That Prada

Rich successor
In far 1913 Italian Mario Prada based small production of products from skin. The current owner of Prada, Miuccia Prada inherited the company from mother. In the late seventies Miuccia it was necessary to take reins of government in hand. It is necessary to recognize that she reluctantly accepted the management. In those days the policy interested her much more, than fashion.

Miuccia Prada graduated from politological faculty of the Milan university, was the convinced communist and fought for women's rights. If she continued to politicize, then would make outstanding career, and now quite could make the worthy competition to the current prime minister of Italy Silvio Berluscona. However simple family values and the attracting world of fashion got the best, was forgotten about policy.

In 1977 at a trade fair Miuccia Prada got acquainted with the businessman Patrizio Bertelli, they began to cooperate and in a year signed the exclusive contract. 10 years later they got married and became the real family. Now Patrizio Bertelli is a co-owner of Prada SpA, he possesses the third part of actions. Mister Bertelli became the irreplaceable assistant in affairs. Together spouses are engaged in development of the Prada company, they succeeded in it.

Who is who
Having started the management of the company Prada, Miuccia Prada did not wish to be engaged only in production of accessories. It headed for conquest of the world of fashion and was engaged in creation of clothes. The first presentation of a collection of prêt-à-porter clothes took place in 1988. Since then Prada regularly represents seasonal collections on Fashion weeks which pass in Milan.

Today Prada makes women's and men's wear, stylish footwear, various accessories, refined perfumery and even mobile phones. The company has network of branded boutiques in the different countries of the world.



Miu Miu is nowadays widely known brand of clothes started by Prada in 1993. The clothes under the new brand were designed for younger customers who are not able to afford heavy expenses on updating of clothes. The Miu Miu brand received the name in honor of the foundress Miuccia Prada, and, it is even not a pseudonym, but a nickname which it is called only by the family friends. For Miuccia Prada the original Miu Miu style is a creative outlet, reflection of her thoughts and mood. Experts believe that the Miu Miu style originates in Miuccia's childhood.

Clothes, footwear and accessories of Miu Miu – bright and unusual, are famous for the deliberate naivety, they amusing and at the same time intellectual. The Miu Miu brand successfully developed and became the independent project. Miuccia Prada is not afraid of the competition of the child of Miu Miu to giant Prada, at these two brands absolutely different audience.



The history of the Prada company is not only series of loud victories, there were also defeats. In the nineties Prada bought the Roman fashion house Fendi which position was deplorable. Prada acquired shares of Fendi together with the LVMH company to provide support to the brand suffering financial disaster. However Prada did not manage to carry out conceived, the part of shares of Fendi had to be sold. Unsuccessful was also an acquisition of the Jil Sander and Helmut Lang brands. The attempt to be equal to the giant of the world of fashion LVMH concern a complete fiasco turned out.

Business and not only
Miuccia Prada is sure that the designer has to be engaged in the fact that he is pleasant to him and to what his soul lies. She speaks so: "I am not interested in a dress. I am interested in me". What is pleasant to madam Prada does not leave indifferent thousands of women around the world. The designer pays much attention to quality of products, it has to be only the highest. It controls all production phases: from origin of the idea to its embodiment.

As multibrand shops do not allow to transfer the special atmosphere and style of Prada, the products of the company extend mainly through network of own boutiques - it is a principled stand. For construction and registration of brand stores the best architects and designers on an interior are attracted.

Successful and profitable business allows Miuccia Prada and her husband Patrizio Bertelli to be engaged in projects of other order. The Prada foundation which is set up by them in 1995 is one of the most considerable funds of the modern art in Italy. In an interview of International Herald Tribune Miuccia Prada sounded the position: "I insist on that my fund was vosprinikmat separately from my brand. I am engaged in art at all not in order that my bags were on sale better. Exactly on the contrary". Besides serious business and interest in art spouses have small weaknesses: it has a tasty food, it has a luxury yacht.

Principles and prejudices
Miuccia Prada is quite conservative in some questions of business. Despite improbable popularity of social networks and the blogger movement, she refuses to use them for advance of own brands. Meanwhile many famous designers actively master Internet space, perceiving it as the huge advertizing platform.

Here is how Miuccia Prada commented on the point of view in an interview to the American edition Wall Street Journal Magazine: "Why you think what someone's emergence in a trench on pages of blogs or in social networks means for a brand to be open for the whole world? What if in several years does the same Twitter become unpopular, and we will understand that we made a big mistake?". However, the official sites and at Miu Miu nevertheless are available for Prada.



Recently the famous designers even more often storm the market of mass clothes. Here only couple of indicative examples. The autumn and winter collection under the name Lagerfeld is on sale including through popular French post catalog 3 Suisses, the prices of these clothes do not exceed 200 euros. The designer of the brand of Lanvin Albert Elbaz created a capsular collection for the democratic H&M brand.

Miuccia Prada does not wish to follow the example of colleagues. She believes that similar joint projects negatively affect reputation of luxury brands. Besides, madam Prada is afraid that in a pursuit of low price and availability the clothes will lose quality, and the high quality is essential for it.

The well-known office studio of madam Prada similar it is rather on an art object, is in Milan. During the working day Miuccia Prada tries to face as seldom as possible the husband Patrizio Bertelli, it is not so simple to work side by side for many years. In the evening of the spouse hurry to the cozy house where they are waited by beloved sons.