Alessandro Michele’s departure as the creative director of Gucci hadn’t yet been announced. By his own account, he struggled to express himself; young, gay and interested in fashion, De Sarno felt out of place. He did stints at Prada and Dolce & Gabbana before, in 2009, making a more permanent home at Valentino in Rome. During his 14-year tenure there, he cycled upward through various departments until he became the label’s fashion director and the right-hand man of its creative director, Pierpaolo Piccioli. Recently, Gucci announced that the company will relocate the design office from Rome to Milan, where De Sarno feels most at home.

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Persons: Sabato De Sarno, Alexander McQueen, Balenciaga, Saint Laurent, “, Alessandro Michele’s, Gucci hadn’t, ” De Sarno, Maria, Raffaele, De Sarno, Pierpaolo Piccioli, Gucci, ”, “ It’s, Sabato, “ I’m, ‘, I’ll Organizations: Gucci, Istituto, Prada, Dolce, Gabbana Locations: Kering, Bottega, Cicciano, Italy, Naples, Milan, Valentino, Rome