Matteo Renzi, Former Prime Minister of Italy
Tuesday, Dec. 3 | Dinner at Palazzo Vecchio
Matteo Renzi was born in January 1975 and grew up in the province of Florence. He served as the Prime Minister of Italy from February 2014 until December 2016. He is the youngest person to have served as Italian Prime Minister.
Currently he has been serving as an Italian Senator representing the Electoral College of Florence since 2018.
After serving as the President of the Province of Florence from 2004 to 2009 and the Mayor of Florence from 2009 to 2014, Renzi was elected leader of the Democratic Party, holding this role from 2013 to 2018. He resigned as Party Secretary following defeat in the 2018 election.
As Prime Minister he implemented numerous reforms, including changes to labor and employment laws, a thorough reformation of the public administration, the simplification of civil trials. He also launched the “Industria 4.0” plan, implementing measures to boost competitiveness of companies through investments in new technologies, automation, research and development.
His activity as a politician has been accompanied by his writing, with the publication of 5 books.
Marco Bizzarri, President & CEO of Gucci
Wednesday, Dec. 4 | Conference at Palazzo Corsini
Marco Bizzarri was named President and CEO of Gucci in January 2015, after serving as CEO of Kering’s Luxury – Couture & Leather Goods division, from April 2014 to January 2015, and as president and CEO of Bottega Veneta, from January 2009 to April 2014.
He first joined the Kering Group in January 2005 as president and CEO of Stella McCartney. Previously he was general manager of Marithé et François Girbaud in Paris. He also held various positions, including general manager, for the Mandarina Duck Group from 1993 to 2004, beginning his career as a consultant for Accenture.
Marco Bizzarri’s mantra at Gucci has been to foster creativity in every aspect of the business, emphasizing the importance of approaching the daily tasks of work in a different way, continually challenging and questioning the status quo and encouraging risk-taking within the framework of a learning organization – an organization based on a culture of empowerment, respect and inclusivity.
The astonishing turnaround that Gucci has achieved in the last four years – a unique case within the luxury fashion industry for a brand of its scale – has gained Marco Bizzarri a series of accolades, including the British Fashion Council’s Business Leader of the Year Award for 2016, 2017, 2018 and the WWD CEO/Creative Leadership Award for 2017. He was also the recipient of the Legion of Honour, France’s highest decoration, in December 2017.