Loro Piana

Loro Piana was founded in 1924 by Pietro Loro Piana, an Italian engineer, in the Quarona commune of Piedmont. The family had traded woolen cloths in the region since the early 19th century. Pietro turned that inheritance into a mill focused on fine fabrics for Europe’s tailoring trade. The company specialized in wool of the highest quality, sold to Europe’s elite tailors.

For decades, the name circulated among cutters and couturiers, not shoppers. The label is now cited as the origin of the industry’s understated-luxury category. Until the 1980s, Loro Piana operated exclusively as a fabric supplier. That changed in 1985, when the brand launched its first ready-to-wear collection.

The first ready-to-wear pieces stayed close to the mills. Cashmere crew necks and unlined overcoats used the same yarns as the fabric line. Suede field jackets and the Storm System treated cashmere Roadster blouson extended that approach into outerwear designed for weather.

Loro Piana fabrics found buyers well beyond ready-to-wear. Yves Saint Laurent used them during his Parisian years. Giorgio Armani used them for the power suiting he pioneered, and Savile Row cutting rooms turned them into bespoke overcoats and tailoring. That reach placed the house alongside Zegna and Brunello Cucinelli, with fiber quality one tier above both.

The credential that sealed Loro Piana’s standing came in the 1990s. The house secured exclusive rights to produce fabric from vicuña wool, sourced in South America. Vicuña remains one of the rarest materials in the world.

The business changed hands in 2013. LVMH acquired an 85% controlling stake for €2 billion, in a deal that valued the enterprise at €2.7 billion. The Loro Piana family retained 15% ownership and operational influence.

Sergio Loro Piana died months after the sale. Leadership passed through Fabio d’Angelantonio to current CEO Damien Bertrand. At the end of 2025, LVMH acquired additional shares worth approximately €1 billion from the founding family, increasing its stake from 85% to 94%.

Today, Loro Piana dresses hedge-fund principals, Sun Valley regulars, and the wider stealth-wealth customer through 171 stores worldwide. The house still operates as an entirely vertical business. It produces five million meters of fabric a year across nine production sites, all in Italy.

Recent scrutiny over Peruvian vicuña sourcing and Italian subcontracting has complicated that picture. LVMH has not reduced its stake in response, moving instead toward full ownership. The brand’s position at the top of the fiber market remains hard to displace, and so does its influence on how wealthy men now dress.