There’s a reason Gucci feels at home in Florence. It’s more than birthplace nostalgia – it’s the spiritual alignment between a brand built on sumptuous detail and a city synonymous with artistic rebirth. For the Gucci Cruise 2026 show, the House chose not just a venue but a feeling: one of continuity, reverence, and new bloom.

The evening began within the walls of Palazzo Settimanni – home of the Gucci Archive – and ended outside, in the piazza, as models spilled into the street; a living tribute to the city that gave it life.

The location ...

Florence, the city of flowers, offered the ideal metaphor for Gucci’s latest Cruise offering: blossoming, layered, in constant dialogue with its past. The Gucci Cruise 2026 show took place in the 15th-century Palazzo Settimanni, a palimpsest of fashion history now home to the Gucci Archive, and its finale saw models walk directly into the city square.

Fittingly, the archive’s influence loomed large over the collection, as did the architectural grandeur and artisanal legacy of Florence itself.

The guests ...

Florence welcomed a crowd that mirrored Gucci’s multifaceted identity – actors, artists, muses, and models with unmistakable sprezzatura. Ambassador Paul Mescal was in attendance, alongside actors Jeff Goldblum, Yara Shahidi, Viola Davis,  Julia Garner, Lee Jung-jae and online muses Devon Lee Carlson, Madeleine Argy, Bryanboy and more.

The clothes ...

This was a collection of contradictions made cohesive – maximalism meets restraint, medieval lace meets 80s shoulder pads. Brocades, silks, and velvets spoke to Florence’s centuries-old status as a fabric powerhouse, while the iconic GG monogram and new single-G motif added structure to the historical softness.

The silhouettes were long, lean, and deliberately off-kilter, nodding to that quintessentially Italian 'effortlessness'. Accessories continued the dialogue: leather goods drew on archival pieces or offered relaxed evolutions, like the soft half-Horsebit bags.

Most poetically, the newly unveiled Gucci Giglio bag – named for Florence’s heraldic lily – was made available for purchase immediately post-show. And in a glittering side note, a collaboration with Pomellato introduced the 'Monili' high jewellery capsule – leather, gold and pavé diamonds, seamlessly woven into Gucci’s world of refined excess.