The tie remains timeless. And Maurizio Talarico, born in 1968, tells the story of a company that has been around for twenty years but is continuously growing. Despite the Covid-19 crisis - some industries in the sector have suffered up to a -70% drop in turnover - his revenue is increasing.
"It was almost one million euros in 2019; 1.3 million in 2020; 1.7 million last year," explains the entrepreneur. The forecasts for this year are even more positive. By June, Talarico lands in Madrid: its third location abroad after Tokyo in 2009 and London in 2014. On the counter or in the window, always handcrafted ties. No more than three for each model. All handmade. With the patented and unmistakable "x" stitching.
The history and perspective of Talarico is based on a double track. Since he was 12 years old and living in Catanzaro, an absolute passion for ties. Fabrics, designs, colors, patterns: examined, compared, and selected every day by Maurizio. Among the colors to choose from, "I prefer light blue to dark blue. Never orange or yellow." Even though there are foreign countries where they are requested. The search for new designs is almost obsessive. "There are about 9,000 a year" considering geometric and chromatic variations.
Unique so far in Europe, it launched the eco-responsible tie. On the website (www.talaricocravatte.it) it is the first visible banner. A sort of scrapping: you deliver a used tie in the shop, which gives you a 40% discount if you buy a new one. Thus, those who do not know discover the existence of a consortium for recycling used ties and selling those made with recycled silk. The fabric is different but the designs are in the same style as the traditional ones. "The demand for an eco-sustainable tie is continuous, increasingly high. A concrete and visible sign, after all, of commitment to the environment."
But a product to break through needs commercial action, strategic communication, and financial sustainability. It is the second relentless track of the business. The story begins in 1999 in a shop "Capannelle area in Rome with almost door-to-door sales." An impossible challenge against the big players in the industry. But tenacity, indeed the Calabrian stubbornness, does not stop.