LAUNE x GioGio
It seems as though everyone is charming their bags. Long ahead of the trend, GioGio has been creating unique and stylish accessories that add a finishing and individual touch to each handbag. Inspired by their Italian nationality, siblings Giorgia, Max and Alessia have joined forces and combined their specialized knowledge to create their fabulous designs. Both whimsical and playful, their bag charms are utterly charming. Why should accessorizing not extend to handbags? Learn more about the creative world of GioGio below.
1. Tell me about yourselves and Gio Gio. How was it created? Where does the name come from?
GioGio was created by us Ascolani siblings; Giorgia, Max and Alessia. We’ve always been connected by a shared love of fashion, engrained into us by our mother and our Italian nationality. We always wanted to start some sort of project together so in late 2023 we started GioGio.
GioGio is named after Giorgia, whose collection of vintage handbags was the spark behind the brand. She’d been accessorising her bags for years as a way to refresh her wardrobe, and it wasn’t long before people started asking questions about her unique bag charms.
We realised there was a growing interest in personalising bags—especially as people look for ways to breathe new life into what they already own, rather than constantly buying new. That’s when we decided to turn the idea into something bigger, combining Giorgia’s creativity, Alessia’s eye for customisation, and Max’s business know-how.
Our first products were beaded chains—essentially jewellery for your bags. We have then been intermittently releasing bag charms. The experience of seeing your products being bought and then shown on social media is extremely fulfilling, although we have learned some tough lessons through trial and error.
Though we started the brand in London, we’re now spread across multiple timezones. Giorgia in London, Alessia in New York and Max in Los Angeles. Scheduling calls can be… difficult.
2. What is the LAUNE (mood) of Gio Gio?
Playful and chic. We don’t want to be taken too seriously!
3. What inspires you?
In a world where we’re all exposed to the same stream of information and visual inspiration—especially through social media—it’s amazing how people continue to find such unique ways to express themselves. We love seeing the creativity and individuality that goes into how people put their outfits together.
It’s even more inspiring when we spot GioGio chains being used in unexpected, unique ways. Seeing our designs become part of someone’s personal style is such a rewarding experience—it reminds us why we started this journey in the first place.
4. What does the design process look like?
We’re still finding our rhythm when it comes to the design process—it’s all pretty new to us, especially since we all have other jobs on the side. Often, it starts with a spark of inspiration. Alessia or Giorgia might spot something while out on the street, at a party, or in a bar, and that little idea takes off from there. For example, the idea for our chains came from seeing Italian women on the streets wearing pearls. We loved the elegance of it and wanted to translate that into a fun, modern way to repurpose vintage bags.
Sourcing materials is probably the most time-consuming part. We can spend hours rifling through shops or websites, searching for just the right size bead, thread or clasp. Once we have everything, we send it to our manufacturers—though, fun fact, for our first collection, we didn’t even have a manufacturer. Max made every single chain by hand in his apartment!
From there, it’s all hands on deck. We photograph everything ourselves, Alessia creates all the social media content, and Max runs the website and gets everything set up for sales. It’s a bit of a juggling act, but seeing it all come together makes it so worth it.
5. Favorite Gio Gio piece? Favorite way to incorporate Gio Gio?
Probably our favourite piece is the PB & J chain. Giorgia has a vintage Kelly Bag, and the amount of people who stop her on the street and ask her where she got the PB & J chain (which is a constant on the Kelly) is crazy.
6. Thoughts on how the “How to Jane Birkin-ify Your Bag” movement has taken the internet by storm?
We like to believe we were at the forefront of this movement! We have always added a certain little embellishment to our clothing and accessories, and we started the chains way before it kicked off on social media. However we do have to say (perhaps a bit controversially) we aren’t too keen on when the bag becomes absolutely ladened with accessories - we do prefer a more understated / pared down look !
7. What’s next for you all and Gio Gio?
As we mentioned before, we all have our own jobs / studies so we are going at our own pace! We would love to create more accessories, but we are really conscious of just adding unnecessary products into the space - we would love to create something with a purpose and something that will actually be useful and interesting as opposed to creating something for the sake of it! The chains came about because we genuinely wanted to use them, and to this day, we do. Our next products will need to be like that too.
Rapid Fire:
1. What’s one product you could not live without?
Ale: Cicalfate cream by Avene
Gio: Eyelash curler
Max: My passports
2. What are three staple items that every closet should have?
Ale: Vintage cowboy boots, a perfect white tee, and a small, colourful bag
Gio: Blazer, loafer, and a pair of good gold hoops
Max: Stan Smiths, smart trousers, 100% cotton tee
3. Describe your style in three words.
Ale: Understated, embellished, Eclecti-classic
Gio: Sciura with minimalism
Max: Simple, smart-casual
4. Early mornings or sleeping in?
Ale: Sleeping in
Gio: Sleeping in
Max: Early mornings
5. AM or PM skincare?
Ale: Sunday night skincare
Gio: PM Skincare
Max: Post-shower, after morning working
6. Dream collab?
Ale: Parke
Gio: gohar.world
Max: The Fabricant
7. Favorite drinks spot?
Ale: Le Dive in Dimes Square NYC
Gio: Hemmingway Bar, Ritz Paris
Max: The Hero - Maida Vale London
8. Favorite restaurant?
Ale: Titu in Shepherds Market, London
Gio: Al Moro, Rome
Max: Night + Market - Silverlake, Los Angeles
9. Favorite style icon?
Ale: Sharon Tate
Gio: Lee Radziwill
Max: Milanese men in their 60s
10. Favorite movie?
Ale: Moonrise Kingdom
Gio: Inglorius Bastards
Max: Cinema Paradiso
11. What are you loving right now?
Ale: Chunky 70s glass frames
Gio: My engagement ring!
Max: Japanese Jazz Rap. Listen to Luv(sic) Part 2 by Nujabes and Shing02
