Davide Albertario Milano, 40 years of excellence in high-end leather goods

Davide Albertario Milano is a company specialising in the production of luxury leather accessories, located in the city of Opera, in the area just outside of Milan. To date, the company is now with its fifth generation and has a long history of success in the world of leather goods, thanks to its constant pursuit of excellence and passion for work. For more than forty years, the company has distinguished itself in the production of high-end accessories for a demanding and sophisticated clientele, who are always in search of products of the highest quality Made in Italy and of great aesthetic value. The production is characterized by artisan attention to detail, careful choice of materials, and avant-garde Italian design and workmanship, which makes beauty and elegance its strong point. In this article together with Daniela Albertario, we will explore the history and activities of Davide Albertario Milano, a successful Italian company that represents excellence in the national and international leather goods landscape. Daniela Albertario is the CEO of the company and has been working alongside her husband for more than 20 years in the growth of the company by personally training the staff, which now boasts 60 employees and has a plan for further growth by the year 2024 by employing and training many young people who during the covid and closure period in the area have found themselves in difficulty.
Your history goes back long before 1978, correct?
“Let’s start from the beginning: long ago in 1895, the uncle of Davide’s grandfather began working with leather goods, opening his own small workshop in the Navigli area of Milan. Subsequently, Davide’s grandfather learned the art of the trade from his uncle and, in the early twentieth century, began working with companies such as Fiat and Martini, creating wallets capable of holding the large lire of the time. In those days, wallets had enormous pockets because credit cards did not yet exist, but thanks to high- quality raw materials, accessories of great quality were produced. Although leather goods were already widespread in Italy, especially in the Florentine area, the work of Davide Albertario was different in the type of workmanship used and soon acquired its own space. In those years, in fact, work was often carried out both in the workshop and at home, and it was in this context that Davide began to learn the trade, working from an early age to help the family. His good fortune came when his father created a contact with the Gucci family, consequently offering Davide the opportunity to work for them and specialize in creating luxury wallets. He was asked to “invent something new for the store in Florence,” and Antonio made proposals that were evaluated and produced if they were deemed valid. In this way, Antonio now over ninety years old has distinguished himself as one of the pioneers of the design department, helping to shape the world of Italian leather goods.”
In the process, Davide was learning the trade….
“Yes, it is true that even as a young boy, Davide became interested in the world of leather goods by watching his father at work. He was not yet sixteen years old when he decided to approach this world and devote himself to work, but his mother forced him to continue his studies; therefore, he worked during the day and studied at night. Davide had a passion for leather goods in his DNA and wanted to work with his father, but he understood that it was not easy: one could not look at the clock and stop after eight hours, often it went on until late in the evening, and then there was studying to face. However, Davide’s passion for this work was so strong that he continued to pursue his dreams and improve over time, becoming one of the leading players in the world of Made in Italy leather goods.”
When was the turning point for Davide Albertario and his company to become successful in the world of high-end leather goods?
“This description of the journey of Davide Albertario shows his resourcefulness and desire to create something of his own. After he started working for Gucci, Davide felt the desire to create his own line, but he knew that his father would never risk it because he came from the postwar period and had an established and secure job. Despite this, Davide decided to devote what little free time he had left to creating his own designs, resulting in a collection of more than 1,600 different items, ranging from collections for women to men, and from small accessories to furniture. This passion and determination has led the Davide Albertario company to be a successful business in the world of high- end leather goods today.”
1,600 samples are a lot…
“We start from the smallest accessory such as a key ring or a credit card holder and reach up to the big products, such as travel bags, backpacks, purses and trolleys with no exception to the entire world of women’s handbags in many designs and fabrications. Our specialization in this niche allows us to make a wide range of products in-house, including home accessories such as desk organizers or rigid accessories such as American-style placemats with leather coasters, which are already made at the request of our customers. We are also able to offer upholstery services for designer lamps and collaborate with major brands in this regard. In summary, our company is able to offer a wide range of products, thanks to our experience and manufacturing skills. In addition, we have also had the opportunity to collaborate with significant companies in the automotive industry, demonstrating our ability to adapt to the demands of clients and to produce high quality and uniquely designed products . All these characteristics in this regard, without mentioning names, have enabled us for the past three years (beyond the period of covid and the international crisis ) to become an official partner for a very prominent brand in international fashion.” Versatility is an enormous added value….
“We are a very versatile company and can produce up to 3500 pieces per week. However, we are also able to satisfy the requests of clients who want to produce only 30 pieces per design and perhaps require two different colours. We personally follow the entire production chain, so we can meet a wide variety of requirements, always guaranteeing service and quality at the highest level. Additionally, we are able to develop designs from A to Z starting from simple direction provided by the client, such as a sketch, a CAD drawing or, more merely, an idea.”
How are you most recognized in the market today?
“Quality is the first thing our customers expect from us, and we are fully aware of this. However, we also know that if quality is not accompanied by timely delivery, customers may lose valuable sales, and this is a serious problem. For this reason, we always strive to ensure both quality and speed of delivery. When our employees start work, the first thing we tell them is that quality must always be the top priority, followed by on-time delivery. As we are a manufacturing company, it is important that we meet agreed-upon deadlines. When we can guarantee quality and speed in delivery, the customer is satisfied, which prompts them to place further orders with us.
Machinery makes a difference: how did the partnership with Galli come about?
“The use of machinery and robots has become fundamental in improving speed and efficiency in the execution of work. Thanks to this technology, workers are no longer forced to perform repetitive movements for eight hours a day, but can focus on tasks that require greater creativity and specific skills. Currently, we have two machines and are considering the purchase of a third. However, we must not forget that the human component is still essential, even though we are increasingly automating our activities. In fact, human judgment remains fundamental, because even if the machine is very accurate, it can still make mistakes. We chose to partner with Galli Overmec because of the accuracy and reliability demonstrated during the different trade shows. The partnership with them has been great, including high-quality after-sales support. Our production staff has the ability to directly contact their technicians, who are very helpful and proactive. In case of doubts or programming problems, they help us through video calls, showing us how to solve each situation. The decision to rely on high-precision machinery and robots was motivated by our goal of ensuring a high level of quality in our products. However, despite the importance of these tools, the raw materials and the human component remain crucial to the final quality of the product. For this reason, we also shared the choice of our machinery with our business partner, who decided to purchase machinery of the same brand. We then networked the machines and the results have been very positive. Even our main business partner, the high-quality fashion brand I mentioned earlier, is satisfied with the results and has never questioned the choice of our machinery. In fact, we have noticed a significant increase in productivity through the use of such technology. This is absolutely the added value.”

www.davidealbertariomilano.com

Davide e Daniela Albertario