Who is Davide De Giglio? The Italian businessman is behind the success of some of the coolest brands of recent years
The news is now official: Elf Beauty has acquired Rhode, the brand founded by Hailey Bieber, in a deal that could exceed $1 billion. This marks the pinnacle (at least for now) of a meteoric rise for a brand launched only in 2022, one that has managed to rewrite the rules of beauty through a well-balanced mix of viral aesthetics, obsessive attention to product quality, and the charisma of a generational icon. Is it all thanks to Hailey? Not quite. From the beginning, she’s been joined by Davide De Giglio, a low-profile Italian entrepreneur who structured the company and guided it discreetly but decisively toward a staggering exit. While Hailey leads the creative direction and personifies the brand, it’s De Giglio who built the operational, strategic, and logistical foundation that enabled Rhode to grow at an extraordinary pace. Estimates suggest Rhode surpassed $200 million in sales in 2024, and according to De Giglio, could hit $300 million by year’s end. This achievement is also thanks to the logistical and industrial expertise of the New Guards Group founder, who crafted a lean and responsive beauty model with production based in Italy (for example, the Peptide Lip Tint is made there) and a remarkably fast time-to-market for a skincare brand.
From $700 in New York to New Guards Group
To truly understand who Davide De Giglio is, we need to rewind a few decades. Originally from Italy and with a degree in architecture, De Giglio arrived in New York in the 1990s with less than $1,000 in his pocket. He started by selling vintage T-shirts bought by the kilo and resold in Italy. His first big break? A brand called Vintage 55, built from scratch and later sold to a private equity fund. But it was in 2015 that he made his most significant move, co-founding New Guards Group with Claudio Antonioli and Marcelo Burlon. Based in Milan, NGG was something radically new: a hybrid platform between incubator and holding company, designed to scale young, powerful, and global brands by bypassing traditional luxury circuits. Under its wing, brands like Virgil Abloh’s Off-White, Francesco Ragazzi’s Palm Angels, Heron Preston, and County of Milan were born or grew. NGG handled everything: licensing, production, distribution, marketing. The goal? To build an empire of contemporary fashion—not for the red carpet, but for the algorithm. In 2019, Farfetch acquired NGG for $675 million, one of the most high-profile exits in Italian fashion. Bound by a five-year non-compete clause in fashion, De Giglio saw the perfect moment to pivot into fertile new territory: beauty.
Davide De Giglio: The Man Who Reinvented Luxury in Real Time
The real revolution of NGG wasn’t just about the names it invested in, but in its operational model. While the fashion industry still moves at a slow pace, De Giglio broke the mold and imposed a new paradigm: immediacy. He streamlined the supply chain, introduced a flexible and localized production system capable of launching and distributing a product almost in real time. It was a refined form of “see now, buy now,” adapted for the era of hype marketing and viral drops, turning fashion from a seasonal event into a continuous flow. The success was immediate. What makes De Giglio so relevant isn’t just his résumé: it’s his method. He didn’t just discover brands: he reinvented how they work. His ability to streamline processes, anticipate the market, and build flexible yet solid infrastructures has made him a crucial ally for emerging founders, especially in beauty. His philosophy is clear: in an age where trends are born and die on TikTok within 48 hours, you must be fast but resilient, creative but structured. His approach has been described by collaborators as “a skater with an engineer’s brain”, someone capable of turning aesthetic instincts into globally scalable businesses.
From Fashion to Beauty
With his fashion chapter temporarily closed, De Giglio turned to the fast-evolving beauty industry, now increasingly influenced by celebrity culture, visual storytelling, and emotional branding. This marked the start of a new wave of investments through D Capital, a Milan-based company with around 20 handpicked team members working alongside him on brand strategy. No external fund, no board to answer to: “I don’t have to talk to a board or other investors,” he said. All investments are self-funded. D Capital operates more like a free agency or creative task force than a corporate office. The philosophy is simple: support independent, visionary brands with disruptive potential. In each portfolio company, De Giglio plays a strategic advisory role, often working directly with founders to find suppliers, build teams, and define roadmaps. Among his bets: Isamaya Beauty, the bold and experimental brand by makeup artist Isamaya Ffrench and, of course, Rhode, the project launched by Hailey Bieber. Here, De Giglio is not just an investor, but a strategic partner, helping build the company’s structure and find the balance between image and substance, storytelling and scalability.
Rhode: Another Winning Move
The Rhode case is emblematic: launched in 2022, the brand has successfully converted Hailey Bieber’s fanbase into a record-breaking business. Minimalist packaging, a focus on essential yet viral products (like the Peptide Lip Treatment and seasonal collections), and a clear vision of beauty as lifestyle. Other key traits? A lean team, clear governance, and a growth strategy that drew the interest of major players like Elf Beauty, which put $800 million on the table upfront (including $600 million in cash) plus an additional $200 million in potential earn-out. Bieber will remain involved as founder and creative director, but the real engine for future growth lies in the solid entrepreneurial foundation built behind the scenes by people like De Giglio.
What’s Next?
With the sale of Rhode, Davide De Giglio has secured his second major exit in five years—after New Guards Group—cementing his position as one of the most influential (and perhaps underestimated) figures in global fashion and beauty entrepreneurship. Now free from his non-compete clause in fashion, the question is whether he’ll return to the industry. For now, he continues to expand his beauty and personal care portfolio—from the olfactory revival of the Florentine brand Santa Maria Novella to Eredi Zucca, a barbershop brand with Italian roots and global ambitions. One thing is certain: the next time you see a cult brand blow up on Instagram or on the shelves of a concept store, take a closer look. You just might find De Giglio’s invisible signature behind it.