What is Loro Piana? Brand History & Ownership

When men discuss the finest suit fabric in the world, one name surfaces more than any other: Loro Piana. But what exactly is Loro Piana — a mill, a brand, or something else entirely? This guide covers the full story: the family roots stretching back to the early 1800s, the formal company founding in 1924, the strategic pivot toward rare fibers, and the 2013 acquisition by LVMH that transformed the business into a global luxury powerhouse.

The Family Roots: Early 1800s in Trivero

The Loro Piana story begins not with a single founding moment but with a family that spent two centuries getting closer to the raw material. The family appears in trade records from the early 1800s in Trivero, a small town in the Biella district of Piedmont, Italy — the same alpine valley that produced Vitale Barberis Canonico. For decades they operated as wool merchants, buying fleece from local shepherds and selling cloth to tailors across northern Italy.

The timing was unglamorous: a region with limited industrial infrastructure, a textile market still organized around guild traditions, and a global economy in flux after the Napoleonic wars. Yet the family persisted, building relationships with fleece suppliers and developing expertise in selecting and grading raw wool — skills that would prove critical a century later.

The Formal Company: 1924

The transformation from wool merchants to industrial weaver came in 1924, when the engineer Pietro Loro Piana established Loro Piana & C. in Quarona, a town in the Valsesia valley of Piedmont. The timing could hardly have been worse: a global economic crisis, rising protectionism, and a textile market in contraction. But Pietro's generation brought mechanical looms, modern dyeing techniques, and a willingness to invest in quality control systems that smaller operations could not afford.

After the Second World War, Franco Loro Piana — Pietro's grandson — took over and began exporting to Europe, the Americas, and Japan. The postwar boom in haute couture created demand for the fine Italian wool that the Loro Piana name had come to signify. By the 1970s, Franco's sons Sergio and Pier Luigi were running the operation, and they redirected the company toward the two things that would define it for the next fifty years: rare fibers and vertical integration.

The Rare Fiber Revolution

Sergio and Pier Luigi's generation made the strategic decision to source directly from the origin of the world's finest animal fibers. Cashmere from the high plateaus of Mongolia and Inner Mongolia. Vicuña from the Andean highlands of Peru. Merino from specific stations in Australia and New Zealand. Rather than buying fleece on the open market and accepting whatever grade arrived, Loro Piana embedded itself at the source.

Each cashmere goat in their Mongolian supply chain is individually numbered and tracked. The number of animals is deliberately limited — more goats grazing the already fragile steppe grassland would accelerate desertification and destroy the very resource the business depends on. In 1994, Loro Piana began working with vicuña fiber. Three years later, the company reached an agreement with the Peruvian government and Andean communities to source vicuña exclusively from live animals, sheared and released — a practice that had been abandoned for centuries. In 2008, Loro Piana helped finance Peru's first private nature preserve for vicuñas.

This is not philanthropy as a side project; it is supply-chain strategy at the longest possible time horizon.

The LVMH Chapter: 2013 to Present

In July 2013, LVMH acquired an 80% stake in Loro Piana for $2.6 billion. Sergio Loro Piana died later that year; Pier Luigi remained involved in an advisory capacity. The Arnault family brought capital, global retail infrastructure, and a long-term commitment to keeping the brand at the apex of luxury.

By late 2025, LVMH had increased its stake to 94%, acquiring additional shares for approximately €1 billion from the founding family. The manufacturing base remains entirely in Italy — all production sites are in Piedmont — and the Loro Piana name still appears on every bolt of cloth.

The acquisition raised questions about whether Loro Piana would lose its independence. The answer, so far, is no. The mill continues to operate with the same vertical integration, the same fiber sourcing relationships, and the same finishing processes that built its reputation. What changed was scale: LVMH's distribution network gave Loro Piana access to markets it could never have reached alone, particularly in Asia and the Middle East.

Related Reading

• Loro Piana: The Pinnacle of Italian Wool
https://sartoro.co/blogs/sartorial/loro-piana-pinnacle-italian-wool

• Vitale Barberis Canonico: The World's Oldest Suit Fabric Mill
https://sartoro.co/blogs/sartorial/vitale-barberis-canonico-fabric

• Suit Fabric Types: Reading Fiber, Weave and Weight
https://sartoro.co/blogs/sartorial/suit-fabric-types

• Loro Piana Official Website
https://www.loropiana.com

Market positioning, pricing context, and answers to the most common questions about Loro Piana.

Where Loro Piana Sits on the Mill Ladder

The luxury suit fabric market has a clear hierarchy:

Accessible luxury: Vitale Barberis Canonico, Reda, Marzotto — excellent mills producing millions of metres of quality cloth at moderate prices. A VBC Super 110s suit is a serious garment.

Upper-mid tier: Dormeuil, Holland & Sherry, Scabal — historic houses with distinctive house styles, strong in specific areas (Dormeuil's finishing, H&S's British worsteds, Scabal's range and innovation).

Premium: Loro Piana, Zegna (fabric division), Carlo Barbera — the mills that luxury houses source from when the brief is "the best available."

Above premium: Vicuña and ultra-limited editions from Loro Piana, plus a handful of artisan weavers producing custom-only cloth in very small quantities.

The price gap between tiers is significant. A custom suit in VBC Perennial Super 110s typically starts around $1,500–$2,500. The same suit in Loro Piana Australis Super 150s starts around $3,000–$4,000. In Tasmanian or cashmere blends, $4,000–$6,000. In pure cashmere or vicuña, the ceiling is essentially open.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who owns Loro Piana?

LVMH owns 94% of Loro Piana as of late 2025. The founding family retains a 6% stake. LVMH acquired an 80% stake in 2013 for $2.6 billion and increased its holding in 2025.

Is Loro Piana still family-run?

The founding family retains a minority stake and advisory involvement, but LVMH controls operations. The manufacturing base remains in Piedmont, Italy, and the Loro Piana name still appears on every bolt of cloth.

Why is Loro Piana so expensive?

Three factors: rare fiber sourcing (cashmere, vicuña, ultra-fine merino), vertical integration (every stage from raw fiber to finished cloth), and proprietary finishing processes that competitors acknowledge produce unmatched softness and hand feel. The price premium reflects measurable differences in tactile quality.

What is the best Loro Piana fabric?

For daily wear, Australis Super 150s offers the best balance of luxury and practicality. For travel, Tasmanian high-twist wool is purpose-built for wrinkle recovery. For special occasions, cashmere or vicuña suiting represents the ceiling of the luxury ladder.

Does Loro Piana make ready-to-wear clothing?

Yes. Loro Piana sells fabric to tailors and luxury houses, and also produces its own ready-to-wear clothing sold through Loro Piana boutiques. The fabric quality is the same; the construction, styling, and price point differ.

Does Sartoro carry Loro Piana fabric?

Sartoro does not currently carry Loro Piana fabric. Loro Piana sits at the top of the luxury mill ladder and supplies a limited number of bespoke tailors and luxury houses. At Sartoro, we offer Vitale Barberis Canonico (VBC) and other premium mills that deliver exceptional quality at a more accessible price point. If you are looking for the finest available fabric in our collection, our Super 130s Italian wool and VBC Perennial Super 110s are excellent choices.

Related Reading

• [Loro Piana: The Pinnacle of Italian Wool](/blogs/sartorial/loro-piana-pinnacle-italian-wool)
• [Vitale Barberis Canonico: The World's Oldest Suit Fabric Mill](/blogs/sartorial/vitale-barberis-canonico-fabric)
• [Suit Fabric Types: Reading Fiber, Weave and Weight](/blogs/sartorial/suit-fabric-types)

Related Reading

Related Reading

• Loro Piana: The Pinnacle of Italian Wool
https://sartoro.co/blogs/sartorial/loro-piana-pinnacle-italian-wool

• Vitale Barberis Canonico: The World's Oldest Suit Fabric Mill
https://sartoro.co/blogs/sartorial/vitale-barberis-canonico-fabric

• Suit Fabric Types: Reading Fiber, Weave and Weight
https://sartoro.co/blogs/sartorial/suit-fabric-types

• Loro Piana Official Website
https://www.loropiana.com