Former model for Blumarine and Dolce & Gabbana, the 39-year-old Penelope Cruz look-alike heads the small fashion empire originally founded by her father some 50 years ago.

Under Alessandra’s stewardship, the embattled Vicedomini brand is experiencing a glamorous renaissance. Her collection graces stores in the most exclusive shopping malls of the planet – from Paris to Moscow and of course in the five-star Alpina Gstaad. She’ll open her first single-brand boutique in London’s trendy Chelsea district this year; she has also opened an intimate new showroom in Via Montenapoleone, in Milano’s high fashion district.

The Milanese beauty left the catwalk to take over the company ten years ago – and within a few seasons became the number one designer in Gstaad. Her first (and still loyal) clients read like a who’s who in the Saanenland: Laura Scherz, aka Lady Palace; Kirsty Bertarelli; Christine Juffali; Carol -Asscher; and Nora Al Howaish. So popular is the young designer that she’s been christened “Chanel of the Saanenland”. 

 

Born to the cloth

Alessandra was born the youngest child of Giuseppe and Orietta Vicedomini, a power couple known for their ambition and style. The lovely Orietta made her living as a model after World War II. Giuseppe came from a military family on the front lines of political and armed conflicts, but he left the military to pursue a career in fashion. A clever businessman with a nose for talent, he partnered with designer Lino Pellizzoni in 1962, creating the iconic tubino – sheath – dress that remains a wardrobe staple for chic women everywhere even today. 

The overwhelming success of the tubino prompted Giuseppe to create his own line. The first Vicedomini collection consisted of only twelve pieces – a versatile mix of hand-embroidered tops and separates that revolutionized ready-to-wear. With the crème de la crème of Milano society and Harrods in London begging for more, a true fashion brand was born. 

With a staff of more than 100 employees and artisans and spreads in Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar, Giuseppe was well on his way when he met the beautiful Orietta, a finalist in the Miss Italy beauty pageant. It was love at first sight. He hired her as his house model and they were immediately married. 

 

The design phoenix rises

The house of Vicedomini suffered a complicated downturn in 1984, when a blizzard damaged the factory, ruining most of the machinery, archives, and inventory. This setback drove Giuseppe to consider retirement – and then tragedy struck again in the 1990s, this time in the form of a car accident that severely injured his wife Orietta. This heartbreak shook both the family business and Alessandra’s teenage years. By the time the young model began her studies at university, she had taken over the brand so that her father could devote himself to her mother. 

Alessandra began with a few simple knits – and over the years she built on those basics, creating the luxury knit collection we know today. Happily married to Italian aristocrat Amedeo Serra, Vicedomini combines -raising her two boys with running her growing domain. Family is important to her, both at home and at work, a legacy she attributes to her father. 

“My father was respected and truly loved by his staff. Even at ninety, he was often visited by some of the head tailors who worked for him,” recalls Vicedomini. 

With homes in both Geneva and Gstaad, Vicedomini manages to juggle her roles as businesswoman, designer, mother, wife, friend and confidant with aplomb. Just more proof that she has mastered the ups and downs of hemlines – and of life.

“I just try to keep my head above the stormy weather we all must pass through,” Alessandra says with a smile.

Indeed.