The late Italian fashion designer Giorgio Armani instructs heirs to sell stakes in his empire

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MILAN (AP) — After a lifetime of spurning would-be business suitors, the late Italian designer Giorgio Armani instructed his heirs to sell an initial 15% minority stake in his vast fashion empire, with priority to the French conglomerate LVMH, the eyewear giant Essilor-Luxottica or the cosmetics company L’Oreal.

Armani gave control of 40% of his business empire to his longtime collaborator and head of menswear Leo Dell’Orco, and another 15% each to niece Silvana Armani, the head of womenswear, and nephew Andrea Camerana, according to his business will posted online Friday by the Italian daily La Repubblica.

The Armani Foundation, which he established in 2016 as a succession vehicle, will control the remaining 30%.

Armani, one of the most recognizable names and faces in Italian fashion, died on Sept. 4 at the age of 91. Two wills, one for his business empire and the other for his private property, were deposited with Italian tax authorities on Thursday, and widely reported by Italian media on Friday.

The executive committee of Giorgio Armani said in a statement that the documents confirms "Mr. Armani’s intention to safeguard strategic continuity, corporate cohesion and financial stability for long-term development.''

That includes Armani's wishes for a short- and medium-term path for the brand mission and structure, which will be carried out by Dell'Orco and members of the family, the committee underlined.

The foundation's first priority is to name a chief executive officer, the committee underlined, and it will never hold less than 30% of share, making it “a permanent guarantor of compliance with the founding principals.” The committee said it would support Armani's wishes to secure "the best possible future for the company and the brand.''

Armani remained a rarity in Italian fashion, retaining tight control of his fashion empire in the face of advances from LVMH and Gucci, now part of the Kering group, and from Kering itself, as well as the Fiat-founding Agnelli family heirs.

But in his business will, he specified the Armani Foundation should sell a 15% stake not before one year and within 18 months of his death, with preference to LVMH, Essilor-Luxottica or L’Oreal or to a fashion group “of similar standing.’’

Within three to five years, Armani also stipulated that the same buyer should increase its stake to 30% and 54.9%, or that a similar share be publicly floated through an initial public offering, either in Italy or a similar market.

Both wills were rewritten by Armani last spring, partly by hand on the back of a sepia-colored envelope.

His niece Roberta, who has long served as a liaison between Armani and his red-carpet clients, and his sister Rosanna, each were allotted a 15% non-voting share in the company.

Armani maintained a 2.5% stake in the French-Italian eyewear giant Essilor-Luxottica, worth 2.5 billion euros ($2.93 billion), of which 40% goes to Dell’Orco and and most of the rest to family members — just a part of the distribution of his vast personal fortune which included homes in Milan, New York, the Sicilian island of Pantelleria and St. Tropez on the French Riviera.

The final Emporio Armani and Giorgio Armani collections designed by Armani will be presented later this month during Milan Fashion Week, which opens on Sept. 23. A special exhibition at the Pinacoteca di Brera will mark the 50th anniversary of the signature fashion house.

In his will, Armani specified that future collections should be guided by “essential, modern, elegant and understated design with attention to detail and wearability.’’