The House That Armani Built
Giorgio Armani, the Italian fashion designer who grew his clothing business into a multi-billion dollar luxury empire, has died, aged 91. Revisit his 2022 interview with Mastermind.
Photography by Ethan James Green
Giorgio Armani, the Italian fashion designer who grew his clothing business into a multi-billion dollar luxury empire, has died, aged 91. Below is an interview with Armani, published in Mastermind 11, May 2022.
How far can one car take you? In the early 1970s, Giorgio Armani sold his old VW Beetle in order to pay for the office space and materials to create his first women’s wear collection. Today, the 87-year-old reins over a luxury empire valued at $7.2 billion, according to Forbes. As chairman and C.E.O. of the Armani Group, he has built an international conglomerate known for its elegant yet confident style – a reputation cemented in 1980 when he created Richard Gere’s wardrobe in American Gigolo.
The relaxed tailoring, broad shoulders and neutral color palette of those costumes changed the way the world’s powerful dressed. In the ensuing decades, Armani expanded his empire while remaining commercially independent, and even today he answers only to himself. In the following conversation, he reflects on how his values were forged through a child- hood marked by war, the shifting responsibilities of leading a business and how to create a legacy that endures.
The Armani empire spans ready-to-wear, couture, cosmetics, furniture, hotels, restaurants, nightclubs and more. What is your business philosophy? What connective thread ties these ventures together?
GIORGIO ARMANI My business philosophy is, quite clearly, diversification. I aim at building a whole world, much like a film director – which is, in fact, what I would like to be in my dreams. The world I imagine is, of course, based on my taste, which expresses sophisticated simplicity and the firm will to put the person first, not the designer nor the products. This is the connective ideology of a variety of activities. I would call it humanism, the Armani way.
What do you consider your key responsibilities? Have these changed through the course of your career, particularly in the last few years?
GA The older I get – and the more I am seen as a role model – the more I feel a responsibility toward the community to lead by example. An example of commitment, hard work, attention to people and to the environment. Fashion, and what revolves around it, may be deemed superficial but is in reality an industry that strikes a deep chord with everyone and that ultimately has a huge impact on the planet. I am aware that a good example in my daily practice can have a global impact.
How do you maintain yourself and your health – physically and mentally – while helming the business?
GA I stick to a very simple yet infallible rule: mens sana in corpore sano [a healthy mind in a healthy body]. This means that, every day, I take time for myself. I do it at the beginning of the day, with exercise, and by eating in a healthy way. I also try to be in bed not too late. Reclaiming such personal spaces helps me keep my mind clear and focused. Also, despite being a veritable workaholic, I do take time off to recharge, usually by the sea. The vast, open horizon energizes and soothes me in several ways.
In what ways is the business’s independence the key to its success? Are there any ways in which it’s a hindrance?
GA Independence is certainly hard, as one can only rely on one’s own forces. In this sense, it is not a hindrance, but a burden. And yet, the freedom to do as one wishes is unbeatable. I could never, ever have done it in any other way. Diversification stems from my ideas: I have no board of investors to please.
You grew up during World War II. What are your strongest memories of that time in your life?
GA The war was a miserable time that we overcame with energy, fantasy, hard work and goodwill. It gave me a lifetime lesson and the awareness that one can lose everything in a second. War forged my will for betterment and the importance of personal commitment. It is hard to put it into words. It made me love life.
Is there a connection between that period of your youth and your ambition to study medicine?
GA In a way, yes. I wanted to help the community, and medicine seemed so important. I gave back to the community in other ways: through beauty, for instance, which is just as important.
Are there any lessons from your parents that have guided your decisions over the years?
GA My parents were fully committed to our well-being. Although we had little, they never made us feel like we had nothing. They taught us dignity, which I think is a fundamental but sadly neglected quality nowadays.
I’m interested in whether you’ve experienced failure and what you took from these experiences.
GA Failure is part of life and a very formative experience. I did experience failure in my life and came out stronger. When I left my studies, for instance. Embarking on a career in fashion proved right, in the end. I felt failure when Sergio Galeotti, my partner and the one who pushed me into building all of this, passed away. I felt alone, exposed, weak, but I came out stronger.
What is your definition of success? Is it different today, compared with when you were building your business?
GA I thought success was being famous, being recognized by people on the street. Today, I think success is giving a good example, being a role model. It is somewhat less selfish than one expects.
And what is your definition of power?
GA Power is the possibility to turn thoughts and ideas, even difficult ones, into reality. Again, it should be used to give back, not as a self-aggrandizement, although it can be difficult.
You designed Richard Gere’s wardrobe for American Gigolo, and it made you world-famous. You’ve said that this experience taught you about the powerful impact celebrities can have on the public. What do you make of the symbiosis between celebrity and fashion today?
GA I have the feeling that, today, the link between celebrity and fashion is not as genuine as it used to be – it is more industrial, in a way. It’s about having the most famous actor or TikToker and dressing him or her. Back then, it was a dialogue: we, as designers, spoke to the artists who felt closer to our world. This made for something more personal, which I do not see much today.
Instead of asking who will succeed you, I want to know what your hope is for the business. How do you see the future of Armani? What legacy do you hope to create?
GA I think that with my style, I have achieved a timelessness that my heirs can evolve and adapt. And I hope Armani keeps the openness, the independence and the quest for sophisticated simplicity it has today. I hope it keeps the democratic spirit, the diversification and the ability to talk to a transversal audience.
Finally, who is your Mastermind? Who is someone who inspires you or whom you admire, and why?
GA This is a hard one, really, and I have no definitive answer. Anyone who believes in what they do and works hard to attain it is a role model, from the commoner to the Pope. Willpower is my mastermind.
All clothing by Giorgio Armani Archive. Fashion by Xenia May Settel and Tess Pisani. Hair by Damien Boissinot. Makeup by Hiromi Ueda. Manicure by Eri Narita. Tailoring by Carole Savaton. Casting by Piergiorgio Del Moro at DMCASTING. Model: Ida Heiner at Scoop. Digital operations by Nico Fallet. Production by Alexandra Carney and Anaïs Ngbanzo at Farago Projects.