Laura Biagiotti, an Italian fashion designer, has died aged 73 after suffering a heart attack. Biagiotti was one of the […]
Laura Biagiotti, an Italian fashion designer, has died aged 73 after suffering a heart attack.
Biagiotti was one of the first Italian designers to conquer global markets. She was known for her soft, loose women’s clothes and luxurious knits which won her the nickname «Queen of Cashmere».
She also produced sunglasses and perfumes, including the popular «Roma» fragrance.
Biagiotti began designing women’s clothes in the 1960s and by the 1980s was making her mark.
Biagiotti was the first Italian designer to present a fashion show in China, and among the first to show in Russia.
She expanded into men’s clothing as well, and created a plus-size women’s line, Laura Piu, and a line for children.
“Being a fashion designer is like taking vows. It becomes your religion for life,” she said in 1987.
Since 1980 she had lived and worked in a restored 11th century castle near Rome with her husband Gianni Cigna, who died in 1996. Her daughter Lavinia is the vice president of the group.
The Biagiotti group stages more than 70 shows every year.