In memory of Valentino Garavani
The legendary Italian designer has died aged 93
Valentino Garavani, the beloved Italian designer known for his eponymous fashion house and strong red carpet presence, has died aged 93. Having passed away peacefully at his home in Rome on 19 January, a lying in state will take place on 21 and 22 January, before a funeral on 23 January.
A pillar of the luxury fashion industry, having built one of its most important haute couture brands, coined his own signature shade of ‘Valentino red’ and dressed red carpet icons from European royals and American first ladies to stars of stage and screen, we look back at the life of one of the most successful, and beloved, names in fashion.
Early life
Born on 11 May 1932 in the town of Voghera in Lombardy, Italy, Valentino Garavani inherited his love of fashion from his aunt Rosa, who was a local fashion designer and encouraged the young Garavani to apprentice both for herself and other neighbouring designers.
Having found both a talent and a passion for the work, Garavani moved to Paris to complete his formal training at the École des Beaux-Arts and the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne, before gaining his first professional experience as an assistant to Jean Dessès and Guy Laroche.
Founding Valentino
Valentino left Paris aged 27 and, in 1959, returned to Italy to open his own fashion house in Rome. While his desire was to found a business in his native country, the company was inspired by the grand houses he had worked for in Paris and his early shows quickly caught the attention of Italian high society. In fact, it was during these very early collections that the term ‘Valentino red’ was coined. Inspired by the velvet dress worn by a woman Garavani had seen at the Barcelona opera as a teen, it remains a mainstay of the house to this day, and even inspired the now-shuttered diffusion line, Red Valentino.
International fame
In 1960, Garavani met Giancarlo Giammetti – an architecture student who quickly became Garavani’s business and romantic partner. With Giammetti’s help, Garavani turned his house into an international brand, making his debut on the world stage at the Pitti Palace in Florence in 1962. Offered the last slot on the last day in the famed Sala Bianca, his audience was largely foreign buyers with contacts who had recommended they stick around to see the work of this hot young designer.
An autumn collection of elegant ballgowns and pencil skirted dresses with nipped waists and voluminous shoulders was an instant hit, with Bernadine Morris, fashion critic at the New York Times and author of the seminal book on Valentino, recalling, “Valentino was a huge discovery for them. The wide press coverage of his shows… soon put his name on a level with the great couture figures.”
Accordingly, Garavani quickly became the darling of socialites and aristocrats from around the world, and a star of the Italian fashion scene. So great was his fame, in fact, that in the mid-1960s he felt secure enough to leave the established Florentine shows behind and move his presentations back to Rome, where he opened a new store on the Via Gregoriana. Attended by Hollywood actresses and the wives of prominent world leaders dressed in their finest eveningwear, these shows became social spectacles in their own right, offering glamour far beyond anything seen at modern fashion weeks, and cemented the Valentino name in the wider public consciousness.
By the time Garavani picked up the prestigious Neiman Marcus Fashion Award in 1967 he had a client list that included Audrey Hepburn, Elizabeth Taylor, Jackie Kennedy (for whom he designed a dress for her wedding to Aristotle Onassis in 1968) and the Begum Aga Khan.
Valentino AW24 by Pierpaolo Piccioli
Valetnino Haute Couture Spring 2025 by Alessandro Michele
Life-long success
Unlike many fashion designers, who are eventually forced to part ways with shares in order to grow their brand, Valentino’s early success meant he and Giammetti retained sole ownership of Valentino SpA until 1998, when the company was sold for a reported $300 million to Italian conglomerate HdP. In 2002 it was sold again to Marzotto Apparel amid reports HdP had become unhappy with the expenses claimed by Garavani and Giammetti.
Although Giammetti bristled at the claim at the time, it is clear the couple had become used to a certain lifestyle. Their private portfolio has, over the years, included a superyacht and numerous art-filled homes in Switzerland, Spain, Italy and France, while the pair were known for their extravagant methods of travel. In a 2004 Vanity Fair profile, Matt Trynauer recounted that, for a trip to the airport, “Three buses are needed, one to move Valentino, Giammetti, and staff, another for luggage, and a third to transport five of Valentino’s six pugs — Milton, Maude, Monty, Margot, and Molly.”
Kaia Gerber at the 2025 VF Oscar party wearing vintage Valentino Haute Couture. Image: Getty/Valentino
Florence Pugh in Valentino at the 2023 Oscars. Image: Valentino/Getty Images
Retirement
After nearly five decades in the fashion business, Valentino Garavani announced he would be stepping down from the helm of the house in 2007. A spectacle to rival anything the house had done before, his final haute couture show was staged at the Musée Rodin in Paris and featured many of the high profile models Garavani had worked with throughout his career, including Naomi Campbell, Claudia Schiffer and Eva Herzigova.
Following his retirement, several exhibitions dedicated to Garavani’s designs, including a show at Somerset House in London, a virtual museum and a documentary called The Last Emperor, were produced. The Valentino house, under subsequent creative directors Alessandra Faccinetti, Maria Grazia Chiuri, Pierpaolo Picciolo and Alessandro Michele, has remained one of the most important players on the international fashion scene and, in 2012, was sold to Qatar via investment firm Mayhoola for Investments for €700 million. In 2023, European luxury conglomerate took a 30 per cent stake in the company and announced its intent to acquire it in its entirety by 2028.
Until his ill health made it no longer possible, Garavani continued to live a life of luxury with Giammetti, sharing glimpses inside their numerous homes, yachts and almost constant worldwide travels with fans via the pair’s sizeable Instagram followings (2.4m for Garavani and 509k for Giammetti). Today Garavani’s account remains an active archive of the designer’s most memorable moments, while also sharing updates from the couple’s cultural foundation.
