Briatore reveals why Gucci’s Alpine F1 title deal was ‘really difficult’

Briatore hails landmark Gucci-Alpine agreement

Flavio Briatore has described Alpine’s incoming title partnership with Gucci as one of the most demanding commercial deals he has completed in Formula 1, despite a career that has included several major sponsorship agreements.

For Briatore, Alpine’s executive adviser, the significance is not only financial. He framed the agreement as a move designed to elevate the team’s image at a time when Alpine is attempting to strengthen its overall position in F1. The wider direction of the Enstone operation has already been under scrutiny, including recent focus on driver and team changes such as Jack Doohan’s Alpine exit.

A different kind of fashion link

“At the time, Benetton was not a luxury brand, it was a brand and we created a winning team with the brand of Benetton,” Briatore told media.

He placed the Gucci deal alongside the biggest commercial agreements of his F1 career, while underlining that this one carried a different level of complexity.

“Gucci is one of the big deals done, I think, in all my time in Formula 1. We’ve done Mild Seven, we’ve done Telefónica, ING, we’ve done a lot of things, but this one was really difficult to do,” he said.

“There’s too many parties involved, and I’m very happy because they’re upgrading the team as well. It’s Gucci Alpine, and upgrading the team. And the people with Gucci, unbelievable.”

Why Briatore sees Gucci as ‘in the arena’

Briatore also pointed to the immediate visibility generated by the announcement, claiming the deal attracted enormous online attention within days.

“When we announced the deal, in three days there were one billion visitors in the WI-FI [website]. But I believe it’s good for Formula 1,” he said.

He drew a distinction between luxury brands supporting Formula 1 from the outside and Gucci’s position as a title sponsor directly on the car.

“We had two big luxury brands in Formula 1. We had Louis Vuitton on one side, and Louis Vuitton is a sponsor, a supporter of FOM, but in the arena, this is like the spectator,” Briatore added. “But in the arena, Gucci is in the arena. Gucci is in the car and is a title sponsor.”

BWT thanked as Alpine prepares transition

Briatore was careful to acknowledge BWT’s contribution before Alpine moves into its next commercial phase.

“I want to, as well, [say] thank you to BWT. We have an incredible relationship with Andreas and with all the group of BWT,” he said.

But he made clear that Alpine viewed Gucci as the right step for accelerated growth, both in image and finance. “The deal with Gucci was perfect. It was really a super deal.”