Max Mara

Emerging from the difficult atmosphere of postwar Italy in 1951, Achille Maramotti opened his men’s dresswear business under the label of Max Mara. Soon, he was making clothes for the kind of women who loved high fashion but couldn’t necessarily afford it. His ethos—providing high-quality, design-forward clothing at more reasonable prices—has culminated, a half-century later, in Max Mara being a billion-dollar empire, now encompassing high and low labels. When Maramotti passed away in 2005, the year Forbes listed him as one of the world’s richest men, the company was turned over to his three children.

The Look

Common-sense dressing with a dose of high-minded luxe.

The Designer

Always more interested in the clothes than the designer's personality, Maramotti never touted the creative mind behind the label—something that still stands. Though the line has been designed in the past by such notables as Karl Lagerfeld, Jean-Charles de Castelbajac, and Narciso Rodriguez, it’s a behind-the-scenes team effort today.