Fashion king Giorgio Armani may be one of the most respected designers in the business, but, unfortunately for him, that doesn’t mean he has to pay less in taxes. In a new survey by Italian magazine L’Espresso the maestro has come out on top of a list of the country’s taxpayers, earning almost eight times more than Italian premier Silvio Berlusconi.
With a declared income of some $60 million, the Italian designer well outstrips his nearest rivals, including Fiat chairman Gianni Agnelli, who declared a measly $24 million, and Juventus footballer Alessandro Del Piero, who earns around $30 million a year. Despite coming 25th in the survey, Berlusconi - a media mogul-turned-politician –is still considered to be Italy’s richest man, owing to his formidable range of assets and other earnings.
Praised worldwide for his subtle and elegant designs, Giorgio has also proved to be a keen businessman. The Armani empire now includes more than 250 stores in 33 countries which ring up sales of $2 billion a year.
In April 2001 the Italian designer presented his first make-up line and has several new projects in the pipeline. One of these is the collaboration with architect Tadao Ando, to build a theatre on the site of an old factory beside Armani’s offices in Milan. The venue is to be inaugurated next October, and will coincide with the Autumn-Winter 2002 collections.
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
