Fashion icon Giorgio Armani has died at the age of 91.
The Italian designer passed away peacefully at his home surrounded by his family, the Armani Group announced.
In a statement released today, the fashion firm announced his death ‘with infinite sorrow’.
Armani died just weeks before the 50th anniversary of the company that he had founded.
The self-confessed workaholic had previously revealed how his biggest regret in life was ‘spending too many hours working and not enough time with friends and family’.
‘In this company, we have always felt like part of a family,’ the Armani Group said.
‘Today, with deep emotion, we feel the void left by the one who founded and nurtured this family with vision, passion, and dedication, but it is precisely in his spirit that we, the employees and the family members who have always worked alongside Mr. Armani, commit to protecting what he built and to carrying his company forward in his memory, with respect, responsibility, and love.’
Armani had been CEO and creative director up until his death and said in his last interview last weekend: ‘My greatest weakness is that I am in control of everything.’
Fashion icon Giorgio Armani has died at the age of 91, the Armani Group has announced
Armani is pictured here during One Night Only series in Dubai on October 26, 2021
Armani is applauded at the end of the Armani Haute Couture Fall-Winter fashion collection in Paris in July 2018
Armani was synonymous with modern Italian style and elegance. He combined the flair of the designer with the acumen of a businessman, running a company that turned over some 2.3 billion euros ($2.7 billion) a year.
He had been unwell for some time, and was forced to drop out of his group’s shows at Milan’s Men’s Fashion Week in June, the first time in his career that he had missed one of his catwalk events.
Known as ‘Re Giorgio’ – King Giorgio – the designer was known for overseeing every detail of his collection and every aspect of his business, from advertising to fixing models’ hair as they head out on to the runway.
A funeral chamber will be set up on Saturday and Sunday in Milan, the company said, followed by a private funeral at an unspecified date.
This is a breaking news story. More to follow.
