Conference: how to create a culture of desirability?

The conference "How to create a culture of desirability" was organized by EHL (Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne) and moderated in collaboration with Luxury Tribune and the Swiss Center for Luxury Research (SCLR), explored the culture of desirability. Francesca Bellettini, then President & CEO of Saint Laurent, gave a lecture to an audience of 400 students from the EHL and all the academic institutions represented in the Swiss Center for Luxury Research, during which she shared insights about the concept of desirability in the luxury business and the elevation strategy that the Maison has pursued for more than a decade.

Francesca Bellettini, appointed Deputy Managing Director of Kering in July 2023, began her career in London as an investment banker, working at Goldman Sachs International, Deutsche Morgan Grenfell, and Compass Partners International. In 1999, she joined the Prada Group's Business Planning and Development division before becoming Operations Director for Helmut Lang.

In 2003, she joined Kering as Director of Strategic Planning and Associate Director of Global Merchandising for Gucci. In 2008, she joined Bottega Veneta and became Global Merchandising and Communications Director in 2010.

In 2013, she was appointed President and CEO of Yves Saint Laurent by François-Henry Pinault. She will energize the brand while continuing to instill desirability and the avant-garde spirit of founder Yves Saint Laurent. Over the past 10 years, she has succeeded in converting this success into remarkable financial results. In ten years, the company has gone from sales of around 500 million euros to 2.52 billion euros in 2021. She has always said that she has ambition but no ego. That she's a fan of numbers and mathematics, and that she thinks in binary mode. A big Formula 1 fan, she admitted that if she hadn't chosen economics, she would have opted for engineering to become a mechanical engineer at Ferrari.

Guided by two mantras that seem to define Saint Laurent's strategy: "Never compromise the brand" and "evolution, not revolution," she has established a corporate culture that fosters creativity, authenticity, and agility. This has stimulated the House's constant dynamism and ensured an exceptional and sustained growth trajectory founded on solid foundations. Madame Bellettini's leadership has fostered the House's expansion and enabled the Saint Laurent identity to emerge, pushing boundaries while remaining true to the House's core values.