The “Godfather of denim”, a source of inspiration for the entire denim and jeanswear industry, a mentor for many successful brands and insiders of the market, has passed away, after a long battle against cancer, this morning, 5 April, surrounded by his family at the age of 82.
I learned this sad piece of news from his wife Michela, while he also left his three daughters Sara, Glenda and Marta.
He was still involved in many ongoing and future projects, as seen on social media, showing him at work only a few days ago.
Lots of memories return to mind about an incredibly creative, untiring, prolific, and lively personality who had experienced many different paths in his jeans and denim business career as he created a total of 60 brands through his whole life.
I met him in person for the first time in Castelfranco Veneto, in 1993 (when I was working at an article for SPORTSWEAR INTERNATIONAL, the iconic magazine that recently celebrated its 50th anniversary, and was involved with as guest editor in a special issue published in 2016) when I was writing a story about Veneto, the most advanced hub of jeans in those years.
Together we had visited Tonello, the finishing machine company, as he wanted to show their first model of brushing robot, a new automatized technology for treating jeans.
I immediately felt his passion for modern technology, his deep competence, and at the same time a great friendliness and kindness. Since then I experienced it every time I met him during all other interviews, collaborations, or simple talks.
Throughout his prolific, varied and wide career, he was constantly updated about every new trend phenomenon and advancement—both in the denim business and in daily life—including the internet, social networks, and the AI he easily managed even better than a teenager.
He was never satisfied with what he had reached. That was probably where his thirst for modernity led him and brought him to always discover the next new idea.
Describing him is quite a challenge. This leading personality has been many people at the same time. He was surely a visionary and pioneer in the fashion industry, as he has been experimenting with many paths and directions in denim and fashion over his more than 50-year career. That’s why his multifaceted and eclectic expertise, his wide competence, and his untiring desire to learn, change his vision, and lead the industry made him earn some titles like “Godfather of Denim” and the “Goldfinger of Denim”.
He started his career in fashion accidentally as he was destined to become a professional athlete in sailing, then took a passion for jeans after that a US soldier gifted him his jeans in Trieste, the town where he lived.
He then opened his own boutique in Cortina, serving a very demanding clientele, like VIPs, including, once Brigitte Bardot, who bought a pair of jeans in his store.
“From that experience I learned what top clients were looking for–only the best quality and most outstanding products,” he once said explaining how he started creating unique apparel pieces and lead him to found the Genius Group, a creative hub where he taught and supported young creatives and entrepreneurs and blossoming personalities like Renzo Rosso, Cludio Buziol and Katharine Hamnett, to name a few. “Those were incredible years of passion, fun, friendship, collaboration and immense creativity,” he pointed out, while always making him support, train and encourage young talents.
Such prolific time brought him to create up to 17 new brands including King’s, Goldie, Daily Blue, along with many others like Diesel and Replay.
Among his most important friends there was Franca Sozzani, editor in chief, Vogue Italia. “We didn’t share a penny, but she was a great mentor for me as she taught me to always think out of the box,” he liked to say.
In the early 2000s, he founded other premium jeans brands like AG Adriano Goldschmied and Goldsign, giving the go for the birth of many US East Coast high-end jeans, many of which still exist.
Always at the forefront of design and innovation, he also got committed to developing and introducing cutting-edge techniques and sustainable practices that continue to influence the industry.
His work has always reflected a commitment to vision, experimentation, and reinvention. Since 2013, he has been a member of the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA), further cementing his legacy in contemporary fashion.
Among his most recent collaborations, he worked for the designer brand Chloé, supporting Gabriela Hearst in developing a sustainable jeans selection. He also partnered with the Italian fashion chain OVS to introduce a very successful collection—affordable and fashion-forward—while also introducing new sustainable techniques into its wash process.
While he revamped Daily Blue in 2022, the first true woman’s jeans brand he had founded in 1974, he also collaborated with Boss, developing a denim line for the German fashion house, and with Fabrique, a Chinese denim brand involving a collective of collaborations with top international designers, including him.
He also understood how strong the impact on the environment of many of the techniques he had discovered was—that also led him to find new and less harmful alternative materials, finishings, and solutions, too. “I was among those who created a revolutionary treating technique—stone wash—but also one of the most polluting ones. That’s why I wanted to find new alternatives to heal the problem I had contributed to causing,” he explained.
Therefore, he had also worked on innumerable material and technical innovations, like, for instance, a new indigo Tencel fiber perfect for jerseys and knitwear that faded with washes, just like traditional denim fabrics.
“I collaborate with denim specialists and manufacturers to find a new language for denim,” said Goldschmied. “Through these collaborations, we discover creative pathways that were never before attainable—bringing art and innovation directly into the fabric of our everyday lives,” he added.
Most recently, as seen during the October 2025 Kingpins Amsterdam show, he developed a collaboration with Artmill, a division of denim specialist Artistic Milliners Group, creating special printed denim, despite he had been collaborating for Isko, a global denim specialist, already for some seasons before.
Moreover, between June and November 2025, he had developed some special projects for Pioneer Denim and Soko Chemicals, involving his own brand, Daily Blue by Adriano Goldschmied. Aim of the project was to set a new direction for denim and adopt a different sewing technique than the one used for jeans, opting for the sewing method of tailor-made apparel.
Following his mantra to always think out of the box, he always pursued his own disruptive approach. “After I had created something, I always wanted to destroy it and do something different,” he explained.
“If you do continue to offer denim items inspired by the same model—the same traditional five-pocket jeans worn by the US gold seekers, miners, and hard workers—you will not bring any changes to this industry and the market,” he explained, also stressing the fact that jeans have evolved so much thanks to his constant desire to experiment and find new ways.
Similarly, the industry should change its modus operandi entirely. “The system has to adequately adjust its strategy to new criteria. We need a smart and vigorous change that not only has to do with quality—which is important, obviously—but also has to do with how you bring products to the market and promote them, among other factors. We need a real change; if not, we won’t be able to continue to meet and discuss the industry,” he added, also underlining that the price factor should be kept under control and encourage customers to buy.
He was also aware of how changes are happening super fast. “When I started my business, big changes lasted 5-10 years. Today, I would say the change is lasting six months. Today the industry, and not only the fashion industry, is facing gigantic changes, as digital is an agent of change that has been accelerating in the last 15 years. For instance, the use of artificial intelligence is the booster to normal intelligence and gives us so many possibilities to develop your ideas and do research. I think that this is one key factor that will shape the future of our industry,” he enthusiastically liked to say.
As a natural optimist and strongly anchored to his love for sailing, he liked to say that one shall never give up, roll up his sleeves, and find new solutions. “In difficult times, the ability to innovate and create new products can open new perspectives. They might not be easy and might take a long time, but, as a sailing lover as I am, you recognize a good skipper in stormy weather,” he explained during one of the last round tables he participated in.
I feel lucky I met him and learned so much from him. I will miss a great friend, always available to give an opinion, comment, exchange ideas, help and encourage—especially the young—to follow one’s dream.
“You can count on me,” he said in his last WhatsApp he had sent me at the end of 2025. His sincere human qualities, his support and generosity, his limitless ability to revolutionize the jeanswear industry are his inestimable legacy that will keep him, his work and his memory alive.