Laura Biagiotti, born in Rome under the sign of the Leo, is one of Italy's greatest fashion designers. Since 1980 she has lived and worked in the Roman countryside, in an 11th century castle that was lovingly restored to its ancient splendor after years of patient renovation, together with her husband Gianni Cigna, who passed away prematurely in August 1996.
Laura Biagiotti is famous around the globe for her cashmere fashions: the New York Times dubbed her the 'Queen of Cashmere' due to her love for this precious yarn that she has used since her first collection with a refined, unusual approach, evolving into a dimension of style unheard of at the time.
In 1992, Laura Biagiotti received the Woman of the Year award in New York. In 1993, she was given the 'Marco Polo' award in Beijing for having brought Italian industry to China.
In 1995 she received the Knights of Labor award from Italian President Oscar Luigi Scalfaro, which rewarded her long career in the fashion industry and her contribution in making Italian fashion famous worldwide.
Since 2000 Laura Biagiotti has been the President of the Leonardo Committee composed of prominent Italians in the fields of industry, art and culture. In 2001 she was the first Italian designer to receive the prestigious 'Prix Femmes D'Europe' for her contribution in promoting women's participation in the development of a unified Europe.
In 2002 she celebrated the 30th anniversary of her career, having made her debut with her first collection in Florence in 1972. The entire year was spent celebrating her anniversary, with extraordinary coverage by the media, events and recognition around the world, including the Marisa Bellisario Award given during the 'Donne sotto le stelle' gala fashion show. In that same year, the Italian Postal Service issued a 41 Euro cent stamp honoring the designer and portraying a long dress inspired by classic Roman style.
Laura Biagiotti is the first designer to have compiled a chapter in the Enciclopedia Treccani, discussing Italian products in the Book of the Year 2004. In July 2004, Rome Mayor Walter Veltroni presented Laura Biagiotti with the Lupa Capitolina award during a day rich in events devoted to the designer and motivated by her great love and knowledge of the Eternal City.
Laura Biagiotti's interest in fashion began in the Sixties when she followed in the footsteps of her mother, Delia Soldaini, the founder of a fashion atelier. Lavinia Biagiotti Cigna, on the other hand, began working alongside Laura in the company business in 1996, after the premature death of her father, Gianni Cigna. A year later, in 1997, Lavinia's creations made their debut on the catwalk during a charity event organized in Cairo under the patronage of Madame Suzanne Mubarak, the wife of the Egyptian president. Lavinia assists her mother in running the company and was elected Board Member of the National Council of Italian Fashion in April 2004.
A unique event in fashion history took place in Beijing on April 25, 1988, when 30 Chinese models presented the most significant creations in the career of Laura Biagiotti, the first Italian designer to present a fashion show in China. The 125 outfits paid homage to the precious raw materials for which China has been rightfully famous for centuries: cashmere and silk. On February 5, 1995, the legendary doors of the Kremlin opened to Laura Biagiotti for a fashion show that linked Italian fashion and culture with the great Russian nation.
In October 1991 the Marco Simone Golf Club — two technically advanced, panoramic 18-hole golf courses designed by American architect Jim Fazio and built on 150 hectares of Biagiotti's castle grounds — was inaugurated. The club hosted the Italian Open in May 1994. Laura and Lavinia Biagiotti were the first to establish a synergy between fashion and sports with the aim of strengthening two great sectors that promote Italian excellence worldwide. In October 2000, for the striking finale of her show, Laura Biagiotti welcomed many of the champions of the 2000 Olympics in Sydney and had them walk down the runway wrapped up in a cashmere Italian flag. The bond between Biagiotti fashion and great athletes has continued over the years with exceptional testimonials such as Pierluigi Collina, Massimiliano Rosolino, Jarno Trulli, Yuri Chechi, Stefano Baldini, Giorgio Rocca, Marco Melandri, Mario Cipollini, Giorgio Rocca, Valentina Vezzali, Daniela Ceccarelli, Federica Pellegrini, Francesca Piccinini, Maurizia Cacciatori, Barbara Fusar Poli e Maurizio Margaglio, Armin Zoeggeler e Manfred Moelgg.
Laura Biagiotti is constantly involved in promoting Italian culture. After restoring the Marco Simone Castle, she sponsored the restoration of an embroidered cope kept in the Poldi Pezzoli Museum in Milan, whose design proved to be an authentic Botticelli. In 1998 Laura Biagiotti Parfums restored to its ancient splendors the Cordoned Staircase of the Capitol, which was designed by Michelangelo and is considered the heart of Rome.
During EXPO 2000, Laura Biagiotti was invited to present her fashion show in Hannover during a charity event, under the patronage of Chancellor Gherard Schroeder and his wife, Doris Schroeder-Koepf.
In 2003 Laura Biagiotti Parfums donated the new stage curtain for the Fenice Opera House in Venice, after the original was destroyed in the fire, and dedicated it to Gianni Cigna. Laura Biagiotti and her husband own the most important collection of paintings by the futurist artist Giacomo Balla. This collection, which is part of the Biagiotti Cigna Foundation, appeared at the Pushkin Museum in Moscow in 1996 and was on display in the Bramante Cloister in Rome in 1998.
In February 2001 Laura and Lavinia Biagiotti launched Laura Biagiotti ROMA collection, a youth line that combines a sporty-chic style for contemporary women.
In January 2003, Lavinia Biagiotti Cigna launched the Laura Biagiotti DOLLS line as a result of her desire to share Biagiotti fashion with girls, protecting them with top quality garments and educating them to appreciate beautiful things.
The Laura Biagiotti WATCHES and SYMBOLS lines were launched in the same year. The Laura Biagiotti BODYWEAR line was launched in September 2004: this collection of contemporary, innovative lingerie lives in symbiosis with outerwear, even on the catwalk.
'Biagiotti Day' was celebrated on July 13, 2004, and for the first time in her thirty-two year career, Laura Biagiotti presented her fashion show in Rome on the Piazza del Campidoglio, staged around the magical Michelangelo star and the statue of Marc Aurelius, which the designer chose as the perfect showcase for her creativity. The extraordinary event was attended by Mrs. Franca Ciampi, the Italian President's wife, and culminated with the presentation of the Lupa Capitolina award and the first precious ring made from the Gold of Rome that reproduces the Colosseum, donated by Rome's Deputy Mayor Maria Pia Garavaglia to celebrate Laura Biagiotti's love of Rome.
Laura Biagiotti's first perfume, 'Fiori Bianchi', was launched in 1982 and was followed by 'ROMA' in 1988 and by 'Venezia' in 1992. 'LAURA' and 'ROMA UOMO' made their debuts in 1994. 'Sottovoce' was born in 1996, and 'Tempore' and 'Tempore Donna' arrived in 1999. 'ROMA' celebrated its 20th birthday in 2008, and is considered a classic fragrance that is loved and worn around the globe. 'AQUA DI ROMA', a new project that follows in the footsteps of ROMA with two modern and innovative fragrances for men and women, made its debut in 2004. In October 2006 was launched the new men's and women's fragrances BIAGIOTTI DUE.
Each year Biagiotti Group presents eight fashion collections: Laura Biagiotti, Biagiotti UOMO, Laura Biagiotti DOLLS and Laura Biagiotti BODYWEAR. There are also several accessories collections: Handbags and Leather goods, Eyewear and Sunglasses, Scarves, Watches and Jewelry, Men's, Women's and Children's Footwear, and home.