The Armani Group has announced the passing of Giorgio Armani, who died peacefully surrounded by his loved ones , after a life dedicated to his house and his designs. The company emphasizes that the designer, respectfully known to his colleagues as “Il Signor Armani,” continued working until his final days and remained attentive to current and future projects.
The company has announced that the wake will be held at the Armani/Teatro , located at Via Bergognone 59 (Milan), from 9:00 a.m. to 18:00 p.m., and that the funeral will be private , as requested by the designer himself. In recent months, Armani missed several fashion shows due to health reasons and oversaw them via videoconference; in his last interview , published by HTSI (Financial Times), he confessed: “My greatest weakness is that I control everything .”
A legacy that redefined elegance
A tireless worker and aesthete of unwavering principles, Armani revolutionized the suit by deconstructing jackets , softening lines, and combining comfort with sophistication—an idea that transcended genders and eras. His designs, with their androgynous air and timeless elegance , gave women a powerful uniform for work and freed men from inherited rigidities.
Fluid tailoring, shades of gray, beige, and navy, and his precise understanding of the body and fabric established a universal style code . Simultaneously, his commercial vision spoke volumes in black and white: clean, minimalist campaigns that are now part of fashion's visual history.
Hollywood became his global megaphone. The release of American Gigolo (1980), with Richard Gere in Armani, established a new image of contemporary seduction. Later came The Untouchables , The Aviator , The Wolf of Wall Street , and Ocean's Thirteen , as well as a constant presence on red carpets alongside Julia Roberts, Cate Blanchett, Lady Gaga, and Zendaya, and impeccable tuxedos for George Clooney.
With Armani, the suit ceased to be armor and became a second skin , a language that continues to live on today in the proliferation of wide blazers and modulated shoulders that populate offices and catwalks around the world.
From Piacenza to the world: the beginnings
Born in Piacenza, Italy, in 1934, Armani first tried his hand at medicine at the University of Milan and completed his military service before discovering his true calling: design. He began as a window dresser at La Rinascente , where he learned to read the customer's desires and to understand fabrics with a precision that would define his career.
In the early sixties, he moved to Nino Cerruti , a pivotal experience that honed his eye for high-quality industrial tailoring. In 1975, together with architect Sergio Galeotti, he launched his eponymous label and presented men's and women's collections that challenged traditional codes through lighter structures and new proportions.
Armani preferred order, method, and functional clothing. He himself adopted a "uniform" of a navy blue T-shirt so as not to distract from the message of his work. As he recounted in Martin Scorsese's documentary Made in Milan (1990), sobriety was always both a tool and a principle.
His early fascination with classic cinema—Cary Grant among his references—and the expanding industrial Italy converged in a style that embodied modern Made in Italy , more Milanese than traditional and destined to last.
A global business, faithful to its independence
Armani mastered the risky world of licensing and diversification without losing creative control: from haute couture (Armani Privé) and ready-to-wear (Giorgio Armani, Emporio) to watches, beauty, home and decoration , as well as gastronomy and hotels. In 2010, he opened the Armani Hotel in Dubai's Burj Khalifa , with interiors designed by himself.
His contribution wasn't limited to the product. He championed responsibility: in 2006 he set a milestone by banning underweight models from his fashion shows, since 2016 he has eliminated fur from his collections, and in 2020 he donated more than one million euros to the fight against COVID-19. He was also appointed a UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador in 2002.
Its empire continued to grow without selling out: even in an era of conglomerates, the company remained independent . In 2024, the group reported a turnover exceeding €2.300 billion , in a challenging environment for the luxury sector, with occasional declines in profits.
Beyond fashion, his label outfitted teams and national squads , from Chelsea to England, and designed the uniforms for the Italian Olympic team (2012). The Guggenheim exhibition (2000) recognized his cultural impact and asserted that fashion design could also be art.
Recent years, succession and what's next
The designer missed his first runway shows in Milan and Paris due to health issues, though he continued to oversee them remotely. He had planned to join the celebrations for his fashion house's 50th anniversary with an exhibition at the Pinacoteca di Brera. In the midst of the pandemic, he issued a statement against the frenetic pace of the industry: " I no longer want to work like this ; it's immoral," criticizing the accelerated obsolescence of collections.
A staunch advocate of orderly continuity, he outlined a succession plan : a gradual transfer of his responsibilities to Leo Dell'Orco (long-time head of the men's line), members of his family, and the management team. The company emphasizes its commitment to protecting what has been built and projecting it into the future with respect and responsibility.
The wake is being held at the Armani/Teatro in Milan (Via Bergognone 59) , open to the public from morning to afternoon for two days, and the funeral, at the designer's express wish, will be private . Colleagues, clients, and the luxury industry have expressed their condolences for the loss of a key figure of the last half-century.
What remains is the legacy: a cohesive brand system, an aesthetic that balances rigor and naturalness, and a work ethic that transformed the extraordinary into the everyday . Its imprint is found in wardrobes and cities, in pop culture, and in the very idea of elegance in the contemporary world.
Consistency defines Armani's story: an unmistakable style and an iron discipline . Between runways, hotels, perfumes, and suits that continue to speak for themselves, his legacy lives on in every well-cut garment, on every red carpet, and in that quiet gesture of elegance that doesn't shout, but is always remembered.