Rhuigi Villaseñor Named Chief Model Officer of Italian Soccer Membership Como 1907

Rhuigi Villaseñor is lending his inventive prowess to the sports activities world. 

The style designer behind Rhude and R.H.U. by Zara has been named the chief model officer of Italian soccer membership Como 1907, which is returning to Serie A this season for the primary time in 21 years. Villaseñor, who can be a minority proprietor of the workforce, acknowledged his general aim for the appointment is to show the membership into a way of life model, areas equivalent to vogue, hospitality and client items. 

“With this position, I wished to tackle an area that wasn’t actually the identical as vogue as a result of for me, I have already got that with my child Rhude and R.H.U. and I’ve been considering quite a bit in regards to the enterprise of vogue typically and the way it’s like a wave,” Villaseñor mentioned. “So for me, I wished to be part of one thing that was a bit extra concrete. It wasn’t decided by opinions or developments — on the finish of the day, it’s sports activities.” 

Villaseñor defined he’s impressed by the deep fandom and loyalty amongst soccer followers and desires Como 1907 to turn out to be a “globalized IP and a globalized identify” that may enchantment to a variety of individuals. 

He additionally believes the enchantment of Lake Como as a vacation spot provides the workforce an added layer of intrigue amongst followers that provides to the membership’s capability to turn out to be a way of life model. 

“Italians would hate for me to say it, however [Lake Como is] way more American than Italians would notice it to be as a result of it’s turn out to be like a centralized hub for Italy,” he mentioned. “Once you take a look at Italy, folks have their vacation spot locations, however I feel Como can turn out to be like a Los Angeles, after which somebody from Los Angeles that is aware of the right way to additionally construct manufacturers can use this as a solution to catapult the quantity of Como. For me, it’s leaning into the apparent. I respect the native Como folks, however I prefer to strategy it — I hate to say — like a vacationer coming in and leaning into the apparent and constructing way of life manufacturers round it.” 

As a part of the position, Villaseñor will create vogue and merchandise collections. The designer gave a sneak peek at what Como 1907 followers can count on from the collections throughout his Rhude spring 2025 ready-to-wear males’s runway present, which he additionally hosted in Lake Como. The gathering included types like co-branded Lago di Como rugby shirts and baseball caps. 

“I began Rhude with a watch of a vacationer coming into America and what I assumed the American dream was,” Villaseñor mentioned in regards to the upcoming collections. “That is me form of what the Italian George Clooney villa dream is. I don’t wish to point out too most of the names, however I feel it might be like the large homes of sports activities meets Loro Piana and Rhude and all that.”

Moreover, Villaseñor is planning collaborations and unique drops for the workforce. 

Villaseñor’s appointment to Como 1907 comes after the designer held an analogous position with NHL workforce the Arizona Coyotes from 2022 to 2023. Underneath the position of inventive strategist, Villaseñor created a number of collections and new iterations of the workforce’s hockey jerseys. 

The designer described his time with the Arizona Coyotes as “untimely,” saying that neither he nor the workforce “knew what we had been doing. 

“It’s about studying from our errors and adapting,” he mentioned. “With Como, it’s a a lot greater juggernaut and a a lot greater factor at stake for me. Additionally, being that I’m a minority proprietor of the membership, there’s much more at stake.” 

Villaseñor’s collections for Como 1907 will launch subsequent yr.