Managing director Eraldo Poletto leaves Diesel

Italian denim label Diesel has lost its managing director Eraldo Poletto, only six months after he was appointed to the position. Poletto has “decided for reasons of a personal nature to return to the USA, where he has been residing with his family for several years,” said the label, which is owned by Renzo Rosso's OTB fashion group.

“Eraldo Poletto will continue to collaborate with Diesel,” added the label, without providing further details about the collaboration. Before being promoted to the head of Diesel in July 2022, Poletto had overseen its business on the US market since the beginning of last year.

Previously, Poletto had been at the helm of US footwear label Stuart Weitzman, Florentine label Salvatore Ferragamo, and affordable-luxury leather goods label Furla.

In 2021, OTB generated a revenue of € 1.53 billion, growing by 16% and reaching the same revenue levels as in 2019. The group has not given details about the results of individual labels, including Diesel, whose style is now overseen by Glenn Martens, but has underlined the positive performance of its luxury houses, which include Jil Sander, Marni, Maison Margiela and Viktor & Rolf.

Speaking at a conference organized by Pambianco-PwC in November, OTB’s president Renzo Rosso indicated he wants to reposition Diesel in the high-end market segment, as an informal luxury label. This has led to a rationalization of Diesel’s distribution structure, causing “a loss of €400 million in sales in the last few years.”

Managing director Eraldo Poletto leaves Diesel

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