Giorgio Armani

Giorgio Armani launched his first collection in 1975 and built a $2.5 billion fashion empire with over 2,000 retail stores worldwide without ever taking his company public or bringing in outside investors. His 1980 costumes for Richard Gere in 'American Gigolo' launched the 'power dressing' trend that defined 1980s menswear, and he was the first fashion designer to formally ban models with a BMI below a healthy threshold.