Finollo, 100 years of life and ties
A style to learn from
Genoa is one of the most beautiful sea towns in Italy, Via Roma
(Rome Street) is one of the more attractive roads in Genoa and
Finollo is one of the more famous shops in Via Roma, in fact, more
than just a shop, it's a Tie & Shirt Maker.
The shop window has a wonderful liberty style engraved wood
surround, and once inside, I find myself in a small but charming
room which happens to be the reign of luxury ties of an elegance
appreciated world wide and even more so, by that world of yachting
which we all love that has always tied Genoa to the Anglo-Saxons.
I am warmly greeted by Roberto Linke Finollo's son in law in the
small reception area come fitting room. He currently runs the shop
whilst his wife Daniela Finollo manages the famous workshop and
its precious and rare to find embroideresses.
Mr Linke, who was Finollo exactly?
A very clever man, a true Genoese at heart who loved the sea and
his boat "Tipperary". He designed this shop himself some 107 years
ago now. It initially started as a gentleman's underclothing shop
before specialising in manufacturing shirts and ties.
Is it true that Finollo was visited by a plethora of famous
figures who used to come hear as if they were visiting The Temple
of the shirt and tie?
We certainly had quite a collection of well renowned characters
who used to come and be fitted in this very room or whom we
sometimes attended in the comfort of their homes. I remember
Prince Ranieri of Monaco amongst others, Gianni Agnelli, Guglielmo
Marconi who often used to come to Portofino aboard his yacht
Elettra, as well as the Duke of Windsor with his Wally. Then came
Beppe Croce, the founder member of the YCI and many other figure-
heads from the yachting and business worlds as well as your normal
middle-classes of course.
Briefly, what is the history of this accessory?
The tie already existed at the end of the last century even though
it was only worn by a few. Let us consider the British Regiment
ties which after all offer the base onto which the colours or the
crest of the regiment are reproduced. They were smaller in shape
and lighter in weight. By the end of the 20's a small embroidered
cord-like accessory made its way into fashion. The accessory
itself was created to break the monotony of white shirts and is
thus closely connected to the evolution in gentleman's fashion. At
that time in fact, men wore coloured or striped shirts in the
morning but white ones in the afternoons or evenings.
Where did the materials come from?
The British weavers were the best. Finollo used to design his
materials and he then had them made for sale to the United States.
Is there a relationship between tie knots and those used on boats?
The same applies to ties as does to lines and warps that have many
different functions. Actually one of the simpler ones was
perfected in this shop and later became the Finollo knot. Then we
have the Windsor which works the opposite in the sense that the
longer side of the tie goes from left to right. This knot started
life in front of our mirror too. We even have a man's shirt model
which was inspired by the Duke of Windsor and another, a lady's
model inspired by Wally.
I was under the impression that ties and thus this shop had
nothing to do with lady's fashion
You are mistaken actually. In fact one day in 1910, a very
important client walked in and wanted to create a lady's tie model
for his wife, a very feminine lady no sergeant major for sure.
Thus our lady's tie was borne, I will show you. It is made of very
light plain coloured silk, a cross between a scarf and a head
scarf: no need for the knot.
I am quite enchanted as I watch Mr Linke produce small and quaint
ties out of a large draw which I find simply delightful and quite
chic in their bright colours: white, black, pink, pastel green,
yellow, light blue.
How is your workshop currently organised?
My daughter and I design the ties, my wife works with six ladies
in our workshop in Piazza Lavagna in the historic part of town.
Workshop as you say, because I in fact consider myself a craftsman
in that I sell what I produce and I teach the art of working, so
in a way, I would say that a craftsman is also a teacher.
What do you remember of Gianni Agnelli's and Beppe Croce's styles?
Beppe Croce was just naturally elegant, he new what to wear and
when. Instinctively. About Agnelli I remember he used to send us
his tails' shirt to be ironed: this happened quite often as nobody
appeared to please him as we did. Tails have now gone out of
fashion of course, because our hectic style of living has done
away with the custom of changing very often in the day in
accordance with time and occasion. Men's fashion reached its
splendour in the 20's and 30's when men who could afford it
followed this ritual from morning to evening. The morning would
favour a more casual choice by way of jackets , shirts, waistcoats
and trousers all very coloured: the ability lay in the very
coordination of all those colours. Men used to drive a car, play
golf or polo dressed like that. In the afternoon, they would
change and wear trousers, jackets and waistcoats of the same but
more sober colour , with a tie to match. Many paintings of that
era depict men's clothing in some detail. In the evenings men
would go out wearing tails whereas the morning suit was kept for
ceremonies during the day and comprised striped trousers and a
light grey jacket.
Dinner jackets were used solely for having dinner and men would
change after dinner into tails ready to go to the theatre or to a
ball . Can you imagine, for many years we used to keep our shop
open until the theatres opened so as to offer our clients white bow-ties.
What about the bow-tie?
We have some 10/12 models of bow-ties. Preferring it to a tie is
just a matter of personal taste. Going back to ties again, we have
produced those for the YCI, with the garter at first, on a blue
backround which is the club's crest, now produced with the small
YCI flag hand-embroidered on a blue background. In the old days
embroidery was done using a silk thread and it took 200 minutes,
nowadays using a cotton thread it takes 20. There are now only two
ladies who do the embroidery because young people are not
interested in learning. We also produce ties for the Circolo
Canottieri Napoli (Naples Rowing Club), the Circolo del Remo e
della Vela Italia, (Oar & Sail Club Italy) and those of the Yacht
Club Costa Smeralda, the Olympic Committee and America's Cup.
What is your annual production?
We don't do more than 6000 ties per year.
This is also a luxury item in that not everybody can have it,
not even if they are very well off. Should one wait and desire to have it?
In fact, a personalised state of the art tie, could be a gift fit
for kings and state leaders. We have made ties for the G8, ties to
commemorate the 60 years of the Italian flag where the Savoia blue
becomes the blue of Italy. An owner of some relevance has even
wanted the logo of his spinnaker on the front of a tie and the ID
number of the boat on the back so as to make a present of it. Ties
are very much tied to the tradition of a gift.
Which are the more commonly embroidered patterns on your ties?
Literally anything: from a compass rose, to a sailing boat with
the spinnaker's colours, to the sea horse, the octopus, the siren.
Since I do so love sailing boats, I always try to draw the sails
in exactly the right position to reflect direction and wind.
I am just astounded at the world that has unrolled before my eyes
and I am really in two minds whether to buy a pastel green tie or
a Wally shirt. Thank you Finollo and good bye.
For information: Finollo, Via Roma, 38R, 16100 Genova, Phone. +39 010-562073
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