Giorgio Armani Will – A Legacy Written With Precision. Story by Eleonora de Gray, Editor-in-Chief of RUNWAY MAGAZINE. Photo Coourtesy: Giorgio Armani.
When Giorgio Armani passed away at 91, he left behind more than a fashion house. He left behind a structure. In an industry where succession is too often improvised, Armani prepared his legacy as carefully as he prepared a jacket — with discipline, order, and intent.
Armani built his empire differently from most. He resisted the overtures of conglomerates, protected independence, and retained total control of his company until the very end. But he was never naïve about the future. He knew that once he was gone, independence would become fragile. And so he drafted a clear roadmap — not just for his family, but for the industry.
A Will That Reads Like Strategy
The details are precise. His heirs must sell 15% of the company within 18 months. Within three to five years, another 30% to 54.9% must follow. Priority buyers are not random: LVMH, L’Oréal, EssilorLuxottica. Corporations with scale, with long-term discipline, and with an understanding of heritage. If no buyer is suitable, an IPO is the alternative.
Yet the most important clause is not about selling. It is about permanence. The Fondazione Giorgio Armani, created in 2016, will never hold less than 30%. That guarantee makes the foundation not just a shareholder, but the guardian of Armani’s values. Whatever happens on the market, Armani’s core principles cannot be diluted below that threshold.
Succession as an Organic Transition
Unlike many of his contemporaries, Armani treated succession as a process, not a rupture. He had no children, but he had a family deeply involved in the company: his sister Rosanna, his nieces and nephew Silvana, Roberta, and Andrea, all in senior positions; and Leo Dell’Orco, his partner and longtime collaborator. These are not symbolic figures. They are executives who already carried responsibility, now reinforced by the foundation’s oversight.
Armani’s words before his death underline the point: he wanted continuity, not spectacle. He wanted decisions to evolve, not explode. In that sense, the real heritage is not the structure of the company but the method of transition itself.
Independence Preserved, On His Terms
For decades, Armani defended the independence of his brand as “an essential value.” He refused mergers and acquisitions that might have diluted his control. But independence, once the founder is gone, can become isolation. Armani avoided that trap. His will acknowledges that the future requires scale — but it demands respect for identity.
By prioritizing partners like LVMH, L’Oréal, or EssilorLuxottica, he aligned the future of the house with corporations he considered capable of preserving the brand, not just monetizing it. It is not independence at any cost, nor surrender at any price. It is a calculated balance.
A House That Will Endure
Armani’s group today is more than clothing. Hotels, restaurants, cosmetics, even floristry are part of its portfolio. In 2023, revenues reached €2.3 billion. But what matters most now is not the number, nor the expansion. It is that the empire does not face the chaos that consumed others.
Where some houses fractured after the death of their founders, Armani leaves no confusion. The will is a framework. The foundation is a safeguard. The family and Dell’Orco remain active, supported by structure. It is not a drama. It is management.
Giorgio Armani planned his exit with the same precision he brought to design. No improvisation. No disorder. Just a clear path forward. His greatest creation may not be a garment, but the way he ensured his house will survive him — intact, protected, and ready to evolve.
