Grazia and Maurizio Belloni,
workmates and lifelong friends, founded Camomilla
S.p.A. on 7 March 1983, combining Grazia's flair for
accessories and professional verve with Maurizio's creative vision,
going "against the tide" at the time to set up a business that has
since become a solid market leader in the fashion system and a top
Italian business.
That tide was the working women’s all-black trend of the
early 1980's: Camomilla Milano flew in the face of
convention from the very beginning, establishing itself as a
maverick brand proposing a range brimming with flowers, romantic
icons and pastel colours.
The first products were rucksacks, bags, clutches and wallets all
crafted entirely by hand, from cutting through to construction:
Maurizio creating the models and designing the fabrics, and Grazia
steering production and handlingl organisational aspects.
It wasn't long before the company grew, adding many new and
different products to its range and becoming the preferred brand of
women of all ages who see fashion as a very personal and very
emotionally-charged "game".
In 1991, Camomilla Milano started working with the
Japanese multinational Sanrio LTD who gave it exclusive
distribution rights for Hello Kitty branded products in Italy. This
was followed by a creativity and international production license
for “Hello Kitty by Camomilla Milano” collections. The
partnership continues to thrive today.
Able and enthusiastic voices of the Camomilla
Milano tradition, Maurizio and Grazia's children joined
the company in 2007: Francesca as marketing director and Nicolas as
international sales director, both with a very clear vision of
where the brand is going and how it should get there.
In 2008, the company celebrated its first 25 years in the business
in big style, opening the first two Camomilla
Stores in Milan and Verona. These were followed by another
in Rome in 2009 and the first steps into the international market,
via Belgium, Spain, France and Portugal.
The company is based in Buccinasco (province of Milan) and
currently employs an 80-strong workforce. Product manufacture is
carried out both in Italy and abroad: the various models developed
by our internal style team are entrusted to a carefully selected
network of specialist suppliers in geographical clusters excelling
in each specific area of production.
“Accessories and emotions” is
the claim Camomilla Milano uses to reach its
female audience, conscious of the fact that women shoppers today
are more independent and confident about the choices they make,
rejecting fashion that has a rule book to be followed and
predefined models to be fitted into that may have no relation to
their everyday lives. What they want is to be able to dress to fit
a particular mood and to put their own personal stamp on every look
they create, every day.
Camomilla Milano is not just a brand, it's
an emotion and a state of mind in a thousand different guises...
Each with its own little touch of irony!
