Italian fashion behemoth Giorgio Armani has died at home, aged 91, according to his company.
“With infinite sorrow, the Armani Group announces the passing of its creator, founder, and tireless driving force: Giorgio Armani,” the company said in a statement, adding that he passed away “surrounded by loved ones.”
“In this company, we have always felt like part of a family,” the statement, released Thursday, said. Reacting to the post, fellow designer Donatella Versace posted a broken heart emoji. She followed up with a post of her own, writing: “The world lost a giant today. He made history and will be remembered forever.”
In the post made by the Armani Group, the company vowed to carry on the icon’s vision with the same “vision, passion, and dedication” that he did. He founded the brand in 1975.
Italy’s prime minister, Giorga Meloni, also paid tribute.
“Giorgio Armani leaves us at 91 years old. With his elegance, sobriety, and creativity, he was able to bring lustre to Italian fashion and inspire the entire world. An icon, a tireless worker, a symbol of the best of Italy. Thank you for everything,” she said.
The news comes just weeks ahead of a scheduled 50th anniversary celebration, set to be held at Milan Fashion Week in late September. Armani’s health had waned of late, and he missed three fashion shows he staged in June and July, due to illness.
The design icon, known as ‘Re Giorgio,’ which translates to King Giorgio, said just last week in an interview that his “greatest weakness” was his inability to relinquish control.
“Everything you will see has been done under my direction and carries my approval,” he said, referring to the shows that he missed. He was CEO and creative director right up until his passing.
“Indefatigable to the end, he worked until his final days, dedicating himself to the company, the collections, and the many ongoing and future projects,” the company statement added.
It also shone a light on how the company will continue without its figurehead. “The company is, now and always, a reflection of this spirit. His family and employees will carry the Group forward in respect and continuity of these values,” it said.
Armani himself said this would be the case. “There will be an Armani after Armani,” he said in his autobiography, Per Amore.
His brand quickly gained dominance in the luxury market when it was founded in Milan, Italy. It “defined the 1980s and shaped the course of fashion beyond it,” Vogue wrote in an obituary.
After Armani defined elegance in menswear, the company branched into beauty, fragrance, music, sports, and even luxury hotels.
Its intensely private owner, who revealed in a tell-all interview in 2000 that he had relationships with both women and men, earned a reputation as a powerhouse businessman, too—with his company generating more than $2.68 billion annually.
Armani, who had no children, had a net worth of over $12 billion when he died, according to Forbes. His fortune is expected to be shared between his sister Rosanna, two nieces, a nephew and long-term collaborator and head of menswear, Leo Dell’Orco.
Armani was born in the northern Italian town of Piacenza in 1934. After studying medicine in Milan, and a stint in the Army, he went into menswear design and eventually founded his eponymous brand.
His private funeral will take place this weekend in Milan.
“The funeral chamber will be set up from Saturday, September 6th to Sunday, September 7th, and will be open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., in Milan, at Via Bergognone 59, inside the Armani/Teatro. In accordance with Mr. Armani’s explicit wishes, the funeral will be held privately,” the company said.
Armani had spoken about regrets just days before his last breath. “My only regret in life was spending too many hours working and not enough time with friends and family,” he said in an August 29 interview with the Financial Times.
