Gucci beats Balenciaga, reclaims coveted top spot on Lyst Index

July 28, 2022

A scene from the Gucci Aria advertising campaign. Image credit: Gucci

The reign of Balenciaga is over as Italian fashion house Gucci steps back into its spot as the hottest brand.

Balenciaga was the most sought-after brand on the Lyst Index for Q3 2021, Q4 2021, and Q1 2022. But as of Q2 2022, Gucci is now the hottest brand, thanks in part to the HA HA HA collection in collaboration with Harry Styles and the popular Adidas x Gucci collection.

The Q2 2022 Lyst Index is based on international Lyst and Google search data, conversion rates and sales, as well as brand and product social media and engagement statistics globally over a three-month period.

Gucci and other heatseekers
By 2025, millennial and under-25 consumers will be the dominant demographic in the luxury market, with an estimated 65-70 percent share.

Kering-owned fashion house Gucci has kept its name in the headlines by creating campaigns that appeal to young affluent consumers. With noteworthy ambassadors like Snoop Dogg and Jared Leto, the Italian fashion house used top talent to generate buzz around its decadent and maximalist aesthetic.

The Gucci Love Parade campaign film featuring Miley Cyrus and Snoop Dogg

Collaboration culture was also key in Gucci narrowly dethroning Balenciaga as the top brand in Q2. The Italian fashion label strategically selected partnerships that would drive consumer interest and increase brand heat for both parties.

Searches for Gucci skyrocketed 286 percent in just 48 hours after its collection with Adidas was released in June. Also, citing the Lyst Index, the Adidas x Gucci Gazelle sneakers are the second hottest women’s product in Q2.

The top hottest women's products for the second quarter of 2022. Image courtesy of Lyst

The brands that secured the top ten spots on the list are Diesel, Adidas x Gucci, Jean Paul Gaultier, Balenciaga, Jaded London, Prada, Miu Miu, Loewe, Fendace and Gucci, in that order.

The Italian fashion house made the hottest women’s product list twice, with its monogrammed Gucci Original slide sandals landing the 10th spot.

Gucci was not the sole fashion house to capitalize on collaboration culture this quarter. The Fendace one-piece bathing suit—the product of a collaboration between Italian fashion houses Fendi and Versace—took the ninth spot on the hottest women’s products list.

The Jean Paul Gaultier x Lotta Volkova naked dress snagged the third spot on the hottest women’s product list. While the ready-to-wear piece is the result of a collaboration, it also points to the trend of luxury brands honoring their own history.

The dress pays homage to Jean-Paul Gaultier’s iconic trompe l’oeil SS96 collection. As a result, searches for ‘naked’ fashion pieces featuring trompe l’oeil body prints rose 430 percent over the last three months alone.

A-listers and pop-ups
Many of the hottest brands featured on the Lyst Index have received increased infamy from social media marketing.

The top-ranked item on the hottest women’s products list, the Diesel 1DR bag, has adorned celebrities like Megan Thee Stallion and Julia Fox. Diesel also appealed to younger audiences on social media, when it gave the purse the cheeky tagline, “Giving good D since 1978.”

But beyond celebrity "It" girls and Gen Z-oriented branding language, pop-up stores and branded events are driving consumer interest.

Fendace, which made the hottest women’s product list, used a multimodal approach to advertising. The Italian cult favorite utilized the starpower of supermodels like Naomi Campbell and Adut Akech in their campaign film and also launched their collection through a series of global pop-ups and events (see story).

Gucci adopted a similar approach of international pop-up stores when it debuted its Adidas x Gucci collaboration (see story). While the Italian fashion label has been making waves in the digital universe (see story), it also realizes the unmatched importance of real-life events.

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