Fashion legend Giorgio Armani passes away, leaving behind a fortune of more than 12 billion USD

Giorgio Armani - Ảnh 1. — Giorgio Armani passed away peacefully in Milan surrounded by his loved ones - Photo: REUTERS

According to DW, designer Giorgio Armani started his career in the 1970s and quickly built a fashion empire associated with elegance, quality and personal mark.

For nearly half a century, Giorgio Armani has been one of the pioneers shaping international fashion, often mentioned alongside Coco Chanel.

Fashion Revolution

Giorgio Armani achieved many successes, even creating his own color called "greige" - a blend of gray and beige, which became his signature. Giorgio Armani considered it a way to honor Milan, a city he always called "gray".

As early as the 1970s, Giorgio Armani revolutionized the otherwise rigid, conservative suit by softening it. He removed the lining, changed the button layout, and lowered the shoulder, creating a more casual look for both men and women.

Giorgio Armani - Ảnh 2. — "The core spirit of my style is to express the complex in a simple way" - Giorgio Armani once shared - Photo: DPA

Not only stopping at suits, Giorgio Armani also made a splash with his first women's collection launched in 1975. His neutral, feminine yet strong style was in tune with the feminist movement of the time. Giorgio Armani skillfully brought softness to outfits that were traditionally associated with men.

Giorgio Armani was born on 11 July 1934 in Piacenza, near Milan. His father worked as an accountant for a transport company and was imprisoned after the war for his links to Mussolini's fascist regime. This harshness may have influenced Giorgio Armani's reaction to confinement, which is evident in his free-spirited fashion style.

Giorgio Armani - Ảnh 3. — For decades, Armani has remained the creative soul of the brand - Photo: AFP

Despite being a billionaire, Giorgio Armani lives a simple life in two attics in Milan. He is almost hidden, rarely appearing in public. The familiar image of Giorgio Armani is a navy blue cashmere sweater and simple flannel pants.

Giorgio Armani is so prominent in his homeland that he has designed uniforms for police and taxi drivers in Milan. At the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, the Italian team will also wear Giorgio Armani designs. He has strong ties to sports and even owns a basketball team in Milan.

Assets of more than 12 billion USD

Since the 1980s, his love of cinema brought Giorgio Armani to Hollywood. He admired Italian director Luchino Visconti as much as Alfred Hitchcock, and loved the legendary beauty of Marlene Dietrich or Cary Grant.

Giorgio Armani soon realized the huge influence that the film capital could bring and he designed costumes for the film American Gigolo with Richard Gere, opening a deep mark of the Armani brand in Hollywood.

Giorgio Armani - Ảnh 4. — Giorgio Armani poses with models after the Emporio Armani Spring/Summer 2022 collection show during Milan Fashion Week, Italy, September 23, 2021 - Photo: REUTERS

In 1981, he founded his second brand, Emporio Armani, aimed at young fashion-conscious people. The company expanded beyond clothing to hotels, perfumes, eyewear, coffee, chocolate, jams, furniture, carpets, and even cars.

Giorgio Armani is considered the most successful designer in Italy, ranked in the top 10 richest people in the country. According to Forbes , in 2024 his assets are estimated to be more than 12 billion USD.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, when Italy was hit hard, Giorgio Armani donated around 2 million euros to hospitals in Milan, Rome and Bergamo, and converted its factory to produce protective clothing for frontline medical staff.

Giorgio Armani - Ảnh 5. — Giorgio Armani, Leo Dell'Orco and Gianluca Dell'Orco greet the audience after the Spring/Summer 2025 collection show during Milan Fashion Week, Italy, June 17, 2024 - Photo: REUTERS

In the last years of his life, Giorgio Armani's health declined. Last June, he was forced to miss Milan Men's Fashion Week for the first time in his career. However, he was determined not to withdraw completely and continued working until the end.

Today, the Armani Group has approximately 8,700 employees worldwide, more than 2,000 stores in prime locations and dozens of manufacturing plants. When Giorgio Armani is no longer around, that legacy will be inherited and developed by his successors, and the fashion world is eagerly waiting to see who they will be.