OTB restructures senior management team around new CEO Ubaldo Minelli

By

Dominique Muret

Translated by
Nicola Mira

Published
Dec 4, 2017

OTB has reorganised its senior management team as it prepares to deal with a new expansion phase. Last July, the Italian fashion group founded by Renzo Rosso lost the General Manager of its leading label, Diesel, as Alessandro Bogliolo took charge of US jeweller Tiffany & Co. after leaving OTB. 

The Italian fashion group has now announced the appointment of a new CEO, Ubaldo Minelli, a home-grown talent. Minelli has been with OTB for many years, having joined it to lead Staff International, the company which produces and distributes brands under licence (among them DSquared2, Just Cavalli and Vivienne Westwood), which Renzo Rosso bought in 2000. To this role, at the end of 2015, Minelli added that of General Manager of the Marni label, which OTB acquired in 2013.

In other words, Minelli's experience has more of a luxury than a denim slant. He is expected to push the group, which posted a revenue of €1.58 billion, to grow in the luxury segment, which has been instrumental in balancing OTB's books in the last few years. Ubaldo Minelli will start in his new role in January, after the departure at the end of December of Riccardo Stilli. The latter has been in charge of Renzo Rosso's group for 4 years, and has decided to devote himself to "new professional objectives," as the group wrote in a press release.

The new CEO will supervise all of the group's key functions. The managers of all its brands and companies will report to him: from Diesel jeans to handbag label Paula Cademartori, to Maison Margiela, Viktor & Rolf, Staff International and Brave Kid, the division specialised in children's apparel and accessories, in charge of the junior collections for Diesel, John Galliano, Trussardi, Dsquared2 and Marni.

At the same time, OTB announced the appointment of Carlo Schiavo as CFO, a role which was previously filled by Riccardo Stilli. Schiavo has notably worked for Pricewaterhouse Coopers, Fiat and Walgreens Boots Alliance.

Nothing was instead disclosed about the newly vacant senior positions at Diesel, Staff International and Marni. In early 2017, the group put Riccardo Bellini in charge of Maison Margiela, replacing Giovanni Pungetti, who was appointed OTB's CEO for Greater China. We will have to wait for the first quarter 2018 to learn more about the group's top management team, as the company stated that it will then be completed with "major new arrivals."