LONDON, Sept 5 (Reuters) - Online searches for vintage

Armani clothes have surged since Italian fashion designer

Giorgio Armani died on Thursday, as shoppers scoured second-hand

outlets for his styles.

Armani, who led his eponymous company and remained in

control of designs right up until his death at 91, was prolific,

producing everything from expensive high-end suits to more

modestly priced jeans and sportswear under the Emporio Armani

brand.

Searches containing the word "Armani" on Vinted, Europe's

biggest second-hand clothing marketplace, were almost three

times higher than average on Thursday following the news of

Armani's passing, a spokesperson for Vinted told Reuters.

U.S. luxury resale site The RealReal ( REAL ) said searches for

Armani were up 212% on Thursday compared to Wednesday. And

Google searches for "vintage Armani" also spiked on Thursday,

according to Google Trends data, with interest particularly high

in Armani's native Italy and in the UK.

On second-hand fashion app Vestiaire Collective, users

across Europe listed their Giorgio Armani pieces for sale on

Friday, including a black 1990s silk blazer for 245 pounds

($330.97) and a leather and rabbit fur jacket from 2002 for 571

pounds ($771.36).

Ammar Boulai, who runs luxury second-hand menswear boutique

Chez Ammar in Paris, said he would not be surprised to see an

uptick in demand for Armani suits from the 1970s and 80s, on the

back of the current trend for retro styles with wide trousers

and fluid fabrics.

"Four or five years ago, these 80s style suits were

impossible to sell. Now they are really in vogue, but impossible

to find," said Boulai.

"It's hard to tell how much is in stocks and will re-enter

the market. Armani produced a lot, had many sub-brands, so there

must be a lot out there... maybe people will open their drawers

now," he added.

($1 = 0.7402 pounds)