Sergio Loro Piana Passed Away at 65

Beloved cashmere and fine wool manufacturer Sergio Loro Piana passed away yesteray according to WWD. He was apparently ill for some time now although details have not been made public. He is survived by his wife Maria Luisa and their three children.

Sergio Loro Piana, with his brother Pier Luigi, built and expanded their company which began six generations ago. As the Italian based company grew into a manufacturer of exclusive fabrics and yarns it managed to maintain its unique heritage, making it all the more luxurious. LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton purchased an 80 percent stake in the company this past summer.

Mario Boselli, the head of the Italian Chamber of Fashion, said Loro Piana was "a rare, real gentleman, with a strong sense of humor, and a true innovator, deeply conceptual. We were friends, and if you ask me since when, I can't tell you, it seems since forever."

About Loro Piana:

The Loro Piana family began trading wool and textiles in Trivero Italy at the beginning of the 19th century. In 1924, Pietro Loro Piana founded the company as a wool mill in country's Quarona commune. Then in the mid-Forties, Franco Loro Piana started exporting precious textiles outside of Italy, which was then developed further by his sons Sergio and Pier Luigi in the Seventies when they began running the company and expanding into luxury retail.

Loro Piana produces exclusive men's and women's lines and manufactures for its own use as well as supplies high-end garment manufacturers.