Words by: Jack Couser
Close-up of a piece from the Armani/Silos Aldo Fallai exhibit
It was raining as I walked toward Avenue Montaigne, thankfully I had my umbrella at hand after returning to the hostel I was staying at for a second time that day. The first time was to change my outfit after I saw myself in the reflection of a boutique. Though full-time I’m an American in Milan, that weekend I was an American in Paris. Not in the Woody Allen type of way, more so, student abroad trying to see as much as Europe has to offer. I wore a slightly wrinkled light grey button-up, jeans, loafers, and a leather jacket. Two days earlier, I stopped into the Giorgio Armani women’s boutique to see what it was like, but that day I decided to see what the men's store had to offer.
As soon as I walked in, the difference between the men's and women’s stores was apparent. This one was darker, with less natural light coming from the windows; the store had a leathery scent; the colors were fairly muted. I could see the typical gendered color palette: blue, black, grey, and brown in everything from the clothes to the floors and furniture. Having never been inside an Armani men’s store, I figured I’d do a lap to check everything out. As hard as I tried, fresh out of the rain I don’t think I looked like a typical Armani customer… but the sales associates were kind nonetheless. That was at least one constant between the men’s and women’s stores.
Looking at each piece of clothing, at first glance I could tell they were all classic, even the newest pieces screamed ‘wardrobe staple.’ Luckily before I could think about what made them so special, a sales associate stopped to explain what made these pieces so unique. “We don’t talk about age” when thinking about Giorgio Armani, “it’s timeless.” The needs of Armani men don’t change because “they move all the time.” The pieces Armani creates are those that move with them. After pulling off a jacket he had me try on, I was surprised to watch him press it into a ball. “You could sleep on it if you want” and it would still look good if you needed to wear it to work the next day.
As the sales associate continued to explain the entirety of the Armani ecosystem to me, what stuck out the most was the element of travel woven through each business venture Armani pursued. Whether it was the company’s fragrances, homeware, hotels, or any of the less-expensive Armani spinoff labels, I suddenly could see travel as the common thread that wove all of Mr. Armani’s work together. In store, this thread was in the textiles used, in many East-Asian inspired garments, and the fragrances inspired by the scents from worldly destinations. Given the incredible empire he has built, it was hard to imagine that Mr. Armani had any time to travel, let alone any spare time at all. Yet at 89, still head of the brand and having traveled the world, Giorgio Armani proved that work/creative life balance is possible.
I thought back to what one of my professors had said during a lecture on Managing Creativity at Bocconi: when building a stimulating creative environment for yourself and others, free time is non-negotiable. When our minds are bored, we have to come up with things to do on our own. Some people read or get hobbies, in Mr. Armani’s case, he travels. This is reflected in what he creates when he inevitably turns back into work mode. Proof that in creative industries work and life might not need to be separated by a slash. On the contrary, work is inspired by everyday life. Good work is produced by those who live a rich and fulfilling life, taking inspiration from and imbuing it into their creative process. One could argue that Van Gogh produced some of his greatest work in an asylum, nonetheless, his life influenced his work.
Walking from a room with only Armani essentials towards the entrance, the sales associate pointed out a table where games and decorations were laid out for sale, tying in aspects of the complete Armani lifestyle. I could instantly see how they created an image of that balance between work and play, and even more, I thought about the thought that must have gone behind the decision to present these products in this way. Of course, it would make sense to only display clothing to be sold, but adding these supplemental pieces in the same room offered a physical reminder that the brand encapsulates both aspects of one’s life: work and play.
Further driving this idea was the simplicity of the store. Stepping back into the entrance room made me realize how similar the store was to the idea of what the Armani man is like. The Armani world allows those who live in it to focus on what’s truly important to them, living a life that does not need a slash between what they consider to be work and play, a life in which the boundaries are blurred. Much like how Mr. Armani segments his business to prevent him from doing too much, the Armani men’s world accomplishes the same thing with a product assortment and presentation that effectively translates the brand’s point of view and philosophy on life. Whoever made these decisions, I would imagine, must have had incredible balance in their creative life, being able to balance their inspiration with actualizing it in real life. Mr. Armani inspires me, being able to accomplish this across every facet of his business, and further proves that the investment into finding balance in your life can work wonders for what you produce.
Armani sales associate’s name removed for privacy.
