Robert Geller began his fashion career after graduating from RISD in 2001 as a trainee-ship at Marc Jacobs, where he assisted on four collections before joining Alexandre Plokhov at Cloak. Geller launched his namesake collection in 2007.

In 2009, GQ Magazine named him Best New Menswear Designer in America. He was also a finalist for the 2010 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund, and won the CFDA Swarovski Award for Menswear the following year.

He launched Gustav von Aschenbach in July 2017, at Cadillac House during New York Fashion Week: Men’s.

The label takes its name from the main character in Thomas Mann’s Death in Venice. The famous novel is steeped with references from music (Gustav Mahler gave the character his name) to Freud’s findings.

The fashion label’s ”von” suffix evokes a “tongue-in-cheek” nobility. Gustav von Aschenbach is an instantiation of his desire to make his designs easily available and to reach a broader public.

It’s about wearability, comfort and ease, new, special yet wearable shapes, “a great product at a great price point.” It’s also a continuation of the designer’s exploration of color the he is known for with his namesake collection.