From the Archive: The Rise of 1980s Italian Luxury Rtw Designers

“The Italians have a way of making everything easy,” WWD wrote in 1980, marking the rise of Italian luxury ready-to-wear and Milan’s emergence as its design center, taking over from Rome. Established names familiar to fashion — Giorgio Armani, Missoni and Valentino — were joined by a burgeoning roster of talents whose legacies helped define Italy’s modern design heritage.

Pioneers at the top of the conversation were Mariuccia Mandelli of Krizia, Gianfranco Ferré, Gianni Versace and the Genny Group (home of Byblos and Complice, where Versace, Claude Montana and Romeo Gigli once designed). Alongside them, brands like Fendi (helmed by Karl Lagerfeld), Mario Valentino, Basile and Luciano Soprani elevated Italian fashion to global prominence. As Milan solidified its position in luxury ready-to-wear during the decade, WWD captured this transformative moment, heralding the future of Italian style.  

Taken from the pages of WWD from 1980 to 1989 are the designers’, editors’ and retailers’ perspectives on the brands.

“I like the way a woman moves when she is wearing pants. She’s freer, she has a different attitude. And it is a more modern way to look…” —Giorgio Armani, on his pant-dominated fall 1980 collection.

“The price [Mario Valentino] is not as important as making something beautiful…”  Mario Valentino, 1980

“The collaboration between Karl Lagerfeld and the Fendis has resulted in one of the most creative, inspiring and beautiful collections.” WWD’s Etta Froio on Fendi, 1981

“Luciano Soprani is the new amore of Milan…Soprani added a big plus to Italian fashion…with pure, well-proportioned and well-tailored clothes.” — Froio on Soprani, 1981

“There is always a touch of the feminine in everything.” Gianfranco Ferré, 1983

“My desire for clean, essential things has created my style. Think of my animals — they characterize my collections.” — Mariuccia Mandelli, founder of Krizia, 1985

“Fashion is simple, clean and basic clothes. It’s translating the feeling of the moment with an advance eye.” — Rosita Missoni, Missoni, 1985

“The Italians are interested in fashion. Everybody, right down to the truck driver who delivers your fabric samples. They’ve got taste here.” — Keith Varty and Alan Cleaver, Byblos, 1985

“Genny is exactly the way I want to be dressed. It’s the closest to my personality. [Byblos is] younger, amusing and full of humor — but it has a lot of class. Complice is more creative and is designed for a woman with a sense of humor. It’s feminine, but it’s for a more secure woman…who wants to be respected and admired.” — Donatella Girombelli on the Genny Group brands, 1985

“We’re looking for opulence and elegance, and we’re finding it here.” — Ellen Saltzman, Saks Fifth Avenue, on Versace, 1985

“My father had a library of 20,000 books. I grew up around them, and my ideas are all from pictures…from 15th- and 16th-century books. It’s a personal library I travel with.” Romeo Gigli, 1986

“It’s done well because the style is very special. It’s different than anything else. It has its own attitude and sense of humor. That’s what makes it perform.” — Beth Lieberman, Tootsies, 1989