Giorgio Armani, the iconic Italian designer who redefined modern elegance, passed away in September 2025 at the age of 91. Revered as the “King of Italian Fashion,” Armani remained actively involved as Executive Chairman and Chief Creative Officer until his final days, shaping not only his company but also the very meaning of Made in Italy in global luxury. His minimalist vision and insistence on independence distinguished Armani from his competitors, embedding his maison into both cultural memory and Italy’s economic identity.
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In parallel, the Giorgio Armani S.p.A. stands as one of the last great privately owned luxury houses, with revenues above €2,3 billion in 2024. Its consolidated results, published on 9 June 2025, reflect stable top-line performance and continued financial resilience. Despite a competitive market where global luxury sales were estimated at ~$286 billion in 2024 (IMARC) and the personal luxury goods segment reached ~€385–395 billion in 2024 (Bain & Altagamma), with forecasts to grow to over $400 billion by 2033 (IMARC) and €530-570 billion by 2030 (Bain), Armani S.p.A. balanced creativity with financial discipline. Its profitability remained robust, with operating income in the hundreds of millions, a testament to Giorgio Armani’s cautious, long-term governance and the enduring appeal of his pared-back style.
Timeline of Giorgio Armani and the Armani Group
1934 - Giorgio Armani is born in Piacenza, Italy.
1975 - Together with Sergio Galeotti, Armani founded Giorgio Armani S.p.A. in Milan. From inception, Armani retained creative and strategic control, a model he maintained for nearly 50 years.
1980 - Armani attains global recognition when Richard Gere wears his designs in American Gigolo. This moment cements Armani’s reputation for soft tailoring and understated elegance .
1981 - Launch of Emporio Armani, the diffusion line targeting a younger clientele and broadening Armani’s global appeal.
1982 - Armani debuts Armani Fragrance under license, expanding into beauty and cosmetics.
1983-1985 - Armani became a fixture in Hollywood, designing costumes for films and establishing himself as the go-to designer for red carpet dressing.
1988 - Launch of Armani Exchange, a more accessible line targeting urban youth markets, particularly in the U.S.
1990s - Armani expands internationally, opening flagship stores in Asia and the Middle East, establishing the brand as a global luxury player (Armani Values).
2000 - Founding of Armani Casa, marking Armani’s move into interior design and luxury lifestyle beyond fashion (Armani Values).
2005 - Armani enters high fashion with Armani Privé, debuting at Paris Haute Couture Week. The couture line reinforces his place among the top maisons.
2010-2011 - Opening of Armani Hotels in Dubai (2010) and Milan (2011), in partnership with Emaar, expanding the Group into hospitality.
2016 - Creation of the Giorgio Armani Foundation, ensuring continuity and independence of the company for at least five years beyond his death.
2020 - During COVID-19, Armani donates over €2 million to Italian hospitals and converts factories to produce medical gowns, underlining his civic responsibility.
2022–2024 - Armani continues to present collections and oversee all business decisions, maintaining independence.
2025 - Giorgio Armani passes away at the age of 91, still serving as Executive Chairman and Chief Creative Officer. His leadership leaves the company with revenues above €2,3 billion and a clear succession plan under trusted collaborators and family members.
The Legacy of Giorgio Armani
Giorgio Armani’s impact on fashion transcends design; he reshaped the very definition of luxury. His minimalist aesthetic, centred on clean lines and soft tailoring, redefined elegance for both men and women and established Armani as the global reference point for understated sophistication. This vision, often described as sprezzatura moderna, ensured his work remained timeless rather than trend-driven, cementing his reputation as one of the most influential designers of the 20th and 21st centuries.
What distinguished Armani from his peers was his unwavering independence. While most major houses were absorbed by conglomerates, Armani retained full ownership of Giorgio Armani S.p.A., guiding both its creative direction and corporate strategy. This independence allowed him to preserve the maison’s integrity, prioritising long-term brand equity over short-term scale. The creation of the Giorgio Armani Foundation in 2016 further demonstrated his foresight, embedding continuity and independence into the company’s governance structure.
The Giorgio Armani S.p.A. today embodies the designer’s holistic vision of lifestyle luxury. From high fashion with Armani Privé, to accessible luxury with Emporio Armani, and youthful, affordable fashion through A|X Armani Exchange, and extensions into beauty, fragrance, interior design, hospitality, and dining, the Group built a complete ecosystem around the Armani name. Few maisons have achieved such breadth while maintaining a coherent identity. This expansion was not simply diversification for growth, but an expression of Armani’s philosophy: luxury should accompany every moment of life.
Equally, Armani’s legacy is defined by responsibility. During the COVID-19 crisis, he mobilised the company to support hospitals in Milan and redirected manufacturing to produce protective equipment, while also donating more than €1,25 million to Italy’s emergency response services. Such acts reinforced the Armani Group’s image as a house of integrity as well as style.
As the company enters a new era, Armani’s enduring legacy lies in his dual achievement: building a financially resilient enterprise with revenues above €2 billion annually, while maintaining the rare status of an independent luxury maison. His name remains a symbol of Italian craftsmanship, cultural influence, and corporate integrity - qualities that will guide the Group as it navigates its future.
Key Indicators
The five-year trajectory of Giorgio Armani S.p.A. highlights both resilience and volatility. Following the severe disruption of the pandemic in 2020, the Group rebounded strongly in 2021-2022, stabilised in 2023, and faced significant profitability pressures in 2024.
Revenue
Giorgio Armani S.p.A. revenues fell to €1,6 billion in 2020 (-25,8%), reflecting global store closures and collapsing demand for formalwear. A strong rebound followed: +26,3% in 2021 and +16,5% in 2022, taking revenues above €2,3 billion. Growth slowed to +4,1% in 2023 before contracting -6,2% in 2024 to €2,3 billion.
Operating Profit
Profitability was hit hardest in 2020, with a €29 million loss versus €173 million in 2019. The rebound in 2021 was strong, with operating profit reaching €171 million, followed by €214 million in 2022 and €215 million in 2023. In 2024, operating profit stood at €67 million. Similar declines in profitability were observed across parts of the luxury sector during the same period, as inflationary pressures, rising logistics and energy costs, and weaker demand in Europe impacted results.
Net Income
Net income mirrored these swings. After falling to €90 million in 2020 (-24,6%), profits nearly doubled in 2021 to €170 million (+89,2%). Stability followed in 2022 (€162 million) and 2023 (€163 million). Yet in 2024 net income declined steeply to €52 million (-68,4%), reflecting the sharp margin squeeze.
Taken together, Giorgio Armani S.p.A.’s financials reflect the resilience of a brand that has consistently maintained revenues above €2 billion, due to its scale and global presence. While 2024 showed a moderation in profitability, this mirrors broader patterns in the luxury sector, where inflationary pressures and shifts in consumer demand affected multiple players. Looking ahead, Armani Group’s disciplined approach, diversified portfolio, and long-standing independence position it to navigate industry cycles in line with the trajectory of the global luxury market.
The Group also advanced transparency through the wider rollout of Digital Product Passports and labelling harmonisation, aligning with EU regulatory expectations and supporting consumer trust.
2. Industry Outlook and Context
The global luxury goods sector grew strongly post-pandemic, with Bain & Company reporting +20% expansion in 2021, +19% in 2022, and moderating to +8% in 2023. By 2024, growth slowed to low single digits as macroeconomic uncertainty, inflation, and a weaker Chinese recovery tempered demand.
Long-term forecasts remain positive: IMARC projects the market to expand from USD 286 billion in 2024 to over USD 400 billion by 2033, reflecting a CAGR of ~4%. Bain also expects personal luxury goods to reach €530-570 billion by 2030, led by Gen Z and millennial consumers.
Relative to these benchmarks, Giorgio Armani S.p.A.’s 2024 results reflected a more measured trajectory. While global peers focused on rapid scale and digital acceleration, Armani continued to prioritise brand equity and independence. This conservative approach safeguarded the maison’s long-term identity, ensuring creative coherence and financial stability. With its strong lifestyle ecosystem, resilient licensing partnerships, and enduring reputation for timeless elegance, the Group remains well-positioned to capture opportunities as the luxury market expands in the years ahead.
The 2024 results reveal a broad-based slowdown across most regions, with Europe and Asia-Pacific showing the steepest declines.
Europe
Revenues fell from €1.196 billion in 2023 to €1.121 billion in 2024 (-6,3%). As Armani’s largest market, Europe accounted for nearly half of Group sales, meaning that weaker consumer sentiment, inflationary pressures, and reduced tourist flows in Southern Europe significantly impacted the overall top line.
Sports partnerships, including EA7’s unveiling of the Italian Olympic and Paralympic team uniforms in January 2024, as well as ongoing ties with the Italian Football Federation and Olimpia Milano basketball, continued to reinforce Armani’s role in national branding.
North America
Sales decreased modestly, from €518,5 million to €507,9 million (-2,0%). The U.S. luxury market remained relatively resilient, supported by strong demand from high-net-worth consumers, though growth shifted increasingly toward experiential luxury and digital-first competitors, areas where Armani has been more cautious.
Asia-Pacific
The sharpest contraction was seen here: revenues dropped from €517,2 million in 2023 to €453,7 million in 2024 (-12,3%). Weaker recovery in China, combined with cautious consumer spending in Japan and Korea, weighed heavily on results. Armani’s measured approach to digital expansion and youth-focused categories has been a deliberate strategy, in line with Giorgio Armani’s long-standing philosophy of creating timeless style rather than chasing momentary trends. As he often underlined, “style endures; fashion is temporary.” This perspective shaped the Group’s choices, ensuring the brand remained coherent and resilient, even in a fast-changing market.
That said, the maison has not ignored younger audiences altogether. Armani Beauty, through its partnership with L'Oréal Paris, has selectively expanded its appeal to Gen Z by appointing ambassadors such as Hanni of NewJeans and Nathalie Emmanuel in 2024, while still retaining icons like Cate Blanchett. These choices allowed the brand to balance heritage with relevance, engaging younger demographics in a way that reflects the house’s values of elegance and restraint rather than trend-driven marketing.
Meanwhile, A|X Armani Exchange has remained the Group’s dedicated line for younger consumers, offering entry-level price points and urban-inspired designs. This tiered architecture enabled the Group to address multiple market segments without diluting the creative core of Giorgio Armani’s vision.
Armani maintained cultural visibility through high-profile campaigns, with global ambassadors such as Cate Blanchett, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Hanni (NewJeans), alongside regional faces including Hu Ge and Tong Yao in China.
Others
The “Others” category remained stable, at €214,2 million in 2024 versus €212,8 million in 2023 (+0,7%). Growth in the Middle East, particularly in the Gulf markets, partly offset declines elsewhere. Armani’s hospitality and lifestyle ventures in Dubai and Doha also contributed to sustaining sales in this segment.
Giorgio Armani S.p.A.’s 2024 results reflect a reshaping of channel dynamics, with weakness in direct retail and wholesale offset by licensing resilience.
Retail (Direct)
Sales decreased from €1.183 billion in 2023 to €1.149 billion in 2024 (-2,9%). The decline mirrors softer footfall in Europe and Asia, though Armani’s flagship boutiques and selective digital expansion partly cushioned the downturn. Flagship refurbishments in Milan and Shanghai in 2024 enhanced the customer experience, combining fashion with dining and interiors, even as overall retail revenues softened slightly.
Wholesale
This segment fell sharply, from €1.030 billion to €894 million (-13,2 %). Wholesale remains vulnerable to shifts in department store traffic and multi-brand retailer consolidation. Armani’s higher exposure to wholesale compared with vertically integrated rivals made this decline particularly impactful.
Royalties
Licensing revenues grew strongly, from €210,8 million to €235,4 million (+11,7%). Growth was led by fragrances such as My Way Parfum and extensions to the Acqua di Giò line under L'Oréal Paris, eyewear performance with EssilorLuxottica, and beauty categories. This underscores the enduring appeal of the brand in lifestyle categories even as apparel slows.
Others
“Others” revenue decreased from €20,6 million to €18,5 million (-10,2%), a marginal component of overall sales.
Conclusion & Future Outlook
Giorgio Armani’s passing in September 2025 closes a singular chapter in Italian luxury. His independence, restraint, and elevation of Made in Italy shaped both culture and commerce. The {Giorgio Armani S.p.A.}} exits the founder era with revenues above €2 billion and well-established licensing engines in beauty and eyewear.
Beyond financials, {Giorgio Armani S.p.A.}} reinforced its cultural capital in 2024 with exhibitions at Armani/Silos in Milan and initiatives such as the Forestami Milano Green Circle, underscoring the maison’s values of sustainability and civic engagement. The Group also experimented with cross-industry collaborations, most notably its first-ever partnership with Kith at New York Fashion Week in September 2024, signalling selective openness to youth-oriented projects while preserving its core identity.
The Giorgio Armani Foundation, established in 2016, will play a central role in safeguarding independence for at least five years after Armani’s passing. Day-to-day continuity is expected to be guided by long-time collaborator Pantaleo (Leo) Dell’Orco, ensuring creative and operational consistency. While some analysts view Armani as a long-term acquisition candidate, governance safeguards and family stewardship make any near-term sale unlikely.
Externally, sector studies (Bain; IMARC) point to steady luxury market growth through 2030/2033. Within this context, Armani’s priorities remain measured digital acceleration, deeper localisation in Asia-Pacific, continued strength in lifestyle categories via licensing, and sharpening leather goods and footwear to support margins.
Armani leaves behind a financially stable company with a clear foundation for the future. With 2024 revenues exceeding €2.3 billion and strong licensing performance (Armani 2024 Annual Report, published June 2025), the {Giorgio Armani S.p.A.}} demonstrated resilience and balance across its portfolio. While profitability moderated in 2024, this mirrored broader sector dynamics shaped by inflationary costs and shifting demand patterns. The company’s disciplined governance and diversified brand ecosystem provide stability as it enters a new chapter.
In sum, Armani’s legacy is secure: a maison that embodied integrity, restraint, and Italian elegance. The task for his successors will be to translate this heritage into a future-proof strategy that keeps the company financially competitive while remaining true to the founder’s ethos of independence and timeless style.
Cover Image: Reuters
Read the full Giorgio Armani S.p.A brand report Here.
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