Giorgio Armani

Moscow , GUM department store , Red Night Party (2009)

Vogue ’s Fashion Night Out in Milan (2009)

Armani with players from Olimpia Milano he sponsored (2009)

Giorgio Armani (Italian [ ˈdʒordʒo arˈmaːni ]; born July 11, 1934 in Piacenza , Italy ) is an Italian fashion designer and entrepreneur .

Armani is considered one of the " greatest fashion designers of the 20th century ". He is the sole owner of the international fashion company Giorgio Armani SpA , which he founded in 1975 and which operates more than 2,000 stores in 60 countries. After his colleague Miuccia Prada , Armani was ranked fifth on Forbes' 2013 list of the richest people in Italy.

biography

Giorgio Armani was born on July 11, 1934 at 7:20 pm in Via Colombo in Piacenza, the son of Maria Raimondi and Ugo Armani working as a manager of a transport company († 1962), worked after an aborted medical studies first as a window dresser , then as Exhibition arranger and eventually became a fashion buyer and manager of the men's fashion boutique at La Rinascente department store in Milan . From 1961 to 1971 he worked under Nino Cerruti , for whose men's brand Hitman he designed men's suits. In 1966 Armani met his later partner Sergio Galeotti, an architect , from 1970 he ran a design studio and worked freelance for Ungaro and Zegna . His first collection followed in 1974. A year later, Armani founded Galeotti, his own company named after him. Armani first made a name for himself with elegant men's fashion. Elegantly cut and stylish suits in muted colors became his trademark. His international breakthrough followed in 1976. He expanded and began to sell his creations in America as well. There he also acted as a costume designer for high-profile film productions, such as “ A man for certain hours ” and “ The incorruptible ”.

In 1980 he expanded his range and brought his first women's collection onto the market. In the same year he designed the uniforms of the Italian Air Force and launched his first perfume in cooperation with L'Oréal . The women's fragrance "Armani" followed in 1982 and is considered one of the most successful fragrances of the 1980s. In 1985, Armani's friend and business partner Galeotti, who was responsible for the company's management, died of a heart attack after two years of leukemia , according to media reports . After Galeotti's death, Armani took over his 50% stake in the company and Galeotti's responsibilities. Over the years, the portfolio has been expanded to include numerous collections. The initially small fashion company developed into an international fashion empire.

In 1991 Giorgio Armani was awarded an honorary doctorate from the “ Royale College of Art ”. In the following years he split the brand into different business areas. This resulted in the sub-brands “Giorgio Armani”, “Emporio Armani” and “Mani”. Their range differed from one another in quality and price. In 1996, Armani's close friend Eric Clapton began wearing his clothes as a stage outfit and shortly thereafter opened two Emporio Armani stores in New York City . That same year, Armani was after a bribery claim against the Italian tax authorities, who also fashion companies such as Krizia , Gianfranco Ferré and Versace , concerned in Milan to nine months imprisonment on probation convicted. In 1997 Eric Clapton composed pieces for Armani's fashion shows, and in 1999 Armani hosted a party for the Crossroads auction in Hollywood for Clapton. In 2008, Armani bought the Olimpia Milano basketball club , which has since been officially named EA7-Emporio Armani Milano after Armani's EA7 sports collection .

In 2000, Armani expanded its empire with its own cosmetics line called "Armani Cosmetics". He also started designing stage outfits for international stars like Billy Joel and Tina Turner. In 2001 the Armani company headquarters were relocated to a converted food factory: "Teatro Armani". At the Milan Fashion Week in 2003, Giorgio Armani presented the Mercedes-Benz convertible "CLK Giorgio Armani Design Car" that he designed.

Giorgio Armani, Venice 1997

In addition to Italian , Giorgio Armani speaks French and only a little English , is considered uncompromising, sometimes quick-tempered, “obsessed with details and an ascetic”. His sister Rosanna and her family, like her son Andrea Camerana, as well as the family of his late older brother Sergio, like his daughters Silvana and Roberta Armani, are employees in his company. In February 2007 Giorgio Armani, who is single and has no children himself, publicly announced that he was looking for buyers for his fashion empire. The company was already valued at around five billion euros in the mid-2000s . At the beginning of the 2010s, Armani's personal wealth was estimated at 7.2 billion euros. Since Sergio Galeotti's death, Armani has been in control of all company processes himself, watching over the brand image and even supervising the licensed introduction of underwear , swimwear, accessories , children's clothing, corrective glasses and sunglasses.

Armani is still the sole shareholder of his financially independent company. The numerous takeover offers from major fashion companies like LVMH in the 1990s he had always refused. He didn't go public because he didn't need any additional money and didn't want to be “directed by the market”. He chose a stylized eagle as Armani 's trademark and company logo for the Armani Jeans , Emporio Armani and Armani Junior fashion lines . Armani himself likes to appear in a simple dark blue T-shirt or cashmere sweater.