Background

Domenico De Sole was born in Rome, Italy in 1944, the son of an Army general.

Education

He graduated from the Sapienza University of Rome in 1970 with a law degree, and then received a scholarship for Harvard Law School, where he received an Master of Laws degree in 1972.

Career

De Sole worked for leading United States law firms, before becoming a partner at the Washington District of Columbia firm Patton, Boggs & Blow, specialising in tax law. De Sole was president and Chief Executive Officer of Gucci Group from 1994 to 2004. De Sole has been chairman of Tom Ford International since the company was founded in 2005.

In March 2015, De Sole became chairman of the international auction house Sotheby"s, working alongside president and Chief Executive Officer, Tad Smith, whose appointment was announced on the same day.

De Sole is a director of Gap Incorporated. and Telecom Italia.

Achievements

• One of his clients in the early 1980s was Gucci, where he helped with corporate restructuring, and Rodolfo Gucci, a son of the founder Guccio Gucci, enticed De Sole to join in 1984 as Chief Executive Officer of Gucci America.