Diesel Rides Zucchi into Home

Milan, Italy — Diesel, a brand known throughout the apparel business as one attracting a younger consumer market with a "cool" approach, will make its debut into the home furnishings world in a licensing agreement with Gruppo Zucchi for home textiles — the first of a broader range of home products including furniture, lighting and decorative accessories.

The home textiles collection will be called Successful Living from Diesel, a reverse of the apparel brand's Diesel for Successful Living slogan. The home textiles, as well as subsequent home furnishings collections, will be created by a design team headed by Wilbert Das, Diesel's creative director, said Filippo Zucchi, president of licensing, Gruppo Zucchi.

The home textiles including bed and bath "will reflect the Diesel mood — a signature Diesel twist on design in home textiles reflecting the changing way people live in their homes," explained Zucchi to HTT. "It will be fun but salable, ironical but not too much far out. It will bring a new mood and concept." The collection will be directed toward consumers in the 30 to 45 age bracket, he said.

Price points will be targeted to the designer level as well as entry points at the Lacoste level or higher, he added. In the United States, Ken Rood, ceo of KJR Home, will work with Zucchi on both the Diesel and Lacoste marketing programs.

Zucchi produces its own brands under the Zucchi and Bassetti brands in Italy; Bera, Jalla and Descamps brands in France; and licenses for Lacoste worldwide and Laura Ashley for Europe.

The home textiles collection will debut at the Diesel showroom here during the April Salone Internazionale del Mobile. Targeted retailers are leading department stores, home textile specialty shops, and Diesel and Zucchi stores. The collection is expected to be in stores by September.