Borbonese Appoints Marie-Laure Lequain as Chief Executive Officer

by · WWD
Borbonese's All - Round bucket bag for spring 2025.Courtesy of Borbonese

MILAN — Gucci veteran executive Marie-Laure Lequain has been named Borbonese’s new chief executive officer.

She succeeds Stefano Fero who has led the brand since 2024.

The brand’s first female chief, Lequain brings a wealth of experience in merchandising, digital channels and category development to the storied Italian leather goods label.

“Borbonese has a distinct personality and a history that deserves recognition for its capacity to innovate. It is an honor to lead the maison and a responsibility I feel deeply,” Lequain said.

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“I believe in this maison’s potential and in the opportunity to elevate it. Our work starts with people, their expertise and a careful understanding of what makes Borbonese unique to its customers. Together, we want to give this value a contemporary expression and build solid foundations for growth,” she offered.

Marie-Laure Lequain, CEO of Borbonese.Fermento Studio/Courtesy of Borbonese

Lequain spent more than 15 years at Gucci, joining as worldwide merchandising director jewelry and watches in 2006, tasked with developing those categories. She later moved on to similar merchandising roles for women’s ready-to-wear and digital, before being named vice president, digital and working on the relaunch of the brand’s e-commerce and the debut of Gucci Vault, a multibrand websites conceived by then-creative director Alessandro Michele.

Lequain most recently served as chief digital and merchandising officer at German leather goods specialist MCM, which she joined in 2023.

Borbonese was started in Turin, Italy, in 1910 under the ownership of Umberto Minestrone and Edoardo Calcagno, supplying necklaces, bracelets and other accoutrements to Valentino, Yves Saint Laurent, Fendi, Galitzine and Ungaro.

Known for its bird’s-eye pattern, the brand rose to a peak of success in the ’70s and has expanded, adding over time different product lines such as clothing, fur items, home decor, complements and linen, aiming to create a true global lifestyle offering.

In 2019, the brand appointed Dorian Tarantini and Matteo Mena, the founders and creative directors of the now-shuttered label M1992, to launch a new line called 1910 Borbonese, under the watch of then-CEO Alessandro Pescara.

In 2024, Francesca Monaco and Salar Bicheranloo, the designers behind vegan accessories label Themoirè, were appointed Borbonese’s new creative directors, a few months before Pescara left the company to join Aspesi as CEO.

The brand is currently designed by the in-house creative team.