Walking us through the company’s Milan showroom on a crisp, sunny January morning, Giuseppe Santoni, chair and executive president of the Italian luxury footwear brand Santoni, explains: ‘The market is saturated with shoes –I challenge my team to create true objects of desire.’ 

Established in 1975 by Andrea Santoni – Giuseppe’s father – the family-run business made a name worldwide for creating exquisite handmade shoes that combine traditional craft with a contemporary flair. ‘Our design philosophy is rooted in a deep respect for tradition, yet it’s continuously evolving through innovation,’ explains Mr Santoni. ‘We’ve succeeded in making our engineers more artisanal and our artisans more engineered – and that balance defines who we are today.’

‘Craftsmanship is always at the heart of Santoni. Every piece passes through the hands of our artisans, who meticulously examine and construct each element – from the sole to the upper,’ he says, indicating a blue leather double-buckle shoe to demonstrate the varying intensity of colour. He’s referring to Santoni’s signature “velatura” finish, a hand-applied shoe colouring technique that evokes the painting methods mastered by Titian and Velázquez during the Renaissance. This colour-grading process, applied in delicate layers, involves up to 15 meticulous steps to create a sense of depth and pictorial luminosity. The final touch sees each shoe hand-polished with natural waxes, using cloths made of cashmere and silk.

Marking its 50th anniversary this year, Santoni unveils Santoni Meraviglia, a beautifully curated coffee table book published by Assouline. The project pays tribute to the house’s rich artistic heritage and enduring craftsmanship. To bring this story to life, Santoni opened the doors of its factories and archives – found in the rolling hills of central Italy – to Scottish photographer Oliver Pilcher and fashion writer Luke Leitch. Together, they were invited to capture, through images and words, the meticulous care, time, and skilled hands behind each pair of Santoni shoes.

‘As the title suggests, we chose the word “meraviglia” – meaning “wonder” in Italian,” the executive president tells us. ‘Meraviglia is more than just beauty; it’s that moment of joy and emotion a product can spark when it connects with something deeper than mere aesthetics.’

Founded in Corridonia, in the heart of Le Marche, Santoni is widely seen as the crown jewel of central Italy’s storied leatherworking tradition. Renowned as the country’s most industrious shoemaking hub, the region’s artisanal legacy stretches back to the 14th century. Even the Renaissance humanist Giovanni Boccaccio praised the shoes from Le Marche in The Decameron as ‘so exquisite and of such exceptional quality’ that they were exported far beyond Tuscany, reaching as far as the Balkans.

‘We are proud custodians of a unique heritage, and our mission is to keep the spirit of “Made in Santoni” alive – not as a slogan, but as a living philosophy.’ With this ethos at its core, the Italian luxury brand is dedicated to nurturing the next generation of highly skilled craftspeople.

Through initiatives like the Accademia dell’Eccellenza – an educational training programme now in its third year – and partnerships with regional schools, Santoni is actively working to preserve and pass on its artisanal savoir faire. ‘Our brand vision goes beyond the creation of luxury products –we’re deeply committed to sharing and passing down our know-how to future generations,’ adds Giuseppe Santoni. When asked about the company’s future, the entrepreneur has no hesitation: ‘Our guiding focus remains rooted in the values that brought us here –an unwavering commitment to quality and excellence.’ Here’s to another 50 years of crafting wonders. 

£100; santonishoes.com