Valentino Garavani Was a Fashion Icon Who Never Wanted for Much — Let's Look at His Net Worth

There is a lot you can say about Valentino Garavani, who died Jan. 19, 2026, at the age of 93. The iconic fashion designer was behind some of the most famous and infamous looks dating back to the 1960s. While he was an expert in textiles, Valentino's was not a rags-to-riches story.

According to The Independent, by his own admission, Valentino was a spoiled brat growing up. He was born in Voghera, near Milan, Italy, to an affluent electrical supplier. He was immediately drawn to the finer things in life, leaving his mother to once ask how she could have "produced a son who will only accept the most expensive things." He started from the upper middle class, and things only went up from there. What was Valentino's net worth at the time of his death? Here's what we know.

Valentino was reportedly worth $1.5 billion, per Celebrity Net Worth. As a child, Valentino was lucky enough to apprentice under a local Italian designer before heading to Paris, where he attended the prestigious École des Beaux-Arts. That was in 1950, and by 1960, he was opening his own fashion house in Rome following a decade's worth of work with luxury fashion houses such as Balenciaga and Christian Dior.

Despite running his own luxury house, which requires some restraint, Valentino still appreciated expensive things. He quickly burned through a ton of money, causing his business partner to pull out. The fashion designer was nearly bankrupt when actor Elizabeth Taylor threw him a bone. In October 1961, Elizabeth chose Valentino's white haute couture column for the Rome premiere of Spartacus.

A few years later, former first lady Jackie Kennedy spotted a stunning two piece ensemble made of black organza being worn by an acquaintance at an event. The designer was Valentino, who happened to be presenting his collection at a charity ball held at the Waldorf-Astoria in September 1964. When Jackie couldn't make it, he sent a model to her with a few of his designs. From that moment on, the United States's most fashionable first lady was hooked.

Throughout the 1970s, '80s, and into the '90s, Valentino perfected the look of sophistication and elegance in his designs. After Elizabeth and Jackie, Valentino created incredible pieces for Princess Diana, Audrey Hepburn, Julia Roberts, and Anne Hathaway. One of the most sought-after design styles is a custom Valentino wedding dress. They are widely regarded as the best.

Valentino and his partner, Giancarlo Giammetti, sold the company for $300 million in 1998, per PBS, but he stayed on for another decade as a designer. In 2016, Valentino and Giancarlo started the Fondazione Valentino Garavani and Giancarlo Giammetti, which is "rooted in the personal and private commitment of its founders with a philanthropic mission to support those in need and improve human welfare."