The extraordinary story of the first century of a great Italian fashion house that has always been a paragon of style. Gorgeously designed, handsomely bound, and abundantly illustrated, this is the first book ever to present the 100-year history of a leader in men’s luxury clothing and one of the oldest business families in Italy. As a family business, Ermenegildo Zegna goes back to the second half of the nineteenth century. Angelo Zegna a watchmaker by trade, decided to open a wool mill. Of his ten children it was the last, Ermenegildo, born in 1892, who took over what was to become one of the best-known and most dynamic family businesses in Italy. The extensive historical reconstruction of the early decades of Ermenegildo Zegna S.p.A. is followed by a detailed description of the fabrics, techniques, and custom tailoring of its most exclusive garments. Numerous images illustrate the lands providing the raw materials: Australia, Peru, and Mongolia. Just as spectacular is the photo album of the celebrities and spokespersons wearing Zegna, the international advertising campaigns, the list of awards won, and Zegna-sponsored sports and cultural affairs (red carpets, openings, car races, environmental and sports events).

James Hillman is an American psychologist. Claudia D’Arpizio is a cultural analyst and international fashion expert. Suzy Menkes, who hails from the U.K., has been a fashion reporter for the International Herald Tribune since 1988. She is considered the doyenne of fashion journalism. D.T. Max is a journalist and essayist. Mariano Maugeri is a journalist at the Il Sole 24 Ore financial newspaper and an author of several essays.