The subtle rebellions of Gianni Agnelli

But it’s not only the business achievements that cause admirers to celebrate the late head of Fiat, Ferrari and Juventus FC. It was in the moments in between – the way he chose to spend his time, who he surrounded himself with, and how he dressed – that have cemented the aristocrat’s legacy and legendary reputation.

The heir to Fiat, which brought mass-produced cars to Europe, Agnelli grew up with a title and pedigree, and in-built sense of play. His bohemian mother kept a pet leopard in Villar Perosa, their home in south-west Turin. And his father, Edoardo, passed on his love of modern art to his son, who would come to collect the works of Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol, Gustav Klimt, Francis Bacon and Claude Monet.

Leisure was not reserved for weekends and after-hours for the “freely amoral” self-appointed prince. As the honorary prince of Italy, Agnelli's diplomatic role outside the boardroom was as the proprietor of pleasure and thrill-seeking. When he wasn't entertaining dignitaries on his yachts with his wife, Marella Caracciolo di Castagneto – or any number of other women he notoriously kept close – Agnelli was in apres mode on the alps or dropping from his helicopter above his friends' pools. A day of clear skies and light winds were wasted, in his eyes, if they were spent inside.

It’s in the wardrobe of a certain kind of modern man that Agnelli’s impact is still felt today. They might not have the yachts or the celebrity friends on speed-dial, but they can siphon off some of the taste – that intangible but significant force that makes someone unforgettable.

In his wardrobe, bespoke wool and flannel jackets and solaro suits from Milanese tailor A. Caraceni hung next to light denim and chambray shirts – which he often wore with jeans. He wove other influences from American collegiate fashion into his off-duty wardrobe. Oxford shirts unbuttoned at the neck and rolled at the wrists, popovers, fleeces and rugby tops were sportswear staples seen on Ivy crew teams and the head of an Italian dynasty. It's fitting that "the Kennedys of Italy" also spent weekends on Cape Cod during trips to New York City – and that Jackie O was one of Agnelli’s most favoured callers.

Agnelli's wristwatch was ubiquitous and its placement was another moment of everyday sartorial rebellion. At the cuffs of his tailored jackets and fine shirts sat his Rolex Daytona. Its alligator strap fastened, always, over his collar to display its massive, gleaming, steel face. Some thought it was for entrepreneurial efficiency – the richest man in Italy can save so many cumulative minutes in a year if he doesn't need to lift his cuff to check the time. Others saw it as a show of practised practicality: the cuff would begin to fray at the spot where it rubbed against the watch face. Whatever the true reason, the cinched Chronograph has gone down in history as another way that Agnelli represented individualism and relaxed elegance. He wore hiking boots under his suits and pioneered Western double denim. His ties may have been silk, but they sat a little askew.

Style, for Gianni Agnelli, was important, but clothes – just like boats and cars and homes – were made to be lived in, not just looked at. It’s no wonder that Agnelli’s loose and lived-in approach to fashion, romance, wealth has become synonymous with the relaxed, authentic and ‘perfectly imperfect’ qualities of sprezzatura.