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| Froise Lizard, wallet |
MA’AT Milano is synonymous of luxury accessories in precious leather, designed and made in the same factory without any externalization: from the idea to the production to the distribution all is in the same hands and in the same atelier since more than two generations. MA’AT Milano is a brand inheriting an historical company, symbol of the best Italian artisanal ability, worldwide exported since its birth, the 1966.
MA’AT is intuition and entrepreneurship of a Milanese active, talented family, the Sfondrini.
Giuseppe, the ancestor, developed passion for small luxury accessories until he reached high know-how into selling the prèt-à-porter simulacra of wealth such as handbags and belts made with exotic leathers as crocodile, lizard, ostrich and python.
Through the years, the touch distinguishing these icons of made in Italy luxury helped their diffusion on international market: thanks to the collaboration with Giuseppe's nephew, Franco, who personally oversaw wholesale, the company acquired new customers in new markets.
In the 90's Franco's son, Roberto, established links with Japan, which helped penetration of products on Asian markets.
In 2004 Roberto Sfondrini put beside him to style management Ms Stefania Nardelli, a creative profile with expertise in fashion design and management. After the first line MA’AT Milano, since then the company designs, produce and sells also the second line Iaia Damiani: it is from this segment of company history that the main business shifts from bags to belts: conceived, designed and interpreted more as a fashion wear than a mere accessories.
MA’AT export Italian Style in 9 countries, in and out Europe – from US to Taiwan
Beside Japan, MA’AT is present in 9 countries (US, Belgium, Germany, France, Russia, Korea, Taiwan). In Italy the best way to enter MA’AT world is to visit the Milan Showroom in Viale Giovanni da Cermenate 7, just beside the production atelier located in an old court beside Naviglio Pavese. Showroom also hosts, throughout all the year, art shows, jewels and accessories exhibits.
In the rest of Italy, from north to south, MA’AT is sold in carefully selected 53 boutiques or department stores: only in Milan there are 7 for Man and Woman Collections.
MA’AT collections: man, woman and jewels
The company, that still lives and produce in an old craftsmen court close to the Naviglio Pavese Canal, deals in-house, without externalisation, with all the phases of ideation, production with their own machinery and equipment used by talented artisans, until the distribution, direct selling and wholesale.
MA’AT, with a long expertise in the utilisation of exotic leathers, also collaborated in the past for the production of accessories collections – in alligator, crocodile, python and lizard – with famous Italian fashion brands, as Borbonese.
The first line man/woman collection MA’AT Milano is composed of bags, belts, small leather accessories, jewels (always on show in the Milan headquarter).
Woman handbags collection, composed of 20 vintage models always in collection, is enriched, each season launch, with two or three new models that, Roberto Sfondrini tells “ embodies the present fashion trends without forgetting the nobility and the tradition the material we use is meaning”.
Belts collection, that is in strong increment in MA’AT production, is composed by 30 man and 30 woman models: made in precious leathers, they are also placed side by side, with originality, with unusual textures as canvas, fabrics, elastics.
Wallet and key rings collection, composed by eight man and eight woman creations, is revealing a trend for the next productions: the combination key ring/belt and wallet/belt.
Roberto Sfondrini: “Next collections will express, with a stronger attention, the key ring focus. For Man collection, it is already presented in a new way, in combination with belt. Also, MA’AT man wallet with interior in English Calf is combined with an English Calf belt in contrast of colour with addition of creased Lizard.”
For woman, MA’AT is creating the second line, Iaia Damiani, dedicated to jewels and second line belts and other accessories.
MA’AT jewels celebrate stone, crocodile and silver, while ribbon, flowers and cockade translate fresh styles for woman belts.
A conversation with Roberto Sfondrini and Stefania Nardelli
The new focus on belt
Market trends
Washington Agreement: false knowledge on crocodile leather
The value of an historical company sits on the ability, on the experience on the tastes of its clients through time, on the perpetual ongoing research of originality.
Milano has been changed and the second generation company makers, as Roberto Sfondrini, have to be size themselves with globalisation, with the strength to find every time a convincing season issue identifying themselves through the customer base, by let them emerge from the unformed mass. “Every object, every garment as well as accessories, has to inform every time about uniqueness and novelty” Roberto Sfondrini and Stefania Nardelli tell.
A glance over the future: which direction the leather artisanal industry is worth taking? According to Stefania Nardelli, “attention to details is making the difference”. The new company focus on belt, the evolution of the market, the strong and welcomed rules about animal use dictated by Washington Agreement, plus an insight on the leather luxury segment, through the words of MA’AT entrepreneurs.
Stefania Nardelli: “In MA’AT world the belt is transformed in a garment, stopping to be only complement. Its importance is crucial and is also matching to colours, styles and forms of knitwear, dress, shirt. Today as well as at the beginning, MA’AT brand, sold in the best Italian and foreigner boutiques, is meaning elegance and chic sobriety. All collections are 100% made in Italy, since first year of our activity, always in the same workshop, its historical location. Every element, every line, every detail is looked after by expert women, gentle hands.”
Roberto Sfondrini: “Materials we use are controlled thanks to Washington Agreement and the leather world has been changed since ‘70ies when the regulation has been introduced. With it, the leather circulation is more controlled and safe. Before, it happened that in not very serious companies you could face front to a wild distribution of animals which birth has been given in captivity of not clear provenance. Now all the animals come from controlled farming, even if not all the clients know that there is a safe and an illegal provenance of leather and it is very important to distinguish, by purchasing lizard, crocodile or other precious leathers: it is possible to control the respect of the conventions that are highlighted with a special stamp, in order to widespread the culture of respect of leather origin. We also dealt with clients who still believe crocodile is forbidden to use for accessories.
Differently to when our company started, the leather luxury fittings are not more sold in accessories boutique – that are almost everywhere disappearing – but in the main fashion shops: a good and fantastic accessory can be the driver to choose a garment or an evening or day total look. Today clients are obsessed to differentiate themselves and also to choose some gift for themselves, as a SPA massage or a personalized present: unique and artisanal, as our accessories.”
MA’AT: a name with origin drenched in the old Egyptian culture
The crocodile, the most precious leather ever, has been venerated as divinity in the Old Egypt (MA’AT was the Divinity of Universal Justice): today MA’AT, respecting Washington Agreement for safe use of leather, interprets crocodile and other leathers every time in a new and diverse creative context, by ageing the materials, giving a brushed or washed nuance with a touch of cachemire finissage, or a made by hand close up with a stone washed effect and thousand of other tunings. The choice of the name MA’AT has a double meaning: the first is related to the role of divinity, while the second is insisting on the gender of the Egyptian Divinity, woman, and this artisanal company is half driven by a woman.
MA'AT Milano Srl Showroom: Via G. da Cermenate 7 20141 - Milano
Ph: +39 02 84894796 +39 02 84719080 Fax: +39 02 89544182
Ph: +39 02 84894796 +39 02 84719080 Fax: +39 02 89544182
Web: www.maatmilano.com Opening hour: Monday-Saturday 9am /6pm
Map to reach the showroom:
From Linate: taxi 25 minutes
Public Transports: Bus 73 express, then Metro 1/red to Cadorna, then Metro 2/Green to Romolo, then bus 95
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