Who is the Creative Director of Byblos?
Manuel Facchini, originally from the historic city of Verona, is an exceptionally gifted Italian designer and visionary creative director. He currently spearheads the renowned and prestigious fashion brand BYBLOS. In 2022, he took on the challenge of relaunching the brand with a completely refreshed and innovative vision, placing strong emphasis on pivotal themes such as cutting-edge technology, contemporary art, sustainability, and groundbreaking experiential innovation. Manuel’s remarkable talent for reinterpreting the brand has infused it with a vibrant new energy and established a uniquely contemporary and compelling identity. He is particularly celebrated for his deeply conceptual aesthetic and highly original creative approach, which skillfully fuses seemingly disparate worlds: from dark gothic influences to dynamic sportswear; from the pulsating beats of electronic music to the imaginative realms of surrealist art; all intertwined with the lively, vibrant energy of urban life. This eclectic and bold combination manifests itself in a sophisticated, intricate, and multidimensional visual language that is capable of conveying complex and layered narratives through the medium of fashion.
Academic background
Since childhood, Facchini showed a natural inclination for artistic expression, turning the walls of his home hallway into experimental canvases. After graduating in Economics and Commerce at the University of Parma, he decided to follow his artistic instinct and moved to London, inspired by icons such as Alexander McQueen and John Galliano.
He was admitted to and graduated from Central Saint Martins School, one of the world’s most prestigious institutions for fashion design. There, he discovered a free and unconventional approach to creativity: references were not other designers, but the entire universe. Art, science, architecture, music, and everyday details became true sources of inspiration. This method led him to develop a deeply personal language built on contrasts and disconnected worlds, transformed through introspective and conscious reworking.
Vision & Career
For Manuel Facchini, fashion is an alchemical process: a tool to decode, translate, and reinterpret the world. He never settles for the surface. His aesthetic pursuit is driven by the desire to go beyond what is visible, revealing the deeper meanings behind shapes, symbols, and visual codes. This quest also emerges in his passion for surrealism, particularly the works of Salvador Dalí.
His creative approach is fed by heterogeneous and often opposing sources: from the sacredness of nature to technological precision, conceptual art to electronic music, gothic symbolism to streetwear, and the chaotic vitality of urban life. Through fusing these extremes, he constructs a new and deeply personal aesthetic vision.
He is deeply inspired by Ibiza, which he considers one of his main creative references: a place of radical inclusivity, spiritual connections, and an emotionally charged sound culture. The electronic music of the island becomes an emotional art form in his universe, shaping visions, atmospheres, and visual narratives.
Upon returning to Italy, Facchini worked for brands such as Fendi Jeans and Anglomania, before joining the creative team of BYBLOS. In 2015, he launched his own label, Manuel Facchini, showcasing his collections in London. The eponymous brand blends gothic, rock, and sportswear into a refined, architectural, and distinctive aesthetic. In 2022, he took the helm of BYBLOS not only as Creative Director but also as the strategic leader of the brand’s overall direction. He has driven its revival with a vision aligned with his creative path: merging stylistic freshness, ironic visual codes, and bold color choices with a more sensory, technological, and cultural dimension.
Under his leadership, BYBLOS is evolving into an ecosystem where ecology and innovation are not merely conceptual tools, but foundational values. Ecology, in particular, is not just a rhyme with technology: it becomes a guiding mantra, a design language influencing every phase – from ideation to production. The brand is reshaping itself into a contemporary laboratory of style and experimentation.
Philosophy
Manuel Facchini is recognized for his empathetic creativity, his ability to combine artistic vision with strategic execution, and for his refined sensitivity that leads him to build collections and projects that speak to the present while envisioning the future. Each creation is the result of a symbolic, cultural, and introspective process, where where aesthetics always carry meaning
