Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Giorgio Armani himself defined the way he changed fashion when he described his approach to design, saying, “I was the first to soften the image of men, and harden the image of women. I dressed men in women’s fabrics, and stole from men what women wanted and needed—the power suit.”
The power suit
Indeed, the Italian designer made his name soon after establishing his own house in 1975 by giving men’s suits a more relaxed look than the then-prevalent structured style. He adapted the Neapolitan tradition of removing the lining and shoulder pads from a jacket to create a piece that sat languidly on the body. Combined with a simple pair of trousers and a monochrome palette, the outfit gave men an appearance of effortless elegance. This power suit quickly became the ubiquitous uniform of men throughout the 1980s and ’90s, made famous by Richard Gere in American Gigolo (1980) and worn by the likes of Los Angeles Lakers coach Pat Riley on the court.
Women were quick to adopt the unfussy look. Diana, princess of Wales, was often spotted wearing a chic oversize Armani suit, while Diane Keaton was the first to wear the designer on the red carpet. In 1978 she paired a softly lustrous jacket with a long, layered skirt when she won the Academy Award for best actress for Annie Hall (1977). Julia Roberts memorably wore a gray Armani suit to the 1990 Golden Globes, and Jodie Foster a pearly number to the 1992 Academy Awards, where she won the Oscar for best actress for The Silence of the Lambs.
The red carpet
The fact that actors wore Armani on the red carpet in the late 20th century may not surprise us today. We’ve become accustomed to seeing big-name fashion labels—Armani especially—at Hollywood events. Back then, however, this was not the custom, and it is widely acknowledged that Armani was the first designer to offer high-profile individuals the opportunity to wear his label. He reportedly accomplished this task with the simple overture, “Mr. Armani would like to dress you.” Through the mid-2020s, Armani dressed the stars, not only in power suits, but also in such pieces as column dresses with plunging necklines (Winona Ryder in 1996), sculptural gowns with dazzling fabric (Jennifer Lopez, 2010), and fluidly metallic numbers with one shoulder (Gemma Chan, 2025).
The empire
In the 21st century when many designers sold shares of their labels to such massive luxury conglomerates as LVMH or Kering, Armani was an outlier. He remained the sole owner of his company, which includes lines of perfume, accessories, jeans, sportswear, and housewares as well as the lower-priced brands Emporio Armani and Armani Exchange and limited-edition couture label Armani Privé. Armani maintained total control over the company’s operations and owned many of its factories and stores. At Armani’s death in 2025 the company had an estimated value of more than $10 billion.
Alicja Zelazko
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