Giorgio Armani, who dressed the powerful and famous from boardroom to Hollywood, dies at 91

MILAN (AP) — Giorgio Armani, the iconic Italian designer who turned the concept of understated elegance into a multibillion-dollar fashion empire, died Thursday, his fashion house confirmed. He was 91.

Armani died at home, "peacefully, surrounded by his loved ones," the fashion house said. “Indefatigable to the end, he worked until his final days, dedicating himself to the company, the collections and the many ongoing and future projects."

Armani, one of the most recognizable names and faces in the global fashion industry, missed Milan Fashion Week in June 2025 for the first time during the previews of Spring-Summer 2026 menswear to recover from an undisclosed condition.

He was planning a major event to celebrate 50 years of his signature Giorgio Armani fashion house during Milan Fashion Week this month.

A public viewing will be held in the Armani Theater where he unveiled his ready-to-wear collections on Saturday and Sunday. The funeral will be held privately, and no details were released.

Condolences and remembrances poured in from political leaders and other Milan fashion designers.

"The world lost a giant today. He made history and will be remembered forever," said Donatella Versace, whose late brother Gianni Versace was a stylistic rival of Armani in the 1990s.

Julia Roberts, who memorably wore an oversized Armani suit to the 1990 Golden Globes, posted a photo of the pair together with the text: “A true friend. A Legend,” followed by a broken heart emoji.

Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni, who often dressed in Armani's business attire, remembered the designer for his ”elegance, sobriety and creativity," and said he was “a symbol of the best Italy.”

Starting with an unlined jacket, a simple pair of pants and an urban palette, Armani put Italian ready-to-wear style on the international fashion map in the late 1970s, creating an instantly recognizable relaxed silhouette that has propelled the fashion house for half a century.

From the executive office to the Hollywood screen, Armani dressed the rich and famous in classic tailored styles, fashioned in supersoft fabrics and muted tones. His handsome black tie outfits and glittering evening gowns often stole the show on award season red carpets.

At the time of his death, Armani had put together an empire worth over $10 billion, which along with clothing included accessories, home furnishings, perfumes, cosmetics, books, flowers and even chocolates, ranking him in the world’s top 200 billionaires, according to Forbes.

The designer also owned several bars, clubs, restaurants and his own basketball team, Olympia Milano. Armani opened more than 20 restaurants from Milan to Tokyo since 1998, and two hotels, one in Dubai in 2009 and another in Milan, in 2010.

Armani style began with Giorgio Armani himself, from the penetrating blue eyes framed in a permanent tan and early-age shock of silver hair, to the trademark dark trousers and T-shirt work clothes and the minimalist decoration of his private homes.

Armani’s fashion vision was that of easygoing elegance where attention to detail made the difference.

“I design for real people. There is no virtue whatsoever in creating clothes and accessories that are not practical,” he liked to say when asked to identify his clientele.

In conversation, the designer’s disarming smile and exquisitely mild manners belied the tough businessman underneath, who was able to turn creative talent into a fashion empire worth over $10 billion. Never a merger nor a sale, Re Giorgio (King George) as the Italians call him, was always his own boss.

Born July 11, 1934, in Piacenza, a small town south of Milan, Armani dreamed of becoming a doctor before a part-time job as a window decorator in a Milan department store opened his eyes to the world of fashion.

In 1975, Armani and his partner Sergio Galeotti sold their Volkswagen for $10,000 to start up their own menswear ready-to-wear label. Womenswear followed a year later.

The symbol of his new style was the liningless sports jacket, which was launched in the late 1970s and became an instant success from Hollywood to Wall Street. The designer paired the jacket with a simple T-shirt, an item of clothing he termed “the alpha and omega of the fashion alphabet.”

The Armani suit soon became a must in the closet of the well-heeled man. And for women, the introduction of the pantsuit in the executive workroom was all but revolutionary. Dubbed the “power suit” with its shoulder-padded jacket and man-tailored trousers, it became the trademark of the rising class of businesswomen in the 1980s.

Over the years Armani would soften the look with delicate detailing, luxurious fabrics and brighter shades for his basic beige and gray palette. His insistence on pants and jackets led some critics to label his fashion “androgynous.”

The 1980 film classic “American Gigolo” launched both Armani and actor Richard Gere on their Hollywood careers. Dressed in Armani, Gere became America’s new favorite heartthrob, and “Geeorgeeo” as they called him, the glam set’s most popular designer.

The Hollywood connection earned him wardrobe film credits in over 200 films, and in 2003 a place on Rodeo Drive’s “Walk of Style.”

Oscar night always sparkled, with smart suiting for the men and glittering gowns for the ladies. The 2009 best actor winner Sean Penn picked up his statue in a black-on-black Armani outfit, while best actress nominee Anne Hathaway walked the red carpet in a shimmering white strapless evening gown from Armani’s latest Prive couture collection.

Other longtime devotees included Jodie Foster, George Clooney, Sophia Loren and Brad Pitt. David and Victoria Beckham were the “face” of his 2009 underwear ad campaign.

So significant was the impact of Armani style, not only on how people dressed but how they approached fashion, that in 2000 New York’s Guggenheim museum presented a retrospective of Armani’s first 25 years in fashion.

Marking the Giorgio Armani fashion house's 40th anniversary, he opened his own museum in Milan, called Armani Silos, located opposite his Armani Theater. For its 50th, he launched Archivio Armani, a digital archive last month.

“I love things that age well, things that don’t date and become living examples of the absolute best,” Armani said of his efforts.

Armani, who maintained a firm grip on his empire and collections until the end, had been reluctant to discuss succession, but had announced a foundation as a succession tool to avoid his businesses being split up. A rarity in the Italian fashion world, he never sold even a part of his company to an outsider.

He also indicated the creative succession would go to longtime collaborator Leo Dell’Orco and his niece Silvana Armani, who have headed the menswear and womenswear collections, respectively, for all Armani collections: Giorgio Armani, Emporio Armani and Armani Exchange.

Today, the Armani empire has an army of more than 9,000 employees, who consider themselves part of a family, with women comprising half the executive suite, along with seven industrial hubs and over 600 stores worldwide, according to figures released in 2023. Along with clothes and accessories, the company produces perfumes, cosmetics and home furnishings, as well as selling its own candy, flowers and even books.

His most recent purchase was of the historic La Capannina restaurant on the Italian Riviera in Forte dei Marmi, where he used to spend holidays with Galeotti.

In the realm of fashion hobbies, Armani owned several bars, restaurants and clubs, as well as the basketball team. Recreation time was spent in getaways in Broni in the countryside near Milan, the isle of Pantelleria off Sicily and St. Tropez on the French Riviera. Each home bore the trademark of Armani design: bare walls, important pieces, few knickknacks.

Like many of his colleagues, Armani tried to give back some of the fame and fortune he amassed during the heyday of the “moda Milanese” which put Italian ready-to-wear at the center of the world’s fashion map at the turn of the millennium. Personally involved in several charity organizations devoted to children and a staunch supporter of the battle against AIDS, in 2002 Armani was named a U.N. goodwill ambassador for refugees.

Galeotti died in 1985. Armani had no children but was very close to his niece Roberta. She abandoned a budding film career to become his director of public relations, and often represented her uncle, who wasn’t much of a partygoer, at social events. More recently, she has been a key go-between with the celebrity world as head of VIP relations.

In 2006, she orchestrated the top-billed wedding of actors Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes in a medieval castle outside Rome, while Uncle Giorgio designed the attire for both bride and groom.

Armani is survived by his sister Rosanna, a former fashion model, and her son Andrea Camerana; and nieces Silvana and Roberta, the daughters of his late brother Sergio.

Daniela Petroff, who covered Milan fashion for the Associated Press for more than three decades, retired in 2017.

This May 5, 2004 photo shows Italian designer Giorgio Armani in Rome. (Giulio Napolitano/LaPresse via AP)

FILE - Models presenting the Giorgio Armani fashion collection stand in showcases at the end of the showing for Fall-Winter 1985-86 in Milan, March 13, 1985. (AP Photo/Ferdinando Meazza, file)

FILE - American movie stars Richard Gere, right, and Lauren Hutton, center, who were both dressed in Armani clothes when they starred in the film "American Gigolo" join up with fashion designer Giorgio Armani, left, during a photocall at the Royal Academy of Arts in London, Oct. 14, 2003. (AP Photo/Richard Lewis, file)

FILE - Designer Giorgio Armani, centre, poses with models at the end of his women's 2019 Spring-Summer collection, unveiled during the Fashion Week in Milan, Italy, Sunday, Sept. 23, 2018. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno, File)

FILE - Italian fashion designer Giorgio Armani acknowledges applause at the end of his Emporio Armani men's Fall-Winter 2014 collection, part of the Milan Fashion Week, unveiled in Milan, Italy, Jan. 13, 2014. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni, file)

FILE - Italian fashion designer Giorgio Armani acknowledges the applause after presenting the Emporio Armani men's Fall-Winter 2016-2017 collection, part of the Milan Fashion Week, unveiled in Milan, Italy, Jan. 18, 2016. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno, file)

FILE - Giorgio Armani receives his share of applause after presenting his Emporio Fall-Winter 2007-2008 men's fashion collection, during the Milan Men's Fashion Week, in Milan, Italy, Monday, Jan. 15, 2007. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno, File)

NUUK, Greenland (AP) — Troops from several European countries, including France, Germany, Norway and Sweden, are arriving in Greenland to help boost the Arctic island's security after talks between representatives of Denmark, Greenland and the U.S. on Wednesday highlighted “fundamental disagreement” between the Trump administration and European allies.

“The first French military elements are already en route” and “others will follow,” French President Emmanuel Macron announced Wednesday, as French authorities said about 15 French soldiers from the mountain infantry unit were already in Nuuk for a military exercise.

Germany will deploy a reconnaissance team of 13 personnel to Greenland on Thursday, its Defense Ministry said.

Denmark announced it would increase its military presence in Greenland, with NATO allies joining them, just as the Danish and Greenlandic foreign ministers met with White House representatives on Wednesday in Washington to discuss U.S. President Donald Trump's intentions to take over the island in order to tap its mineral resources and protect the security of the Arctic region amid rising Russian and Chinese interest.

On Thursday, Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said the intention was “to establish a more permanent military presence with a larger Danish contribution,” according to Danish broadcaster DR. He said soldiers from several NATO countries will be in Greenland on a rotation system.

Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen, flanked by his Greenlandic counterpart Vivian Motzfeldt, said Wednesday that a “fundamental disagreement” over Greenland remains with Trump after they held highly anticipated talks at the White House with Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Rasmussen added that it remains “clear that the president has this wish of conquering over Greenland.”

“We really need it,” Trump told media in the Oval Office after the meeting. “If we don't go in, Russia is going to go in and China is going to go in. And there's not a thing Denmark can do about it, but we can do everything about it."

Trump said he had not yet been briefed about the contents of the White House meeting when he made his remarks.

In Greenland’s capital, Nuuk, local residents told The Associated Press they were glad the first meeting between Greenlandic, Danish and American officials had taken place but suggested it left more questions than answers.

Several people said they viewed Denmark’s decision to send more troops, and promises of support from other NATO allies, as protection against possible U.S. military action. But European military officials have not suggested the goal is to deter a U.S. move against the island.

Maya Martinsen, 21, agreed and said it was “comforting to know that the Nordic countries are sending reinforcements” because Greenland is a part of Denmark and NATO.

The dispute, she said, is not about “national security” but rather about “the oils and minerals that we have that are untouched.”

On Wednesday, Poulsen had announced a stepped-up military presence in the Arctic “in close cooperation with our allies,” calling it a necessity in a security environment in which “no one can predict what will happen tomorrow.”

“This means that from today and in the coming time there will be an increased military presence in and around Greenland of aircraft, ships and soldiers, including from other NATO allies,” Poulsen said.

Asked whether the European troop movements were coordinated with NATO or what role the U.S.-led military alliance might play in the exercises, NATO referred all questions to the Danish authorities.

However, NATO is looking at how members can collectively bolster the alliance’s presence in the Arctic, according to a NATO official who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Rasmussen, the Danish foreign minister, announced the creation of a working group with the Americans to discuss ways to work through differences.

“The group, in our view, should focus on how to address the American security concerns, while at the same time respecting the red lines of the Kingdom of Denmark,” he said.

Commenting on the outcome of the Washington meeting on Thursday, Poulsen said the working group was “better than no working group” and “a step in the right direction.” He added nevertheless that the dialogue with the U.S. did not mean “the danger has passed.”

Line McGee, a 38-year old from Copenhagen, told AP that she was glad to see some diplomatic progress. “I don’t think the threat has gone away,” she said. "But I feel slightly better than I did yesterday.”

Speaking to FOX News Channel’s Special Report on Wednesday after the White House talks, Rasmussen rejected both a military takeover and the potential purchase of the island by the U.S. Asked whether he thinks the U.S. will invade, he replied: “No, at least I do not hope so, because, I mean, that would be the end of NATO.”

Rasmussen said Greenlanders were unlikely to vote for U.S. rule even if financial incentives were offered “because I think there’s no way that U.S. will pay for a Scandinavian welfare system in Greenland, honestly speaking.”

“You haven’t introduced a Scandinavian welfare system in your own country,” he added.

Trump, in his Oval Office meeting with reporters, said: “We’ll see how it all works out. I think something will work out."

Niemann reported from Copenhagen, Denmark, and Ciobanu from Warsaw, Poland.

Fishermen load fishing lines into a boat in the harbor of Nuuk, Greenland, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)

Greenland Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt, left, and Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen, arrive on Capitol Hill to meet with members of the Senate Arctic Caucus, in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)