Who has not heard of the fashion icon known as Prada? The brand name of Prada has indeed become one of the largest brands ever in the fashion industry. But what most people do not really know about this fashion icon is that most of what is now known today as Prada actually comes from the conceptions of the founder's granddaughter, Miuccia Prada.

It was way back in 1913 when the brand name of Prada was founded in Milan, Italy. The company started out as a premier manufacturer of high quality leather bags.

But when Miuccia Prada joined the family business in the year 1978, she began revolutionizing their products, especially when it came to their appearance. Miuccia also had a vast interest in fabrics that are quite unusual, and the unexpected combination of these fabrics paved the way for the brand name to develop its trademark. Not long after Miuccia joined the business, she then introduced her own collection of women's wear, which was welcomed with open arms by the whole world. Following the footsteps of women's wear, the launching of men's wear was also welcomed with much success in 1995. And to this very day, Prada clothes remain comfortable, cool, and minimalistic.

To this day, Prada has roughly 250 shops all over the world that it fully owns. All of these shops are indeed entirely owned by the company because it has strong intentions of keeping total control over all its retail activities. This is the primary reason why Prada does not engage in franchise agreements, as well as duty-free shops. All of these 250 stores can be found in over 60 countries worldwide, so it won't be difficult for you to find an outlet near you. The epicenters of this fashion empire can be found in New York, Beverly Hills, Milan, and Tokyo. Miuccia has also designed a lot of dresses for Hollywood's biggest stars, including Salma Hayek and Maggie Gyllenhall.

Much like other huge names in the industry, Prada has also expanded into designer fragrances. Prada Cologne for Men, for instance, comes in the name of Amber Pour Homme Cologne, which was released in 2006. Along with the Men's cologne, Prada Perfume for Ladies is also a huge hit in the market today.