Fashion pioneer Carla Fendi died in Rome, Italy, at the age of 79 on Tuesday. Her Italian luxury fashion house Fendi announced her death, saying she had been unwell, without specifying the illness. “She was for all of us a source of inspiration and an example of dedication, culture of work and sensitivity to beauty,” the company said in a statement.

Carla Fendi and her four sisters had built the globally renowned fashion house from a Roman leather goods workshop they had inherited. While the company is now owned by Louis Vuitton Moët Henness, Carla Fendi was its honorary president until her death.

With her Carla Fendi Foundation, she helped restore the Trevi Fountain in Rome.