\n<\/p>\n
\n\tDuring business meetings, participants often get distracted, looking at their phone, or even stepping out to take a call.<\/p>\n
\n\tNot Giorgio Armani.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cQuality listening is probably the main lesson I took from him,\u201d Giuseppe Marsocci, the Italian company\u2019s chief executive officer, told the WWD x SKP Global Fashion & Beauty Summit in Wuhan, China. \u201cHe was always so focused, so intensely concentrated in his listening approach. This is probably one of the reasons behind his success, in my opinion.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tTying that anecdote to the host country, he paraphrased Confucius on how wide listening represents a crucial method of learning.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cYou will see how many things we have in common with the Chinese culture, and listening is probably the first one,\u201d he told the audience at the invitation-only event, held on Oct. 22 at the Marriott Wuchang.<\/p>\n
\n\tMarsocci announced at the event that Armani has signed a three-year partnership to support China\u2019s Golden Rooster Awards, which is gearing up for the 37th edition of the film festival and prize, scheduled for mid-November in Xiamen.<\/p>\n
\n\tLater that evening, the executive also christened a new multistory Giorgio Armani boutique at SKP Wuhan, showing off a red lacquer liquor cabinet decorated with fan motifs.<\/p>\n
\n\tLater at an art museum tucked into a nature reserve, Marsocci hosted celebrities, influencers and VICs for a lavish, autumnal dinner spanning pumpkin soup and truffle-infused steak.<\/p>\n
\n\tIn his keynote address in the hotel\u2019s main ballroom, Marsocci stressed that the founding designer, who died last year at age 91, left a detailed roadmap for the company, including a clear design language, hinged on minimalism, tinged with Oriental elements and spanning a complete lifestyle.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cArmani is not anymore only products and collections. It\u2019s really a way of living. Our business model is not a group of brands; it\u2019s a group of experiences under the Armani umbrella,\u201d he said, cueing up a sizzler video flashing images of runway shows, store ribbon-cuttings, global events, hotels, branded residences, restaurants, furniture and even chocolates.<\/p>\n
\n\tMarsocci acknowledged industry-wide questioning about the future of the brand without its famous, charismatic and exacting founder.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cFirst of all, we have something that is giving us a lot of confidence. Mr. Armani was not about only business. That would have been more difficult to give continuity. Mr. Armani, as we said, is about values, even personal values, even about life,\u201d the bespectacled executive said. \u201cWe think that helping and supporting the continuation of certain values is an easier way to continue his legacy. Because if it was only about him, it would be quite difficult to continue.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tHe highlighted the creation of the Giorgio Armani Foundation, which will always hold at least 30 percent of the company\u2019s shares \u2014 no matter who might take an important stake in future \u2014 and be able to give some direction. In his will, Armani detailed nine founding principles for future brand stewards to safeguard, while defending the brand\u2019s aesthetic identity and values.<\/p>\n
\n\tBut Marsocci also stressed that the company is evolving, elaborating on the recent appointment of Dario Vitale as the creative director of Emporio Armani and Giorgio Armani Accessories.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cThis is a very important change because it\u2019s the first time ever that someone not part of the Armani family has been involved in the creative direction,\u201d he told the audience. \u201cManaging creative directors is like managing the superstars in the sport industry: very difficult to manage, but very crucial for the business.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tHe noted that Vitale, who catapulted to fashion fame for his one-season stint designing Versace after a long career behind the scenes at Miu Miu, would work \u201cunder the umbrella of\u201d Leo Dell\u2019Orco and Silvana Armani, who worked beside the founder for decades on menswear and womenswear respectively. \u201cThey represent the DNA of the company, so that\u2019s why it\u2019s important: A new creative direction, but within the support and the path indicated by the brand and the people that have represented the brand forever.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cPreserving the consistency doesn\u2019t mean standing still,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
\n\tThe company\u2019s conviction is that \u201cslow is solid. It means long-term growth and healthy growth,\u201d Marsocci said. \u201cThis is really representing our way, and that starts from his design approach. And here again, you will notice something in common with the Chinese culture \u2014 not taking things to the extremes, the absence of excess. That means essentiality, harmony, balance.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tThe executive, who has logged nearly 25 years within the Armani Group, recounted the Italian brand\u2019s history in China.<\/p>\n
\n\tArmani opened his first boutique in 1998 in the Peninsula Palace Hotel in Beijing. \u201cHe was a real pioneer,\u201d Marsocci remarked, also recounting when the designer visited The Forbidden City in 2004, having often looked East for inspiration.<\/p>\n
\n\tArmani hosted one of his big One Night Only events in Beijing in 2012 and paraded 15 Armani Priv\u00e9 couture dresses as a tribute to China. In 2015, he dedicated his spring Armani Priv\u00e9 collection to bamboo, myriad prints, embroideries and appliqu\u00e9s depicting its stems and leaves.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cIt\u2019s a humble material, but it\u2019s very resilient,\u201d Marsocci said, lauding the \u201csophisticated elegance\u201d it telegraphs when referenced in Armani Casa collections, and in Armani store concepts.<\/p>\n
\n\tThe executive also trumpeted the company\u2019s legitimacy in all things cinema.<\/p>\n
\n\tWell known for dressing Richard Gere in the 1980 film \u201cAmerican Gigolo,\u201d which catapulted the stature of Armani and his soft tailoring, the Italian designer costumed Tony Leung Chiu-wai and Takeshi Kaneshiro in the 2006 Chinese movie \u201cConfessions of Pain.\u201d He went on to collaborate with Chinese director Jiang
Wen on \u201cGone with the Bullets\u201d in 2014 and \u201cHidden Man\u201d in 2018.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cMany luxury brands connect with the film industry, but we started 30 years ago,\u201d Marsocci said, flashing a slide showing George Clooney, Jonathan Bailey, Kendall Jenner and Italian singer Levante wearing Armani at the most recent Venice Film Festival, of which Armani is a major patron. \u201cOur connection is really part of the DNA of the brand\u2026.Our connection with the film industry is very strong.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tHe made a plug for the autobiography Armani wrote in 2022, \u201cPer Amore,\u201d which is now available in the Chinese language, giving readers an in-depth look at his life, values and character.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cHe wrote that cinema was his real education,\u201d Marsocci related. \u201cHe always used to say that if he was not a designer, he would have been a director.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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