Salvatore Ferragamo creates design and prototyping lab

Salvatore Ferragamo has created a new design and prototyping lab for men’s and women’s leather goods in Florence. It is a cutting-edge artisanal centre and open forum for technical excellence and creativity that promotes research into materials, creation of style and crafting of products that meet market demand.

“In keeping with the brand’s philosophy, focused on the development of artisanal products that highlight the expert skills behind made-in-Italy production, the new leather goods atelier is a space for our artisans to cultivate their professional skills and passion for innovation and research, while upholding our long-standing values of tradition and craftsmanship,” explained Eraldo Poletto, CEO of Salvatore Ferragamo Group.

“Not only does this project celebrate Ferragamo’s leather crafting know-how, but it will also provide additional opportunities for the development of new products, as it enables us to test innovative materials and improve the quality and efficiency of various development processes.”

Some twenty artisans will join the current team of master leather workers in the new workshop, expanding the development of the design lab, and, above all, to pass indispensable artisanal expertise down to future generations, preserving the brand’s heritage and know-how.

The use of new machines equipped with the most advanced technologies will also ensure utmost quality and efficiency in production processes, for a perfect combination of industry and craftsmanship.

“We decided to design this space with solutions that save energy and use environmentally sustainable materials to create a work space that is not only modern and comfortable but also in line with our green philosophy,” added Ferruccio Ferragamo, chairman of the Salvatore Ferragamo Group. “The new design lab - spanning roughly 1,200 square metres - is in a building that has been renovated for energy efficiency using environmentally sustainable materials.”

The building was improved as part of a complex redevelopment project, first and foremost to increase safety and seismic stability. Furthermore, it was reconfigured to contain energy consumption and emissions, optimise energy absorption and use energy from renewable sources, including the installation of a new solar power system.

Another Salvatore Ferragamo Group project in Osmannoro is the construction of a new logistics hub with automated warehousing, slated for completion in 2018. The logistics hub will also be designed according to the latest energy and resource consumption standards in order to qualify for LEED Platinum certification.