Pucci's Problem

When Matthew Williamson was appointed creative director of Pucci last year, taking over from long-term incumbent Christian Lacroix, few designers ever seemed more born to a role.

With his fondness, and occasional over-fondness, for bright colors, his appeal among the jet set bright young things and older dowagers, Williamson could easily be Emilio Pucci's grandson.

And at first, the match looked as gleeful as a wedding photo in Hello!: whereas under Lacroix's aegis the label had begun to languish into a fuchsia rut, churning out little more than hot pink ball gowns and tops with lava lamp patterns, Williamson brought lightness and prettiness while still adhering to the traditional and recognizable Pucci patterns.

But yesterday's collection highlighted the difficulty in getting a modern designer to shepherd an older label with its own distinct look: ultimately one will try to dominate the other. Although Williamson's collection was its usual bright and razzle-dazzle self, the kaftans, bright, loose trousers, off-the-shoulder tunics and beaded swimming costume, while all very pretty to look at, had the distinct smack of Williamson at his most Ibizan rather than Pucci.

Other pieces, such as the sloppy, bright jumpers with slashes of other colors and the tunic sprinkled with enamel fragments painted with Pucci patterns, showed how Williamson can give the label an update but retain its original and still lucrative appeal. And although the collection was undoubtedly fun, commercial and proved what Williamson can do when given the necessary funds, it does raise the question: why keep a label going if ultimately what one wants is the new designer's style - except, of course, to keep making money off the label's name?