“The Italian maestro of understated elegance leaves behind a $10bn empire and timeless legacy”

Giorgio Armani, the visionary designer who reshaped global fashion with his quiet sophistication and sleek tailoring, has died at the age of 91.

The Armani Group confirmed that he passed away peacefully, surrounded by loved ones, after working almost until his final days. A statement described him as “a forerunner, extending his vision from fashion to every aspect of living.”

His death comes just months after he missed Milan Fashion Week in June for the first time, as he recovered from illness. He had been planning to celebrate 50 years of his fashion house during the upcoming Milan shows, an anniversary that will now stand as a poignant marker of a life’s work.

Italy’s prime minister Giorgia Meloni led tributes, hailing him as “an icon, a tireless worker, a symbol of the best of Italy.” She said his elegance and creativity had brought international lustre to Italian fashion.

Born in Piacenza in 1934, Armani once dreamed of becoming a doctor before a part-time job as a window dresser in Milan changed his course. By 1975, alongside his partner Sergio Galeotti, he sold their car to fund a fledgling menswear label. Just a year later, womenswear followed.

The brand quickly became synonymous with modern Italian chic. His signature unlined sports jacket and simple trousers defined a relaxed silhouette that broke from rigid tailoring. His clothes embodied effortlessness yet exuded power—whether on Wall Street, in Hollywood, or at the highest levels of European business.

The Armani suit became a must-have for ambitious professionals, while his introduction of the pantsuit for women in the 1980s was nothing short of revolutionary. Dubbed the “power suit,” it mirrored the rise of female executives, offering them authority in boardrooms traditionally dominated by men.

Hollywood cemented his global reach. When Richard Gere strutted through American Gigolo in Armani tailoring, both actor and designer became stars. Armani went on to design costumes for more than 200 films and, in 2003, was immortalised with a plaque on Rodeo Drive’s Walk of Fame.

Stars from Jodie Foster to George Clooney, from Sophia Loren to Brad Pitt, wore his creations. Victoria and David Beckham fronted his underwear campaigns. And when the Guggenheim Museum in New York staged a retrospective of his first 25 years in 2000, it confirmed him as a designer who had not only defined how people dressed but how they thought about fashion itself.

“I design for real people,” Armani once said. “There is no virtue whatsoever in creating clothes and accessories that are not practical.” That clarity of vision helped turn Armani into a lifestyle empire worth more than $10 billion, spanning clothing, accessories, cosmetics, furniture, flowers and even chocolates.

Though private, Armani’s personal life was marked by loss. His partner Galeotti died in 1985, and Armani never had children. Instead, his niece Roberta became his closest confidante and public face at many events, abandoning her own film career to manage the brand’s image.

What set Armani apart was his commitment to timelessness. “I love things that age well,” he once said. “Things that don’t date and become living examples of the absolute best.”

As fashion bids farewell to one of its true titans, Giorgio Armani leaves not just a brand, but a philosophy—one of elegance without excess, style without noise, and beauty that endures