Roverto Cavalli, 68, is an Italian fashion designer. His latest venture is the Cavalli Club in Dubai, a nightclub based around the Cavalli brand. He lives outside Florence with his second wife, Eva, with whom he has three grown-up children, Rachele, Daniele and Robin. He has two children from his first marriage, Cristiana and Tommaso

- Fashion should create a vision — I like to make people feel like they're in a dream that is all about light, life, happiness and freedom.

- When designing, I have to give positive emotion. That emotion then comes through and can be seen in what I create.

- I never pay attention to costs — it’s not attractive to speak about numbers. Why can't we just focus on the beauty of an object? I don’t know anything about the financial crisis. We’ll make a recovery by everyone loving their life, each other, and being positive.

- Being a celebrity is not only about being beautiful — I prefer the stars of the music world because they have expression; they can move well.

- Success changes people, but I don’t choose my celebrity friends, they choose me. I became the designer to the stars because my dresses accentuate their personality.

- Dubai is a city for the future — it has a very different culture to Europe. It has only been around for 50 years, and the fact that it became an actuality allows me to dream — you can come here with the craziest idea in the world, and everyone works to make it happen. It’s the perfect environment to be creative.

- Victoria Beckham is lovely. I’m not bothered that she works with Giorgio Armani — the difference is that she’s a friend to me, not a model. But I don’t blame her: Armani pays a lot of money.

- I love to be loved; I want people to stop me and say: "Roberto, you were right, this club is very special."

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