Valentino

Valentino Garavani opened his fashion house on Via Condotti in Rome in 1960, with backing from his father and with Giancarlo Giammetti as his partner. The house made its international debut in Florence in 1962, and in 1967 it moved its headquarters to Palazzo Gabrielli-Mignanelli. The same year brought the "no colour" collection of white, beige and ivory, and the V logo.

Valentino dressed some of the most photographed women of the century, among them Jacqueline Kennedy and Elizabeth Taylor. Julia Roberts accepted her 2001 Academy Award in a black and white gown from the house's 1992 couture archive, and Cate Blanchett accepted hers in 2005 in a custom yellow silk taffeta dress.

Garavani and Giammetti sold the company in 1998 to the Italian holding company HdP. It passed to Marzotto in 2002, to the private equity firm Permira in 2007, and in 2012 to Mayhoola for Investments, a Qatari vehicle. Garavani and Giammetti left in early 2008. Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli, already accessories co-designers, took over as creative directors in 2008; Piccioli led alone from 2016, when Chiuri left for Dior.

Kering bought 30% of Valentino in 2023. A 2025 amendment to the shareholders' agreement pushed any further change of ownership to 2028 at the earliest. Piccioli left in March 2024 and Alessandro Michele, formerly of Gucci, was named creative director.