Soldini: 80 years of steady progress. Urso: “An example and a model of Italian manufacturing.”

The story of Soldini is not just that of a company: it is the story of a family, a region and an Italy that has been moving forward with style and determination for eighty years. Founded in 1945 in the heart of Casentino by Gustavo Soldini, the small artisan workshop has transformed, generation after generation, into a solid, respected manufacturer capable of bringing the quality of its footwear to the whole world.

On 7 July 2025, Capolona – the Tuscan village where it all began – was transformed into a large open-air theatre to host the celebration of this milestone. Over 500 guests attended, including employees (some hired in 1945!), suppliers, collaborators, representatives of institutions and big names from the Italian industrial system. A true ‘extended family’, as brothers Rossano and Marco Soldini, who now run the company together with their children, described it.

The event was also an opportunity to honour seventy long-serving workers, recall the milestones in the company’s history – including the fire that destroyed the Anghiari factory in 1994 – and proudly accept the honorary citizenship conferred on the two entrepreneurial brothers by the Municipality of Capolona.

Among the guests, the Minister for Enterprise and Made in Italy, Adolfo Urso, was keen to attend to emphasise the symbolic and strategic value of companies such as Soldini. These were not just words for the occasion, but a concrete vision of Italy’s industrial future:

“The national fashion plan, which meets the needs of the global market, will seek to promote the aggregation and consolidation of the supply chain, especially in this delicate phase of generational transition, using innovative tools that will enable companies to aggregate both vertically (I am referring above all to large brands that have an interest in strengthening and consolidating their suppliers) and transversally (some companies in the supply chain could team up to strengthen their market presence). All this with the help and support of public resources and our agencies, with the aim of overcoming the challenges of globalisation, as our entrepreneurs and workers have already done in the past.”

“What can Soldini represent in this market, given that we are celebrating its 80th anniversary?” the Minister was asked. The answer is clear: “It is an example and a model.”

These words echo those of the many entrepreneurs present – from Montezemolo to Ferragamo, from Auricchio to Zegna – who recognised the Soldini family as a rare example of serious, passionate entrepreneurship, capable of innovating and resisting without bowing to marketing rhetoric.

“I see an Italian company that fortunately has nothing to do with politics, but lives off the market with serious entrepreneurs who innovate, take risks, export and have a wonderful relationship with their employees,” said Luca Cordero di Montezemolo.

Many colleagues from the footwear industry also left their factories to take part in the celebrations, from Baldinini to Nero Giardini to Primigi. Institutions from the sector were also present, including Valentino Fenni, Vice President of Assocalzaturifici and President of the Footwear Section of Confindustria Fermo.

Team spirit and ties to the local area remain the pillars on which Soldini has built its success. “Our journey has been marked by successes and difficulties, but we have never lost our family spirit and passion for our work,” said Rossano Soldini. “The future will not be easy, but we will do our utmost to face it.”

The mayor of Capolona, Mario Francesconi, summed up the collective sentiment in one sentence: “Soldini is not just a company, it is part of our collective identity.”

That is why today, more than ever, every Soldini shoe is not just a quality handcrafted product, but a living piece of Italian history. A history that has been able to adapt, innovate and remain true to itself. A history that, after 80 years, continues to walk confidently towards the future.