Ermenegildo Zegna

Ermenegildo Zegna SpA is a luxury men's suit maker - the largest menswear brand in the world. The company Ermenegildo Zegna was founded in 1910 in Trivero, Italy by tailor and entrepreneur Ermenegildo Zegna, when Ermenegildo bought his father's textile looms. Zegna quickly gained a reputation for producing fine quality wool for suits, and by the end of the 1930s, the wool mill employed 1,000 workers. When Ermenegildo Zegna's sons Aldo and Angelo joined the company in 1942, it was renamed Ermenegildo Zegna and Sons.By 1945 Zegna fabrics were sold in over 40 countries.

When Ermenegildo died in 1966, his sons took over the business, and two years later they launched a line of ready-to-wear suits produced in Zegna's factory in Novara. The first boutique was opened in Paris in 1980, followed by Milan in 1985. In its push to expand its customer base, Zegna also began designing new clothing lines to attract a younger clientele. In 1992, Zegna introduced two new lines, Zegna Soft and Zegna Sportswear, which offered more casual clothing styles. The company also introduced its own cologne in 1993. In Japan, in 1997, Zegna launched a new, Japan-only line, E.Z. That brand was also the company's first to be produced outside of Europe and under contract. Then, in 1998, the company introduced a new brand and retail format, Zegna Sport. As one of the biggest global producers of fine fabrics (more than 2 million metres per year), Zegna has been active in promoting improvements in wool production around the world. As well as producing men's suits for its own labels, it manufactures suits for labels such as Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent, Dunhill and Tom Ford. The company is often referred to simply as Zegna.