Carla’s family announced on Tuesday that she had passed away on Monday in Rome.
Carla played a key role in developing and expanding the family business along with her four sisters, transforming it from a humble leather and fur store in Rome into an internationally revered brand.
While other members of the family were regarded as the company's creative forces, Carla mainly focused on coordinating the brand's marketing and PR, contributing to its global success.
Carla was the company's president until the fashion house was sold to French luxury group LVMH in 1999, after which she served as honorary president.
With the help of Carla’s wonderful skills as an ambassador, the label's double F logo has become an internationally recognised symbol of luxury and opulence.
In addition to her work in fashion, Carla was a philanthropist and patron of the arts.
In 2007, she established the Carla Fendi Foundation with her husband Candido, aiming to preserve the "cultural heritage and values from the past" and guarantee "their continuity and future growth, primarily in the art, literature, cinema, fashion, environment and social sectors”.
The foundation funded the restoration of the Trevi Fountain in Rome in 2016, has sponsored the musical institution Accademia Nazionale Santa Cecilia since 2010, and supported the internationally renowned Festival dei Due Mondi in Spoleto, Umbria.
With ANSA
