"Behind
every premium product there is always an extensive
history which defines and shapes the way the company is
managed today.
The Savinelli story started in 1876 when Achille
Savinelli Sr. opened one of the first stores in the
world exclusively selling smoking articles, in the very
centre of Milan at #2 via Orefici, near the famous
Piazza Duomo.
The small shop, which is still at its original location,
soon became a meeting place where passionate smokers
could exchange opinions and discuss experiences. It was
there that Achille Sr. began designing pipes, which he
would then have made by artisans in the Varese district,
just north of Milan.
Contemporarily to the opening of the shop in via
Orefici, Savinelli Sr.'s brother and sister moved to
Genoa to open their own pipe store in Galleria Mazzini,
which obtained its own faithful clientele and further
established the Savinelli name.
In 1881 Achille Savinelli Sr. exhibited at the
Esposizione Industriale Italiana (Italian Industrial
Exposition), the precursor to today's Milan Fair. His
initiative demonstrated an entrepreneurial instinct that
clearly runs in the family, even today.
Original shop
In
January 1890, Achille Savinelli's son, Carlo, took over
and ran the store for over 50 years. Thanks to his
innate psychological instincts, he was able to develop
very good relations with his clients, to whom he was
always able to advise the right products, adapting his
talents to satisfy the demands of each and every
customer.
In 1918, Achille Jr. was born.
As
a young man, Achille began his specialisation in pipe
making in the the small workshop in the back of the
store. While his parents tended to the needs of the
customers, he preferred to stay in the back working,
designing and inventing. It was in that workshop that
the first genuine Savinelli pipe came to light. However,
the spectre of war loomed, and when World War II broke
out, Achille Jr. was forced to interrupt his
apprenticeship and serve five years of military service.
Achille Jr's decision was based on one fact: that the
best-selling pipes in Italy at that time were made
abroad while Italy grew the best quality briar. This
point bothered him so much he decided to start up his
own production of high-quality pipes, at a time when all
other Italian pipe makers mass-produced poor quality,
shoddy pipes. He had tremendous confidence in his
ability to produce a quality product, which, coupled
with national pride, proved successful.
He immersed himself in the development of the company
and, with the help of his best friends Amleto Pomé and
Mario Vettoruzzo, started up the new business in the
Varese district in north-west Italy.
1948
saw the opening of the Savinelli factory/workshop, and
the pipes produced there rapidly began gaining prestige
in markets all over the world.
Previous to the opening of the factory, millions of
pipes had been exported worldwide from Italy, but the
quality of such pipes was very poor. As a result, when
Savinelli began production it was seen as dubious how an
Italian could compete with foreign brands. He did
however succeed in making a luxury product that went
head to head with the big names and even surpassed their
quality of production, to the point where Savinelli has
since become the mark of highest standard for pipes on a
global basis.
Achille
Jr. was able to match imagination with good taste,
obtaining a purity of line of which he was justifiably
proud, and it is his spirit that gives all Savinelli
pipes their personality; a pleasing balance of form and
function.
His imagination and refinement have been undoubtedly
passed down to today's Savinelli, Giancarlo, who has
picked up where Achille Jr. left off. Now at the helm of
the company, Giancarlo has brought new energy and ideas
to Savinelli.
Great-grandchild of the original founder, Giancarlo is
managing the delicate task of modernizing the company
while keeping its traditions intact. Dedication to
quality remains the philosophy at Savinelli. The company
is greeting the new millennium with open arms, but still
keeping a foot firmly planted in its rich past.
