Diego DELLA VALLE

President, Tod's

Diego Della Valle was born in 1953, in Casette D’Ete, in the Italian region Le Marche, located on the Adriatic coast in the center of Italy. After studying law in Bologna and a brief period working in the USA, he joined his father in the family shoemaking business in 1975. As well as gaining valuable knowledge of the shoe production process, Diego Della Valle also had a leading role in determining the company strategy and in the creation of brands to identify the company’s products.

He developed an innovative marketing plan, that became the model for the worldwide expansion of the family business, and this has since been followed by many others in the luxury goods industry. Since October 2000, Diego Della Valle has been the President and CEO of Tod’s S.p.A., the new Group he founded. Tod’s S.p.A. is now quoted on the Milan stock exchange and is a world leader in the luxury accessories sector. Its brands include Tod’s, Hogan, Fay and Roger Vivier. In 1996 Diego Della Valle has been nominated Cavaliere del Lavoro (the highest honor the Italian Republic bestows for professional achievement) and in 2000 he received a honorary degree in Business and Economics from the University of Ancona.

Diego Della Valle was on the board of several companies including Ferrari and Assicurazioni Generali, and he has currently a seat on the board of LVMH, one of the worldwide leaders in the luxury sector, and on that of RCS. Together with his brother Andrea, Diego Della Valle is a shareholder of Piaggio, Cinecittà, Fondo Charme, NTV Nuovo Trasporto Viaggiatori and of the football club ACF Fiorentina. Diego Della Valle is a member of the fundraising committee of the Umberto Veronesi Cancer Research Foundation and President of the Board of Directors of the Della Valle Foundation, a charity engaged in funding schooling for children.