Fendi Eyewear: Four Generations of Roman Craftsmanship

Fendi's story is unusual in fashion for one particular reason: it's a house built and sustained almost entirely by women. From its founding to its current leadership, Fendi has been shaped by four generations of family members who turned a small Roman fur and leather shop into one of Italy's most recognizable luxury names — eyewear included.

A Roman workshop: 1925

Fendi was founded in Rome in 1925 by married couple Adele and Edoardo Fendi, who opened a fur and leather workshop on Via del Plebiscito. The business grew steadily through its early decades, opening a boutique on Via Piave in 1932 that quickly became a popular destination for tourists visiting Rome. In 1946, the couple's five daughters — Paola, Anna, Franca, Carla, and Alda — joined the company as its second generation, each holding an equal 20% ownership stake, a structure that kept Fendi firmly a family enterprise even as it grew.

The Lagerfeld era begins: 1965

In 1965, the Fendi sisters hired a young German designer named Karl Lagerfeld to lead the house's fur and women's ready-to-wear divisions — a partnership that would ultimately last 54 years, until Lagerfeld's death in 2019. Lagerfeld released Fendi's first couture collection in 1966, immediately elevating the brand's international profile and drawing boutiques from around the world eager to carry the label. He also designed Fendi's now-iconic double "F" logo, a graphic mark that remains one of the most recognizable symbols in luxury fashion.

Fendi released its first full ready-to-wear line in 1977, and the 1980s brought major growth: the brand's now-legendary Spy Bag debuted in that decade, alongside Fendi's first foray beyond leather goods entirely. In 1987, the company launched its first eyewear collection, alongside new fragrance, denim, and home furnishing lines — a broad diversification effort that marked Fendi's evolution from a specialty leather house into a full lifestyle brand. Fendi opened its first U.S. boutique on New York's Fifth Avenue in 1989.

A third generation and a defining accessory

Silvia Venturini Fendi, daughter of Anna Fendi, joined the company in 1994 and has served as Artistic Director of Accessories and Menswear ever since. In 1997, she designed the Baguette bag — a design that went on to break sales and popularity records and became one of the defining "it bags" of its era, cementing Fendi's reputation as a genuine leader in accessories design well beyond its original fur and leather specialty.

Acquisition by LVMH

In 2001, Fendi became part of LVMH's Fashion & Leather Goods division, following the group's 2000 acquisition of a majority stake in the company. The move gave Fendi access to LVMH's global resources while the house continued to operate under family creative leadership. Fendi celebrated 50 years of collaboration with Karl Lagerfeld in 2015 with its first haute couture show dedicated entirely to furs, staged at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris, and marked its 90th anniversary that same year with a fashion show held at Rome's Trevi Fountain.

Eyewear's modern era

Fendi's eyewear was produced under a licensing agreement with Safilo Group from 2013 until 2021, when the brand moved its eyewear operations to Thélios, the LVMH-owned eyewear joint venture that also produces collections for Dior, Celine, and other maisons within the group. The shift allowed Fendi's eyewear to be developed alongside sibling LVMH brands under a shared manufacturing infrastructure while maintaining the house's distinct design identity.

A design language built on subtle surprises

Fendi eyewear has built its reputation on small, unexpected design flourishes — delicate floral details tucked into the corner of a cat-eye frame, or the double-F logo worked discreetly into the temples. Fendi's oversized round sunglasses became something of a signature look in pop culture, closely associated with Lady Gaga, while pieces like the Orchidea cat-eye style have appeared on runways and red carpets worn by figures including Cheryl and Keira Knightley. The collection spans both bold, statement-driven sunglasses and more understated prescription frames, allowing the same design codes to translate from daytime wear to red-carpet moments.

A house still led by women

Following Karl Lagerfeld's death in 2019, English designer Kim Jones was named Artistic Director of Fendi's women's collection in September 2020, working alongside Silvia Venturini Fendi's continued leadership of accessories and menswear. Delfina Delettrez Fendi, representing the family's fourth generation, serves as Artistic Director of Jewelry — extending the same family-led creative structure that has defined the house since its founding. Kim Jones departed the role in October 2024, with no successor announced at the time.