A brief outline of the history of the
Pratesi
leatherware manufacturing company.
To discover the origins of the Pratesi company we have to go back to when a shrewd and intelligent Florentine, Egidio Pratesi, was an evacuee in Rome during the second world war a few years later, in 1948, he was to have the opportunity of a lifetime.
Italy at that time was a country completely destroyed by the bombing and just about everyone was trying to find a means of survival by inventing practically any kind of job which would allow them to make a living. Egidio lost no time and took advantage of all the fervent expansion which was going on at that time in the world of the cinema and film - making. In no time at all he was on the film - making scene as a costume designer and tailor of a number of the costumes used in the making of the film " Quo Vadis " the famous film set in ancient Rome. He got to work putting together the leather shields worn by the centaurs who battled it out in the coliseum.
All this led to a remarkable success as well as the necessary funding which allowed him to continue his activity as artisan making small leather goods such as picture frames, keyfobs, and belts.
After having such a successful start he felt he just could not stop there and so he decided to set up a proper workshop where he could not only continue making small leather goods but also adventure into making his very first bags.
Indeed as time has passed by new methods of craftsmanship have been introduced and the final product has become one of the most durable and finest yet.
From the small workshop founded in via Prati in Rome the company moved on to set up another, more sophisticated one with a shop next to it where the goods produced could be sold to the customers in Viale Parioli. Indeed this was one of the most exclusive residential areas of the capital famous for its tree-lined boulevards and luxurious houses which dated back to the 1800's.
In the 1960's the economic boom seemed to transform just about every sector of Italy's economy and this led to an increase in the demand for manufactured goods.
In order to satisfy this increase in demand the company had to transform the little family - run business into a modern factory with a team of workers. All this was done by moving to the present site in Donnini where it is so much easier to find suppliers of high quality hides seeing as the Florentine area is one with a high density of tanneries. (for example Santa Croce Sull'arno).
Over the years the company has constantly sought to better its product as well as increase their volume of production in both plain and full - grain leather. Indeed they have chosen to specialize in the manufacture of suitcases, briefcases and travel bags.
In a span of time which covers almost fifty years, the company has gone on from strength to strength after being handed down from father to son for tree generations.
All this has given the company the possibility to create its own individual style, quite unique in the field of leatherware and it is this very style which has come to be appreciated by so many people far and wide and has allowed the company to continue its activity up to today.