My uncle's intuition leads him to observe the frenetic passage of commerce in the 1950s, so while working as a border guard in Chiasso, he involves my grandmother in the idea of venturing into the field of leather goods.
They live in Melano, and just a few steps away is the only tannery established in Ticino in 1929 (I Tannini Ticinesi), which remained active until the 1970s. The leather skins was therefore local, and the attic of their house was enough to start the production of the first items.
In his free time, my uncle travels across the Gotthard Pass to offer the first "briefcases" for sell. A satisfied customer from Lausanne places an order, and after a few months, he arrives in Melano. It's a Saturday morning, and my grandmother is at home. She opens the door, guides him to the attic and so, looking forward to a long relationship.
My father is twenty years old when he is sent to Milan to learn the trade in the thriving leather workshops fast learning skills takes him to his final goal.
In Chiasso, next to the tobacco and chocolate shop, the Valigeria Canavesi is opened. The whole family is involved, and everyone is busy. Chiasso of that time was like a new America: a hub of traffic and a flourishing border trade.
Guided by intuition, my grandmother chooses the land on which to build the factory. It will be in Morbio Inferiore, where the entire family settles down, and where my sisters and I are born.
Our mother works in the office, our father oversees production and sales, grandmother supervises and lives next door, while our uncle stops in to say hello.
We had prosperous years until the 1980s. Then, the economy opens up to foreign markets: Turkey, India, China. The market flooded with cheaper products as we see today.
The Canavesi company manages to survive until the late 2000s, but then it closes down. My father, the master craftsman, retires in Vacallo taking with him his beloved machineries, precious tools, and his enduring passion, always dreaming of a "market recovery" that will never come as he had hoped.
The scent of leather and the sound of the hammer pounding to flatten the edges have remained ingrained in who I am still now, inspiring me to design this new line embracing your memories and continue searching for a way to revive this pure, useful, and authentic craftsmanship that belongs to my land. It is a land where stone, wood, yarn, and leather have always elevated the skill of our artisans.
New awareness of our delicate environment and so,
the notion of adding personal recycled items
to my design has added memories in to this new style of bags.
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Canavesi Bags · Michela Canavesi · Via San Martino 4 · CH - 6833 Vacallo TI
