Davide Renne, Gucci & Moschino designer dies aged 46

The cause of death is not known, but Moschino’s parent company Aeffe referred to “a sudden illness” and said that he died in Milan on Friday.

Hailing from Gucci, where he worked for nearly 20 years, Renne started working at Moschino on Nov. 1, and his first collection was to debut for fall 2024 in February during Milan Fashion Week, succeeding Jeremy Scott, who exited the brand last March after a 10-year tenure.

“Even though he was only with us for a very short time, Davide was able to immediately make himself loved and respected. Today we are left with the responsibility of carrying on what his imagination and creativity had only envisioned,” said Massimo Ferretti in a statement posted on Instagram.

At the time of his appointment, Renne said: “Franco Moschino had a nickname for his design studio la sala giochi, the playroom.

“This resonates deeply with me, Italian fashion especially, and the house of Moschino most of all I can achieve with its enormous power should be accomplished with a sense of play, of joy. A sense of discovery, and experimentation.”

His first steps in fashion were at Alessandro Dell’Acqua, whom Renne described as his “first teacher and mentor in fashion,” before moving on to Gucci.

Several influential figures in the fashion industry have taken to social media to pay their respects, with many leaving comments on Renne’s Instagram posts.

Harris Reed, the creative director of Nina Ricci, described Renne as “a true angel”, while model and singer Karen Elson wrote: “My heart breaks. Sweet Davide rest in peace.”

Renne’s mentor, Dell’Acqua, posted on Instagram: “Farewell Davide!! You will always be in my heart.”

Renne was born in Follonica, Tuscany in July 1977.

He studied at both the University of Florence and Polimoda fashion school, and began his career working with Italian fashion designer and mentor Alessandro Dell’Acqua, before heading to Gucci in 2004.