Award-winning fashion designer Giorgio Armani launched his menswear label in 1975, with his first womenswear collection following a year later. Armani’s popularity grew with his costuming of Richard Gere in American Gigolo in 1980. By 2001 he was acclaimed as the most successful designer to come out of Italy, with an annual turnover of $1.6 billion and a personal fortune of $8.5 billion as of 2013. He was the first in the world of haute couture to broadcast his collection live on the internet, in January 2007. His design work also extends to the Giorgio Armani phone, with Samsung, and stage outfits for pop superstar Lady Gaga, including those worn on her record breaking Monster Ball Tour and Born This Way Ball Tour. The Armani retail network encompasses 37 countries.