He hasn’t always dreamt of catwalks or spotlights. Giorgio Armani, born in 1934, grew up in Piacenza when Italy was still healing the wounds of war. As a boy, he was curious, observant, and almost shy. He didn’t think about fashion: he chose medicine, attracted by the idea of helping others. But life, as we know, loves to surprise us. After a few years of study, he left university and moved to Milan, where he started working at La Rinascente. It was there, among shop windows and fabrics, that he discovered a new world of shapes, colours and details. Without knowing it, he had just embarked on a path that would change Italian fashion forever.
In the 1960s, he met Nino Cerruti: it would turn out to be a critical encounter. Armani joined his atelier and, day after day, learned the secrets of sartorial elegance. He thus developed what would become his signature style: lightweight jackets without stiff linings, designed to move with the body. A simple yet revolutionary idea, capable of breaking down the barriers between formality and comfort and writing a new chapter in the history of Italian style.
The origins of a Made in Italy legend
The real breakthrough came in 1975, when, together with his partner Sergio Galeotti, he founded the Giorgio Armani fashion house in Milan. Initially, the brand focused on menswear, but it wasn’t long before a women’s line was added, with collections that seduced the public with their freshness and understated elegance. Cinema played a decisive role in transforming Armani into a global icon. In 1980, Richard Gere wore his jackets in American Gigolo, establishing the designer as a global style icon and beginning a partnership with the world of cinema that has led Armani to create costumes for more than 200 films.
From fashion to lifestyle: the expansion of the Armani brand
The 1980s marked the beginning of unstoppable expansion. Emporio Armani, Armani Jeans and Armani Junior were launched. Strategic partnerships were formed, such as those with L’Oréal for fragrances and Luxottica for eyewear. Then came the leap into parallel worlds: luxury hotels, furniture lines, cosmetics, and exclusive clubs. An empire built with consistency, always speaking the same language: elegance, moderation and quality. Over time, Armani has maintained complete control: he is not only creative director, but also CEO and sole shareholder of the company. At the heart of it all remains the cult of Made in Italy craftsmanship. Each jacket requires over thirty hours of manual labour, thirty-three ironing steps and the use of rich fabrics such as wool, silk and linen.
Innovation and responsibility
Armani’s was the realm of quiet luxury. An elegance that did not need to raise its voice to be recognised. His sober and measured style, based on the principle of “less is more”, has become a timeless symbol, capable of transcending fashions without ever being affected.
In recent years, Armani has demonstrated that modernity also involves responsibility. He signed the Fashion Pact, introduced renewable energy into his processes and reduced waste. During the pandemic, it converted part of its production to manufacture medical gowns and made substantial donations to Italian hospitals. It has launched projects to promote regenerative cotton in Puglia, launched eco-friendly capsule collections and set ambitious targets to reduce emissions by 2030.
A special award
On 12 May 2023, his history as an entrepreneur and visionary received special recognition: his fifth honorary degree, awarded in his hometown of Piacenza at the Università del Sacro Cuore. On that occasion, Armani explained how the title rewarded not only his creative journey, but also his role as an entrepreneur and the passion that allowed him to transform a dream into a solid group, a symbol of Made in Italy.
Style details
The story of Giorgio Armani is punctuated with details that reveal the genius behind the legend. The Emporio Armani eagle logo, for example, was created almost as a joke, scribbled during a phone call, and has become a timeless icon. Or Armani/Silos, the museum inaugurated in Milan in 2015 in a former grain warehouse, transformed into a space that tells about four major pillars of his aesthetic: androgyny, ethnic influences, the glamour of the red carpet and the digital archive, which encompasses decades of Made in Italy creativity. Even the years spent studying medicine have left their mark. That almost surgical precision, sense of proportion and pursuit of perfect detail: everything has remained and is reflected in every Armani garment.
The legacy
Giorgio Armani passed away on September 4, 2025, in Milan, at the age of 91. His story is that of a man who, starting from nothing, conquered the world without ever losing sight of himself. And like his clothes, this story will never go out of style.