Giorgio Arman was born in Piacenza, Italy in 1934, Giorgio Armani is one of the most famous and leading designers Italy has ever produced. But it was only by chance that Giorgio Armani broke into the fashion industry in the Sixties, after short forays into medicine and photography.

Following the military service by Giorgio Armani, Armani launched his profession as a window dresser at a large Milanese department store, called La Rinascente. Giorgio Armani later showed that he developed his characteristic style during this time, following frequent trips to the UK. "England was virtually the most important centre for inspiration.

Armed with an thorough knowledge of fabric and design, Giorgio Armani was taken on as a designer for Nino Cerruti's men's clothing company, Hitman. Posts at Ungaro and Zegna were soon to follow in 1964. In 1974, Armani pioneered his own menswear label, his first womenswear collection coming a year later. Ever since 1975, Giorgio Armani has overseen the launch of Giorgio Armani Junior, Underwear, Swimwear, Accessories and Occhiali. Capitalizing on the cachet of his more exclusive label, Giorgio Armani opened the first of a series of stores selling his cheaper lines, Emporio Armani and Armani Jeans, in 1981. However in 2000, Giorgio Armani went on to add make-up range to his output, specially designed by Pat McGrath. Today, the Armani empire comprises some 2,000 emporia world-wide with yearly sales of more than $1 billion. Giorgio Armani catwalk shows often draw a notable crowd when Giorgio Armani was forced to show in New York in March 1998, after Paris police closed down his black marquee over Place Saint Sulpice claiming that the set-up was "unsafe", Robert de Niro, Spike Lee, Mark Wahlberg, Martin Scorsese, Sophia Loren and Wyclef Jean of The Fugees all came to watch. Even so Giorgio Armani claims to base his vision on the everyday people in the street, believing that clothes should be made to be worn not just seen and drawing on the skills Giorgio Armani learned as a menswear designer to produce fashionable clothes for women. The wide-shouldered power suit that was a trademark in the Eighties has been softened into a more supple, practical silhouette and Armani's collections these days are stylish and understated.