MILAN (AP) — Giorgio Armani says he has devised a succession plan that will prevent his fashion empire from being split up into pieces.

The 83-year-old Armani is one of the founding designers of Milan ready-to-wear. He has kept a firm grip on the privately run fashion group Giorgio Armani SpA, which has left open speculation about his succession plans.

In an interview with the Corriere della Sera daily Monday, Armani said after he dies, three people he names will be put in charge of the foundation that he created last year as a succession tool. He says the foundation will be the tie-breaker if the evenly numbered board of directors reaches an impasse.

He said the mechanism "stimulates my heirs to remain in harmony," protecting the group from disintegrating.