if people are attracted to this then they want to dress like you. Every woman wants to be beautiful and it’s very important to wear what you feel comfortable in. You see lots of women at parties and they wear a certain kind of dress because they think they’re going to be elegant, but they’re not comfortable! I see it right away. If a woman is comfortable with the clothing she’s wearing so she can sit the way she wants, so she’s not contrived, to me that’s what is attractive. 

What’s the difference between being Coco with your own d’AddA and the experience you had before as an employee? 

You’re more nervous because it’s your business and you have to make it work. You have to pay these two persons, which is very small, but it’s still two persons that have to be paid. There is the pressure of it, but at the same time it’s so fulfilling. The other day these women from Hong Kong bought my clothing without even knowing me, without even touching them or trying them the first time. They fit and it was all perfect, so they keep on buying and that’s very satisfying to have people like this. It makes me very proud, and it  gave me a lot of confidence. America is a big market for me – they come to Milano and when I go there to do pop-ups it works really well. 

Where do you do your pop-ups?  

In New York and I’m going to do one in Los Angeles because I have lots of clients in California. Last November this client from Seattle that I’ve never met came on purpose for the day to New York to look and to buy the collection. For big brands that’s not special but I was head over heels! It’s so incredible that a woman would come on purpose just to see my clothing. It’s very satisfying. 

Clients come by word of mouth?  

Yes, many times. Most of my new clients, it’s because they see someone wearing this and they say, “O what is this? It’s different. Oh it’s d’AddA, I saw my friend….” a lot of this, which is really nice for me because it means that the client is happy in their clothing. 

After having had the support and the eye of Dolce & Gabbana were you sometimes frightened to be by yourself?  

Not really. I started when I was 42 after 20 years of working in fashion so I felt very secure and very strong about my division. I never felt really frightened, but it’s not being arrogant in the sense that I’m not saying I knew it was going to work, but I was very confident in my product and in my vision. Another thing that Domenico told me many times is that if you’re confident and follow your gut, and if it really comes from you – everything from your heart – and you don’t start to adapt to the market and to do something that you don’t like – it will work. And he is right. 

Did you ever do a wedding dress?  

Many years ago for a friend of mine, but not for d’AddA. I try not to take special orders, it’s too complicated for us. We’re too small. 

There is also a large group of people who like thrift shop, vintage. Your clothes are new but sometimes they look a bit like vintage?  

Yes, because they’re very inspired by vintage shapes. Not specifically, but the fit is very important for me and before for designers the most important thing was how a piece or a dress or a skirt or a top would fit. In that way, d’AddA is inspired by vintage. I’m very careful about the fit. People love vintage clothing because the way they fit is really special. People are missing authenticity sometimes in the brands today. 

Who is Coco?  

Coco is basically a lot of a mom, because three children who are not so big is pretty intense. I really like the balance of this life of mom and working, and I love for my girls to see that I’m working and doing my own thing. I think it’s a very good example for them. They come to my office, they comment on my clothing, and they say to their friends, “My mom makes d’AddA!” and they show them. That makes me very happy when I see my girls proud. 

How is your life organised?  

In the last few months, I’m happy that my assistant is able to do a lot of the appointments without me. If it’s a big client that I’ve known for a long time I will make the effort to be there but now the product is strong enough in this small range of clients that I have that I don’t need to be there all the time. That’s very important. 

If you had to describe yourself, what kind of person are you?  

I’m very stubborn for sure – not tough, but very stubborn. It’s good, but it can be very annoying for some people around me. I am disciplined, and generous of my time with my friends, and with my family, of course. My priority is completely 100% family and my kids over my work, even though I love my work. I have common sense, absolutely. I am very concrete, pragmatic, but soft. 

Thank you very much for being with me today.  

All images courtesy and copyright of d’AddA.

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