Icon of Style: The King of Cashmere — Brunello Cucinelli
Despite being the King of Cashmere, Brunello Cucinelli may not ring a bell. Brunello Cucinelli is an Italian industrialist and founder of the global cashmere brand named after him. Brunello’s company isn’t based in any of the traditional fashion centers — Rome, Paris, London or NYC. Brunello Cucinelli is based in a small hillside village called Solomeo in Umbria, two hours from Rome. With sweeping views of the Italian countryside from his 14th century headquarters — Brunello and in 2013 completed a successful IPO. What’s the success to his business — as Brunello states ‘humanistic capitalism’.
Brunello grew up poor but happy in the Umbrian countryside as a farmer with his three brothers and mother and father. When he was 15, his family moved to Peurgia, a local industrial area for his father’s new job. His father quickly became unhappy with being a cog in a large machine, he was unhappy in his job — he felt it robbed him of his dignity. Brunello in an interview with Origins of Luxury said he once saw his father crying after work, asking god what he had done to deserve a life like this. Brunello knew then where he wanted to take his life’s work — restoring human dignity through purpose in work.
It is a principle that distinctly underlines his business philosophy and methodology. Instead of basing his company in a large center and outsourcing to overseas factories, Brunello chose Solomeo to grow his business and rejuvenate the town. He pays the local worker’s 20% above national factory wages, and has restored the town, building a library and theatre for performances. He see’s himself as the custodian not owner of the town (half of the town works for him).
During the eight-hour workday, his employee’s must take their full hour and a half lunch break — they can return to eat at home with their family or eat for free in the company canteen. In an interview with the Financial Times Brunello said, “I want to safeguard the value of lunch”, “meals are not just for eating, but for discussion”. Any supplier, reporter or investor is invited to Solomeo to experience the entire company culture. Growing up on a farm, Brunello grew a close relationship cooking with fresh, wholesome products, a habit he continues to this day (He started producing Olive Oil in the village in 2008). In the FT article, Brunello stated “When I come home, no matter where I have been, I always have two dishes; olive oil and bread, and spaghetti with tomatoes.”
When he was 25, Brunello decided what he would like to do with his life — Umbria is a region famous for wool yarns and knitwear, however, it wasn’t known for cashmere. In his Origins of Luxury interview, Brunello decided he “Wanted to do something that you could keep in your closet for many, many years, never to throw away.” He also wanted to do it with colour.
He settled on cashmere, a fabric the English were famous for, however, they only produced it in dark colours or natural colours. Brunello decided to make colourful cashmere jumpers for females initially. He bought 20kg of cashmere from an old friend of his — he didn’t have any money and the friend allowed him to repay him afterwards, such is the knit of the community in his village. He mentioned in the interview he is happy to ‘pass it on’ and offer the same opportunity to any young person in the village.
His first order was for 53 sweaters — he told a white lie and stated he had 70+ workers and his father started the business 50 years ago — he now has 89 stores had circa 280 million euros in sales in 2013. Currently, the company employs 700 persons in his factory and an additional 2300 craftspeople who work from their own homes through Umbria and Tuscany making goods from hand.
He fulfilled his first order in a small factory in Perugia by himself, however, he wanted to look where he could grow his company in line with his ‘humanistic capitalism’ philosophy. So he chose Solomeo, where he had been visiting for years while his fiance lived there.
The castle had been severely neglected yet he saw potential. He negotiated to buy part of the castle of the owner with the little money he did have. He kept renovating the small part he bought and eventually owner the fully restored 14th century castle. A timespan of 30 years had passed. Back to ‘humanistic capital’ what does Brunello believe it encompasses? In his Origins of Luxury interview he stated, “We wanted to make a profit… we do believe in a profit. We try to find a profit and we try to do it with ethics, dignity and morality”. The first thing he does with his profits is to reportedly invest 20% into public works in Solomeo.
Brunei Cucinelli has a truly inspiring philosophy and his business is a outstanding case study on how a for-profit company can co-exist and even ensure that employee’s and the local environment and society can prosper.
