Giorgio Armani pays himself 346.5 million euros in bonus

“One is never so well served as by yourself” is a saying that must have crossed the mind of Giorgio Armani the moment he decided to make out a check for 346.5 million euros to himself.

Photo: Giorgio Armani pays himself 346.5 million euros in bonus

It is an open secret that those in charge of multimillion companies usually make loads of money. However, it is hard to resist giving yourself a handsome bonus to top it off, especially in case Giorgio Armani, the owner of the Armani Group, one of the leading fashion and luxury groups that is privately owned. Armani recently gave himself a 346.5 million euro bonus, the largest one ever reported in history of fashion.

By all accounts, Armani’s “salary” was quite high in the year 2006. According to data released by Giorgio Armani Spa, he received a dividend of 100 million euros ($126 million) last year. He also pocketed 175 million euros ($220.5 million) as a bonus. All the money came from a deal clinched by the group.

It should be noted that the famous Italian designer really deserves a top salary even if he is a paymaster for himself. Giorgio Armani has long been making every effort to create a wide range of fashion products that stand head and shoulders above others. In 2006, his company experienced growth across all geographic areas, product lines and brands, with consolidated sales up 9 percent to 1.5 billion euros.

All and all, the year 2006 was a big success for the Italian fashion conglomerate. In particular, jewelry outperformed other categories with 41 percent growth, followed by eyewear with 20 percent and watches with 17 percent. In 2006, the company opened 42 stores across the world. This year, Armani is planning to open another 50 new stores. Last month Giorgio Armani opened an online boutique in the 3-D virtual world Second Life, with a store modeled on his flagship location in Milan. The store will allow more than 8 million users of the online game to purchase the brand’s top 10 products virtually via Second Life currency, the Linden Dollar, or they can connect directly from there to his recently-launched online store.

RBC

Translated by Guerman Grachev
Pravda.ru