6. Nina Ricci (1932)
Maria Nielli was born in Turin, Italy in 1883. She moved with her family in France in 1985. At the age of 13 she undertook an apprenticeship with a couturier.
She married the Italian jeweller Luigi Ricci in 1904, thus becoming Maria Ricci.
Four years later, Nina joined the house of Raffin, before starting her own business in 1932.
Admired for her amazing technical skills, Ricci specialized in making graceful, elegant clothes rather than experiments or ground-braking statements.
Her fashion house survived due to the fact that over the years it stayed true to its original belief and to the principles of its founder.
