Italian designer Giorgio Armani passes away at 91
Italian fashion designer Giorgio Armani passed away at the age of 91 on Thursday.
The designer is credited over his decades of practice with curating a quintessentially Italian aesthetic in his clothes, as well as taking Hollywood’s red carpets to new heights.
The Armani Group, bidding farewell to their founder said, “Il Signor Armani, as he was always respectfully and admiringly called by employees and collaborators, passed away peacefully, surrounded by his loved ones.”
The group, issued a statement on behalf of his employees, friends and family labelling Armani as “a tireless driving force.” The statement read: “In this company, we have always felt like part of a family. Today, with deep emotion, we feel the void left by the one who founded and nurtured this family with vision, passion, and dedication.”
It continued, “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.”
In June 2025, Armani was not present to take his usual bow at the brand’s show during Milan’s Men’s Fashion Week, marking the first time in his career he had missed his own runway event. At the time, the company released a statement that he was “currently recovering at home” without specifying his health condition.
According to a foreign media outlet, a string of celebrations for Armani’s 50th year in business have been planned to take place during Milan Fashion Week this month, including the unveiling of an exhibition at the Pinacoteca di Brera — the first at the museum to be dedicated to fashion — and a runway show at Palazzo Brera.
In August,
Talking to the Financial Times’ supplement HTSI in August, Armani opened up about his continued dedication to the fashion industry, and his company, where he still oversaw all creative direction. He said, “I don’t know if I’d use the word workaholic, but hard work is certainly essential to success. My only regret in life was spending too many hours working and not enough time with friends and family.”
Armani was born in 1934 in the northern Italian town of Piacenza. He didn’t show a professional interest in fashion until 1957. After studying medicine and then serving for a period in the military, he got a job as a window dresser at the historic La Rinascente department store in Milan. This was the move that sparked his lifelong association with Italy’s fashion capital.