The city with a population of 1.3 million, while the population of the Milan metropolitan area is home to over 7.4 million residents, the largest in Italy; quite dense considering the municipal (Comune di Milano ) border is only about an eighth of that of Rome.

Whilst based in the agriculturally rich Lombardy region, Milan is one of the most highly developed urban centers in Europe, its economic success was founded at the end of the 19th century, when the metal factories and the rubber industries moved in as the city’s main sources of income

It is equally well renowned for its place in the world of design and fashion; so much so the word “milliner” in English is derived from the name of the city. (Milliner is a person who designs, makes, or sells hats for women; and/or the source of goods such as bonnets and lace). The world renowned fashion label Coco Chanel is amongst those known to have it beginnings from Millinery.

Milan is also the proud possessor of the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele in the Piazza Duomo which is reputed to be the world's oldest shopping mall. In the centre of Milan you’ll also find the Piazza del Duomo - one of the world’s largest and most remarkable gothic cathedrals in the world, the second largest church in Italy and world's third. Amongst its historic treasures is Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supper, which miraculously survived a direct hit in WWII La Scala, and Teatro alla Scala (La Scala) one of the world's best known Opera Houses.