By Sophia 'Stevie' Otap

1. GIORGIO
ARMANI
Designer Analysis
by Sophia “Stevie” Otap

2. HISTORY
Giorgio Armani was born on July 11, 1934 in the town of Piacenza, Italy. He had two siblings, a mother and a
father. Armani’s childhood dream was to be a doctor. In the 1950s, he attended medical school, but had to leave after
two years for the military. There, he worked in the hospital, and it convinced him he did not want to be a doctor.
After the army, he went to work in a department store in Milan called La Rinascente. He worked
primarily in the menswear department, gaining experience. He floated from store to store through the 1970s. Around
1973, he began doing freelance design work for fashion houses, and his work was so impressive that he was featured in
a Florence runway show. In 1975, he finally founded Giorgio Armani Spa, featuring mainly menswear, but also some
womenswear.
In 1978 he began producing luxury pieces under the supervision of Gruppo Finanzario Tessile’s designer.
The following year, the Giorgio Armani Corporation was acclaimed enough to start designing for the USA public.
Throughout the ‘80s, he went on to include perfume, denim, junior’s, accessories, activewear, underwear, and
swimwear to his lines. In the ‘90s, he took Asia by storm. Today, Giorgio Armani is a worldwide fashion legend
known for his high-end products.

3. SIGNATURE DESIGN
ELEMENTS
• clean • decorative
• simple • accessible
• soft • unique
• feminine • chic
• unstructured • understated
• strong, but not harsh • androgyny
• black and white • relaxed
• earth tones • neutral
• dusty blues • sexy
• elegant • trend-avoidant

4. DEMOGRAPHICS
Age: 25-50
Gender: Male
Family size: Any
Stages in family life cycle: All
Income: $150,000+
Education: College+
Religion: Any
Ethnicity: Any

5. PRICE RANGE
Armani sells a variety of products, from perfumes to watches to home
goods to clothing. Factoring all his lines, the overall price range is roughly
around $50-$25,000.

6. SIZE RANGE

7. FIBERS, FABRICS,
QUALITY
Linen, silk and cotton are the primary fabrics used, because they are quality
fibers that are comfortable. Armani is all about quality. I don’t believe he would
sacrifice quality for anything. For example, in 2007 he swore off fur due to PETA’s
influence, but in 2008 he could no longer resist the luxurious quality of fur and
incorporated it in his fall line -- even for babies!

8. PRESENTATION
What caught my eye the most was the effortless combination of luxury and
comfort. It’s such an ingenious idea, and I commend him for being the pioneer of
combining the two facets. The clothing looks and feels comfortable, without being
sloppy or subtracting at all from the sophistication.

9. ( what caught my eye )
( what caught my eye )

10. ARMANI INFLUENCED...
...Tom Ford of Gucci, Miuccia Prada, Stefano Gabbana and Domenico
Dolce. They admire the elegance, the combining of impeccable tailoring with high-
tech stretch fabrics. In the late ‘90s and early 2000s, Gucci came out with a collection
including high-waist fluid trousers, with a flow of fabrics over boots, inspired by the
smooth ease of Armani.

11. HISTORICAL
IMPORTANCE
Giorgio Armani is timeless, and manages to upkeep the latest looks each season, each
decade. I believe his peak was the ‘90s, during which his active/casualwear really
took off. This was also when he reached out to the mass-market and made more
affordable clothing. Additionally, he was the first living designer to have an
exhibition at the Guggenheim Museum.

12. SIMILAR RETAILERS
Calvin Klein . Ralph Lauren . Michael Kors . Brooks Brothers

13. a legend
a legend