Giorgio Armani is known not only for his iconic fashion creations but also for his successful business approach and for establishing a global fashion empire that continues to thrive today. His brand represents a sophisticated and elegant aesthetic that transcends fleeting trends, establishing itself as a lasting reference in the fashion industry.

Born in Piacenza in 1934, a small town in northern Italy in the Emilia Romagna region, his childhood was lived amid the bombings of the war, alongside his parents Ugo Armani and Maria Raimondi, and his siblings Sergio and Rosanna.

According to him, despite going through difficult times where there were periods when he and his siblings were woken up every night by their parents and taken to shelters, he had a peaceful childhood surrounded by friends. 

Many attribute this challenging childhood to his ability to imagine wonderful worlds through clothing, from which the designer drew strength, energy, and a significant part of his success.

Armani mentioned in some interviews that his mother, he, and his siblings dressed elegantly in clothes that attracted attention for their style, despite financial difficulties. For him, his mother had a significant formative influence on his life, and his childhood was marked by simplicity.

"I have many memories of my past, of my childhood. They certainly influenced the choices in my work. I remember the elegance of my mother and father. Perhaps it was an inner elegance, also because we didn't have much money. I remember my mother making clothes for us boys. We were the envy of our schoolmates: we looked rich, but we were very poor."

Giorgio Armani does not consider himself an artist, but he knows the art of fashion well. His private life and work are intertwined with shyness and discretion, along with a determination to pursue his goals while remaining true to himself. And for this to happen, he sacrificed a lot.

"Life rewarded me, but I can say it also took a lot. I would have liked to enjoy many things that are normal for others, but I had to put them aside for this world."

The abandonment of medicine and his involvement with fashion

In 1949, at the age of sixteen, Giorgio Armani moved with his family to Milan. After graduating from high school, he enrolled at the University of Milan to study medicine and become a surgeon. After three years of studying, he had to interrupt his studies to fulfill his military service for two years, and he did not return to the university.

In 1957, he started working as a window dresser at La Rinascente, the renowned department store in Milan, which allowed him to come into contact with fashion. A fundamental step where he quickly succeeded.

"I approached the world of fashion by chance. I was in Milan unemployed, and then, through an acquaintance, I entered La Rinascente to take care of whatever was offered to me. They offered me to take care of the clothes, and along with that, I helped the architects who took care of the window displays. I did not expect to become a fashion designer, also because such a figure did not exist at the time. Let's say I wasn't very aware of myself, I had completed my medical studies without much conviction, I took advantage of military service to interrupt them, and I tried to understand what I wanted to do in life. Pure coincidence that I dealt with fashion, even hating it! It's not like I loved it very much at first."

He also worked as a salesman and purchasing assistant for the men's line, which contributed to his very particular vision of fashion, allowing him to come into closer contact with fashion and develop a keen sense of style with sharp business acumen.

In 1964, the first opportunity arrived when Nino Cerruti called him to collaborate with Hitman, the first factory of elegant ready-to-wear for men. It was here that his vision for deconstructed suits, proposed for Cerruti with more fluid fabrics, was shaped, and he then developed and matured this concept also with the use of more traditional materials in the collections that would bear his name.

Armani created suits with cooler colors and lighter fabrics; the deconstructed suits were successful, rejuvenating the Nino Cerruti brand and making him sought after as a freelancer by other manufacturers.

His Debut and the Founding of the Brand

His debut as a designer was in 1974 during the legendary Florentine fashion show at Palazzo Pitti in the Sala Bianca, and just a year later, he founded Giorgio Armani Spa, initially dedicated to men and expanded in 1976 to include women.

Giorgio Armani chose Sergio Galeotti, whom he met in 1966 during a vacation in Forte dei Marmi, as his loyal right-hand man. When he left the coast of Tuscany for the village of Pantelleria, the scents of this land served as inspiration for the fragrance Acqua di Giò. Together, they founded Giorgio Armani in Milan in 1975. 

Eleven years younger than Armani, Galeotti handled the financial direction while Armani led the creative direction. The initial investments, such as renting space in the center of Milan and hiring a small number of employees, were financed by selling his Volkswagen.

His medical studies made his fashion surgical: the length of a hem, the cut of a dress, a glove never too long, or a color never too bright, all measured and proportional to the millimeter. Thus was born the unmistakable style of Giorgio Armani, which avoids sensationalism and excess in favor of a healthy operation of cleaning and a desire for essentiality, without impoverishing it. Using light, natural fibers with good drape, he created sophisticated, discreet, and elegant tailoring.

“What I wanted to do immediately was to remove this very rigid image of men's clothing and give it a loose, casual air, closer to the human body. I think this was my favorable starting point, at a time when fashion needed a change.”

The women's line follows the same principles as men's clothing, with suits and blazers featuring masculine silhouettes. 

By transforming men's pieces into women's creations, using informal cuts and delicate fabrics, and playing with wide and controlled proportions, the designer not only recognized but exalted female power. 

His ability to provide freedom, combined with sensitivity in the details that contour the body, earned him recognition for his talent.

The Gray of Giorgio Armani

A precise shade of color that combines gray and beige, reminiscent of the wet sand of Trebbia from his childhood, but with the power to lighten a fantasy or become powerful in a total look. 

Gray is the symbolic color of Giorgio Armani and returns punctually in each collection, emphasizing the non-seasonal concept, to tint the gold of his High Jewelry collection.

“I was looking for a shade that was warm, but at the same time metropolitan, sober but not obvious. Gray is all that to me: discreet, sophisticated, and natural. I love natural colors; they give a deep sense of tranquility and serenity, and they are a base upon which you can build anything. They allow you to connect other colors to each other, enabling a link between distant tones. Gray is like a background color. Something that remains, above which you can imagine different combinations from time to time.”

In the 1980s, Giorgio Armani challenged traditional English techniques and tailoring by deconstructing the blazer. 

It was a daring operation that did not want to lose elegance: he eliminated rigid linings, projecting the shoulders outward, loosening them to create a more fluid image, even with thick textured fabrics. In a short time, the blazer became a symbol of the Giorgio Armani collection, for both men and women.

Giorgio Armani and American Style

In 1979, he opened his first store in the United States, and in 1983, he established an office in Hollywood with the aim of forming partnerships with film stars. He designed costumes, dressed actresses for awards ceremonies, supported and produced films as well as documentaries.

The first celebrity to wear Armani on the red carpet was Diane Keaton at the 1978 Oscars, where she won Best Actress for "Annie Hall."

With wardrobe designed by Giorgio Armani, Richard Gere became a symbol of charm and elegance as the lead in the film "American Gigolo" (1980), further enhancing the brand's success.

The brand dressed Sean Connery and Kevin Costner in the film "The Untouchables" (1987). In 1992, Kevin Costner wore Armani again in "The Bodyguard," Christian Bale in "The Dark Knight" (2008), Tom Cruise in "Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol" (2011), and Leonardo DiCaprio in "The Wolf of Wall Street" (2013).

In 1999, Armani was one of the producers of Martin Scorsese's documentary on Italian cinema, "My Voyage to Italy."

He also dressed enchanting women such as Sophia Loren for the 1978 Oscars, Jodie Foster (1992 Oscars), Renée Zellweger (2020 Oscars), and Anne Hathaway at the Cannes Film Festival. Cate Blanchett (President of the Jury at the 2020 Venice Film Festival) and Julia Roberts, who arrived with Giorgio Armani and his niece Roberta Armani on the Red Carpet of the 2019 British Fashion Council to celebrate the Outstanding Achievement Award.

Emporio Armani

In 1981, Giorgio Armani and Galeotti understood that the young people of the time needed an example of easy and recognizable fashion, and decided to create a new brand with characteristics different from the main brand.

Thus, Emporio Armani was born, with denim as the cornerstone of the new brand, the first Italian fashion brand to use jeans. The commercial success of this line was immense and quickly gained international recognition.

The eagle symbol was born by chance while Giorgio Armani was on the phone with his collaborators. In 1981, he designed two wings and a head, thus becoming an unmistakable symbol of Emporio Armani for over 40 years.

"Young people of all generations have their own obsessions. Perhaps what was different in 1981, regarding fashion, was that street style was something new. Emporio Armani seemed like a new disruptive code and indeed immediately became a social phenomenon."

"Today I am happy that Emporio Armani still speaks to new generations, who still respond to its energy and metropolitan vitality. The virtues I would like to show are a certain freedom: clothes used as tools of personal expression, with essential and profound simplicity that distinguishes Armani." (Written by the designer before the anniversary fashion show in Milan)

In 1982, they created Armani Jeans, which after over 30 years of success was incorporated into Emporio Armani in 2018.

1985 was a very difficult year for Armani; his partner Galeotti passed away, and his loss deeply impacted him. He took control of the company and became a complete entrepreneur, handling both creative direction and management of the company himself.

He never admitted another partner, nor did he sell the brand to corporate groups, becoming one of the wealthiest and most independent fashion designers in the world.

"It was very difficult; no one believed I would make it, except my family. Many predicted my psychological collapse."

He grew the company, and during this same period, a movement in fashion in the United States was gaining strength: streetwear, activewear, and Hip-Hop influencing youth clothing. 

Recognizing this change in the fashion world, Giorgio Armani was the first designer to invest in this segment for young people, free from fashion constraints.

In 1991, he launched A|X, Armani Exchange, thus anticipating the street chic trend present in contemporary tastes, targeting the young audience.

In 2000, he created Armani Collezioni to meet the demand for more affordable and timeless clothing.

Armani is a sports enthusiast, particularly of football and basketball, so in 2004, he decided to invest in this new segment and launched the EA7 (Emporio Armani 7) brand, becoming a competitor to brands like Adidas, Nike, and Puma.

Giorgio Armani Privé

The Armani Privé label was launched in 2005, specializing in haute couture where eccentricity and perfect balance coexist.

The poetics of Italian haute couture. But also a love for the exotic and the Orient that continues to emerge among the soft volumes and sophistication of craftsmanship, which, as he recently declared at the dawn of his 89 years, can manifest through hundreds of sequins sewn into a square centimeter of fabric.

His haute couture show in Paris has always been: Giorgio Armani creates a unique wardrobe for craftsmanship and preciousness, designed for the upper class or for dreaming.

It's a creative and cognitive effort aimed at excellence in tailoring with every cut, every approach, and every seam. Mastery that renews itself in all its manifestations like the latest Giorgio Armani Privé haute couture show.

Giorgio Armani's Private Life

Always very introverted and discreet about his private relationships, he has dedicated almost his entire life to work, linking work relationships with people.

"My life is reduced to a few hours a day, from nine in the evening until midnight. On weekends, I own houses, so I often surround myself with people who are from my office, who have become friends after so many years.

It's a closed circle: life is work, work is life. The people who work with me are my friends, and my friends are those who defend my cause.

My biggest regret is not taking care of myself enough. I have been very attentive to others, almost at the service of others, to the point of having to leave my job, or dividing the time of my life between private and public. I failed to do that."

As he has no children, Armani has made his nephews his heirs. Giorgio Armani and his niece Roberta Armani, who is a direct collaborator, are always together; she accompanies and represents him at events.

Silvana Armani works in the women's line, and Leo Dell’Orco has been with the company since 1977, in men's fashion.

Although there are many rumors circulating in the fashion world about Giorgio Armani's retirement, he is not considering retiring for now.

The Designer's Sensibility

He was the first to hold closed-door fashion shows to protect his guests from Coronavirus in February 2020; two years later, he chose a show without music against the war, as a sign of mourning for Ukraine.

He criticized the fashion system for its unnecessary and exaggerated rhythms through a letter addressed to WWD. And he announced a radical change towards a more humane and sustainable model.

"For years, I have been asking the usual questions during post-show press conferences, questions that often went unheard or were considered moralistic. The current emergency shows that a careful and intelligent slowdown is the only way out. It is a path that will finally bring value back to our work and ensure that the end customer perceives its importance. The decline of the fashion system as we know it began when the luxury segment adopted the operating methods of fast fashion, imitating this system in hopes of selling more, forgetting that luxury takes time to achieve and appreciate. Luxury cannot be 'fast.' It makes no sense for one of my jackets or dresses to survive in stores only three weeks before becoming obsolete, replaced by new clothes that are not much different. I don't work like that, and I find it immoral to work like that. I have always believed in a concept of timeless elegance, which is not just a precise aesthetic code, but also an approach to designing and creating garments. For the same reason, I find it absurd that, in the middle of winter, in boutiques, we find only linen dresses, while alpaca coats are in summer, for the simple reason that the desire to buy must be satisfied immediately."

Giorgio Armani, Open Letter to WWD, 03/04/2020

Armani's fashion philosophy is discreet simplicity, eliminating excesses, and considers it essential to meet the needs of men and women.

"They have found in my way of making fashion a style that repeats itself always, in a very coherent but also very innovative way. I think this has been the secret of my success: I don't see the reason to do creative work that is an end in itself. For people who love fashion and excess, Armani style is static. But it is a choice I have made. I would like to show to as many people as possible the things I did that no one noticed as creative. What I did was also filtered by clients, who do not want Armani to become 'one who follows trends,' but to be himself. People want Armani style, quality, comfort, and innovation. They want the logical, not the irrational."

In 2021, Giorgio Armani received from Sergio Mattarella, President of Italy, the title of Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic. The award ceremony took place privately at the Quirinale Palace in Rome.

"This is a particularly important recognition for me because it was given to me by our president, but also a man of immense value, great openness, and kindness. I am proud to represent Italy in the world and honored to receive this prestigious tribute."

At almost 90 years old, Giorgio Armani remains at the helm of the Armani brand and group as the sole owner and creative director since its inception. He has elevated Italian fashion to the top of the fashion world, a true empire.

Image credit: Giorgio Armani 

By jbanaggia