Since his passing last September, there has been something of an Armani revival taking place. Throughout awards season, the Milanese label has been a fixture on the red carpet, and Roberta Armani, the late designer’s niece and the brand’s head of global and VIP communications, says that the requests have been coming in thick and fast.

‘We’ve always dressed celebrities for events, but we’re definitely seeing the demand at the moment being as strong as ever,’ she confirms. ‘And it’s exciting to see that my uncle’s style is being appreciated and discovered by many younger actors and musicians, too, who are asking to wear his outfits.’

One fan is Mark Strong, star of the Kingsman films, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, and more recently, HBO’s Dune: Prophecy and The Penguin. He is not new to this particular wardrobe party. ‘Armani is my go-to for events, and has been for some years now,’ says Strong. ‘The reason I love his clothes is because of the style, the fabric, the “simple timeless classic” nature of the designs and the feel of his suits when I wear them – they just fit.’

He’s just worn Armani to the two big film events of the year: ‘To the Baftas, I had a dark blue velvet suit with white shirt and tie (not bow). To the Oscars, I wore a classic midnight blue slim-fitted tux with white shirt and blue silk bow tie.’ And he explains that part of the appeal for those in his profession is that Giorgio Armani has always been seen as a safe pair of hands. ‘I think actors have worn his clothes because they are so well, but so simply, designed, with an understated luxury that is chic, not loud. At least that’s why I like to wear Armani. His stuff is just very cool.’

While this sort of endorsement from an actor is not news for team Armani, as the designer clocked up more than 200 wardrobe credits during his lifetime, there’s something poignant about it coming just six months after his death. For a man who became famous for outfitting the likes of Clooney, De Niro, DiCaprio and Samuel L Jackson, not to mention Julia Roberts, Cate Blanchett and Nicole Kidman, to be still sought out nearly 50 years after Diane Keaton first wore his label to the Academy Awards in 1978 when she won Best Actress for Annie Hall, is quite an achievement.

But while it’s tempting to see an increased interest in the designer’s work as the result of his departure and the celebration of his importance that followed it, there are those that argue that an Armani moment has been building momentum for a few years now.

‘Armani is all about volume and fluidity,’ says creative director of American Esquire, Nick Sullivan. ‘Ever since we ditched the super-tight styles of a few years ago, the door was open to an Armani revival. And some of it also has to do with young people wearing more and more vintage clothing. I know vintage dealers on both coasts in the US who used to be asked for French labels and not Italian, but now have to source Armani for their customers.’ Armani is peculiarly well-suited to fans of vintage as his style famously remains consistent season after season.

The spring/summer 2026 collections for men and women are technically the last the designer personally created. They have all the hallmarks of Armani – the drape, easy silhouette, the subtle colour palette, the use of texture and, above all, the soft construction that is so reliably comfortable to wear.

If you are in the market for a piece of Armani now – menswear or womenswear – we recommend you go for one of his jackets. The unconstructed jacket was, he used to say, the piece he came back to again and again, claiming he wanted a jacket to feel as comfortable to wear as a cardigan. And you could always seek out a vintage one. It will look as right now as it did the first time around.

armani.com