Dolce & Gabbana

Domenico Dolce, born in 1958 in Polizzi Generosa, Sicily, the son of a tailor, and Stefano Gabbana, born in Milan in 1962, met in 1980 while working for the designer Giorgio Correggiari. By 1982 they had set up a design consultancy, and in October 1985 they made their runway debut in the New Talents show at Milano Collezioni, the date the house counts as its founding. Their first self-produced collection, Donne Vere ("Real Women"), followed for autumn/winter 1986/87, with local women as models. Dolce's family in Sicily helped cover costs in the early years, and in 1988 the company joined forces with his father's manufacturing business in Legnano.

Within the partnership Dolce is the tailor, drafting patterns and running fittings, while Gabbana shapes fabrics, styling and the mood of each collection. Sicily became the house's reference point, beginning with early advertising campaigns shot there in black and white by Ferdinando Scianna, and the slip-like "Sicilian dress", corsetry and black lace became its signatures.

The first shop opened in Milan in 1987. Lingerie and beachwear followed in 1989, menswear in 1990 and the first fragrance in 1992, and by then the company was exporting to Japan and the United States. Madonna's costumes for the Girlie Show tour of 1993 made the pair internationally famous. By 2009 the business had 113 stores and turnover above €1 billion, and the younger D&G diffusion line was folded into the main label in 2011.

In July 2012 the designers staged their first Alta Moda couture show, in Taormina, followed by Alta Sartoria for men; the shows have since toured historic Italian sites.

The house has also drawn controversy, including a 2015 dispute with Elton John and a 2018 row over Instagram messages about China that led to the cancellation of its Shanghai show. Both founders were convicted of tax evasion in 2013 and cleared on appeal in 2014.

Dolce and Gabbana remain the creative directors. Gabbana stepped down as chairman, a change reported in 2026, and kept his creative role. Alfonso Dolce, Domenico's brother, is chairman and chief executive.