IF you've finally managed to expunge every memory of the 1970s, start dredging them all back up again. The era once stigmatised as the decade that taste forgot is now firmly back in thanks to a label which was in its prime the same period. A few years ago, Gucci lost amid family feuding and over extended licensing commitments but now, having avoided nears bankruptcy and passed into the hands of an Anglo Bahraini investment company, the company is once more among the strongest names on the international fashion circuit.
The reason is a 33 year old Texan called Tom Ford who arrived at Gucci in 1990 and is now the house's creative director, responsible for every aspect of design including advertising and even shop interiors. A year ago, Ford unveiled his new concept at Gucci and the response was instantaneous mayhem among the fashion cognoscenti: everyone (and that includes' Madonna, Demi Moore and Sharon Stone) wanted to wear the label all over again. Last week in Milan, the Gucci shop on Via Monte Napoleone resounded to cries of disappointment as customers who'd queued for admission were told that items they wanted to buy were already sold out. The same story is repeated across the world: in the first nine months of 1995, Gucci sales increased an astonishing 86 per cent over the previous year.
On Tuesday night, Tom Ford demonstrated that this success is most definitely not going to be a passing fancy as next autumn/winter's collection was greeted with rapturous applause. At the moment, Ford is the Mike Flowers of fashion, taking the 1970s as a starting point and reinterpreting the decade in a fresh - and irresistible - manner. As in last winter's range, the trouser suit takes centre place (the only skirts shown were full length and a line) and in tune with what's happening everywhere, it's given a military feel thanks to slim epaulettes on the hard edged shoulders. For day, the colour is either a deep navy or else brown and camel, with lean waists and hipster pants that flare out from the knee; just to reinforce the memories of an earlier period, the ankle strap suede shoes come on one inch platforms. There isn't anything wildly extravagant, or unusual about Ford's designs - it's just that the clothes are impeccably tailored, totally au courant with the spirit of the moment and utterly sensual. That's especially true of Gucci's evening wear: reminiscent of Halston and nights in New York's Studio 54, a succession of long white silk jersey columns dresses had the capacity crowd at Tuesday's show flocking backstage to congratulate the designer and place an order early, before everything is sold out. The good news for this country is that Brown Thomas's buyers were in Milan and will be carrying Gucci for next season - it's definitely advisable to book early to avoid disappointment.
Brown Thomas already carries the other favourite Italian label just now: Prada. Like Gucci, this is a long established company that originally made its name thanks to luxurious luggage. Less than a decade ago. Miuccia Prada, grand daughter of the founder, first ventured into producing a fashion collection which has since witnessed sustained growth. Prada bags are still important - every fashion editor and buyer of note has been carrying a black nylon version, for the past year, as though no other kind, was for sale. But what marked Prada's show apart last Thursday morning was the number of audience members proudly wearing, the company's clothes (this season's, of course).
There's nothing obvious about the appeal of Prada, which has always taken a low key approach to fashion. The clothes are quiet and understated but nonetheless highly distinctive: as with Gucci, strength is, derived through consistency as each collection builds on its predecessors. For the season ahead, Prada isn't deviating from a general trend by opting for navy, brown and camel but her coats are often shorter than elsewhere; cut close to the body, they stop approximately three inches above the knee. Jackets run to the finger tip and are often belted, with a contrasting piping around the collar and pockets: their skirts are on the knee.
The tone is dainty and subdued, but lifted by Prada's prints: a bold Mondrian inspired style in shades of violet and brown, or else, in chocolate and cafe au lait, a swirling kinetic design. These give the wool and tweed trouser suits their own early 1970s quality, further enhanced by a set of bottle green wool jersey separates, presented on Thursday with mauve and mustard shirts.
Come eveningwear, Prada produced fine chiffon slipdresses in yellow and violet banded with slim bands of contrasting colour running around the bust and down the skirt. For women who need more cover than these pieces can provide, there were shantung silk jackets and coats in the same Mondrian print as earlier. It's all a far remove from black nylon but given Prada's current standing, certain to be just as popular with the label's loyal following.