Giorgio Armani died. The legendary designer revolutionized fashion forever

Legend fashion designer Giorgio Armani died at the age of 91, his company announced. The billionaire of Italian origin was the first designer after Coco Chanel who brought a long -term change in the way people dress.

“With infinite sadness, the Armani Group announces the passing of the creator, founder and tireless motor force of his: Giorgio Armani”said his fashion house in a statement.

“He extinguished quietly, surrounded by his loved ones. Tirelessly, he worked until the last days, dedicating himself to the company, collections and numerous projects in progress and future. Over the years, Giorgio Armani has created a vision that expanded from fashion to every aspect of life, anticipating the times with an extraordinary times. Deep granted to the present and to the people. said Armani.

The funeral room will be arranged from Saturday, September 6 until Sunday, September 7, and will be opened in Milan, in the Armani/Teatro premises.

“According to the explicit wishes of Mr. Armani, the funeral will take place in private”, transmitted the company.

He did not appear at his fashion presentations in June, because he recovered after a lung disease. According to Skynews, Armani, often recognized as a fashion pioneer on the red carpet, was planning an important event during this month’s Milan Fashion Week, to mark 50 years of existence of his brand.

First of all, he will be kept in mind for the reinvente of the costume-feminizing it for men and popularizing it for women. Armani has eliminated the restrictions and constraints of rigid styles before him-making men feel sophisticated and women feel strong at work, writes BBC.

Childhood and beginnings

Giorgio Armani was born in the city of Piacenza, in northern Italy, on July 11, 1934, being the son of Ugo Armani, an accountant at a transport company, and Maria Raimondi.

The comfortable middle class life of his family was destroyed by the war and, as the food was difficult to find, his oldest memory was hungry. He was playing on the street with unexploded howitzers, until one suddenly exploded. He was severely burned, and a close friend died.

“War”he said later, “He taught me that not everything is glamorous.”

In 1956, he started a medical school-but abandoned her after three years and enrolled in the army. Fast tired of military life, has been committed as a showcase decorator at RinaScente – a large universal store in Milan – where it advanced quickly.

Unlike other designers, who were learning as disciples or fashion schools, Armani made his apprenticeship directly on the store floor. He learned what materials the customers preferred and went to the spinning to buy them. He became an expert in the construction of fabrics and used his knowledge to perfect the tailor. In a short time, he worked for Nino Cerruti, a defluent haute couture couture designer, who put it to restructure the company’s approach.

The fashion revolution

The middle class of the 1960s could not afford Haute Couture, but it wanted a distinctive and elegant style. With his expertise in fabrics, Armani came with the answer: men’s fine fabrics, precisely tailored, but could be produced on a large scale.

Thus, the distinctive Italian style was outlined, which began to influence international fashion.

In 1966, Armani knew Sergio Galeotti, a young architect, who abandoned his career to work with his partner. Galeotti orchestrated the business side, even selling his Volkswagen car to collect the initial capital.

They started modestly – the office was so dark that Armani removed the lamps to see the fabrics. But their work was a real revolution.

Basically, Armani softened the lines of men’s clothes and strengthened the female lines.

Men’s costumes have become softer and more sensual, reflecting a change in the perception of masculinity, still unexplored in fashion.

For women, in the context in which more and more stepped in the field of work, Armani saw an opportunity: “I realized that they needed a way to dress equivalent to that of men. Something to give them dignity in professional life. ”

Thus appeared Power Suits – elegant costumes, impeccably tailored, which offered women an alternative to the rigid dresses of previous generations. They expressed femininity, but also a statement of equality.

In 1978, the company signed an agreement with the GFT manufacturer, which allowed it to manufacture ready-to-work luxury clothes.

At the same time, Armani achieved a great success of marketing: the contract to dress on Richard Gere in the American film Gigolo (1980). In almost every scene, Gere appeared dressed from head to toe in Armani-an image that made history.

He continued to wear celebrities on the red carpet at Oscars and create costumes for dozens of films and television series – of which The Untouchables and the police series from the 80s Miami Vice.

Within a decade, it has become the best -selling European designer in the United States. As a result, Milan appeared as a first -rate commercial and creative force in world fashion – immediately after Paris.

He then expanded his brand. He launched Armani Jeans and Emporio Armani – and a partnership with L’Oreal added perfumes to his portfolio.

The glasses, sports equipment, cosmetics and accessories followed. Now there is a whole lifestyle – under a single label – to which fashionable people could aspire. GQ magazine called “Total Look”.

Pain and perseverance

In 1985, Sergio Galeotti died at the age of 40 due to a disease associated with AIDS.

In a rare 2001 interview, asked what was the biggest failure of his career, Armani replied:

The fact that I could not prevent my partner’s death

Without a family to distract him, he dedicated his life to the extension of his empire.

Passionate about sports, he created costumes for Chelsea and for the national football team of England – as well as the uniforms for the Italian Olympic team in 2012.

Armani was considered the fashion pioneer on the red carpet

Armani was the first designer to forbade models with a body mass index (BMI) below 18, after the model Ana Carolina Reston died of hunger because of anorexia nerve.

Armani sent his collection live on the Internet, a premiere in the world of Haute Couture, on January 24, 2007. The fashion presentation Armani Primé Spring/summer 2007 was transmitted by MSN and Cingular mobile phones.

Armani has created numerous stage outfits for the Pop Lady Gaga SuperVedeta, including those worn in its Record Monster Ball Tour and Born This Way Ball Tour. He has also created outfits for numerous prestige award galas, such as the 52nd edition of the Grammy Awards and MTV Video Music Awards 2010.

The last years

In June 2024, a month before 90 years old, Armani was still present on the podiums in Paris and Milan.

In March 2025, he stated that his show in Milan intended to “pour oil on the troubled waters of global politics.” “I wanted to imagine a new harmony,” he said, “because I think we all need.”

In person, he was supple and sober. New York magazine described him as a “notorious disciplinary” and “dedicated to a self -control and a closure that could be perceived as a cold.”

Every morning, Armani swam in his swimming pool: it was 50 meters long, but only one meter wide – enough water to allow exercises. For some, the pool design embodied his life and business approach: minimalist, precise and purpose oriented.

For 65 years, Armani dedicated his life to this mission. And this brought an estimated fortune of Forbes to $ 13 billion (10 billion pounds).

“I am never satisfied,” he once told a journalist.

In fact, as someone who is always dissatisfied and obsessed with seeking perfection, I never give up until I get the results I want.

Armani’s wealth

Armani was one of the few designers who remained the unique shareholder of his company. So far, there is no obvious heir to the Armani business, who was evaluated by Bloomberg Intelligence analysts between 8 and 10 billion euros (9.3 billion to $ 11.7 billion).

Among the numerous distinctions of Armani are his appointment as a great officer of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic in 2021, one of the highest honors of the country, and a prize for the entire career from the Fashion Designers Council. In 2002, he was appointed ambassador of goodwill of the UN refugee Agency, UNHCR.