Gucci champions extremely short shorts at Milan Fashion Week

Gucci’s autumn/winter 2024 was a minimalist take on the tiny shorts trend.

Super short shorts were the centre of Gucci’s Milan Fashion Week show (Luca Bruno/AP) (AP)

Hemlines were sky-high at Gucci’s Milan Fashion Week show, solidifying the trend for super short shorts.

The opening look of the autumn/winter 2024 collection gave a sneak peek of what was to come, with a model wearing an all-black outfit of a beautifully tailored belted jacket, short shorts and thigh-high boots.

Tiny shorts was an ongoing theme – models wore tailored versions in all colours of the rainbow, as well as knitted shorts as part of matching sets and structured playsuits. Once a Noughties mainstay, short shorts have recently been making a fashion comeback – most notably seen in the knitted Miu Miu knitted knickers-cum-shorts that have been storming social media.

This was Italian designer Sabato De Sarno’s third collection as creative director of Gucci, and he certainly seems to have found his groove – particularly after the mixed response to his first offering a year ago.

He has a minimalist and sexy aesthetic, which is a huge departure from previous creative director Alessandro Michele’s designs, which were much more maximalist – think clashing patterns and Seventies inspirations.

Instead, De Sarno seems to be taking notes from Tom Ford’s time as creative director of Gucci in the Nineties and early Noughties.

This was definitely seen in his latest collection, with models wearing sheer underwear-inspired tops and short skirts. The clothes were minimal – but not without flair.

Coats were studded with sparkles, jackets had textured Gucci logos imprinted on and platform loafers were vertiginously high. Accessories were particularly chic – if models weren’t wearing platforms, they were sporting thigh-high leather boots and clutching classic Gucci bags – with horsebit detailing and bamboo handles.

The beauty look was also reminiscent of Tom Ford’s Gucci runways in the Nineties, with dark black eyeliner and slicked back hair.

But make no mistake: creative director De Sarno doesn’t think his aesthetic is quiet luxury. Back when he was appointed, he told Vogue: “People have written of my fashion as minimal, quiet luxury, but to me it’s really the opposite. My overcoat has a shape that is the result of a curating process. We tested it, we chose for wearability. At the end, you see a gray coat, but it’s a little more than a gray coat.”

The show might have opened and closed with all-black looks, but the colour palette throughout was far from boring. From lime green bags to bright pink shorts, De Sarno played with a wide palette – mainly sticking to block colours.

Pink has long had its time in the sun as the colour of the runway – thanks to Valentino and the Barbie movie – but Gucci made a case for a new It shade. Celebrities posed for pictures in front of a deep burgundy wall, and that colour permeated the collection – in boots, bags, jackets and even De Sabato’s shoes when he took a bow at the finale.

The show was held in the Fonderia Carlo Macchi – a huge industrial-style warehouse that is often home to runway presentations.

Gucci is one of the highlights of the Milan Fashion Week calendar, and the front row was typically star-studded – with many celebrities championing the signature burgundy colour.

Fresh from wearing a Gucci outfit made up of red hotpants and a long chiffon top to the Baftas, Daisy Edgar-Jones sat front row in a grey dress with a deep V neckline and black platform heels.

Actor Salma Hayek – whose husband François-Henri Pinault is president of Kering, the luxury conglomerate that owns Gucci – wore an all-red outfit made up of a pencil skirt and a daring red zip-up jacket with no shirt underneath.

Kirsten Dunst – who stars in upcoming action film Civil War – gave a grown-up interpretation of the disco trend in a sparkling green and silver long-sleeve dress and burgundy belt.

Meanwhile, Gucci ambassador Julia Garner wore a navy mini dress, while Euphoria star Maude Apatow went for a more casual look in an oversized denim shirt.