Gruppo Biasiotto, in the depths of counters

In the second half of the last century, it was conceived a new kind of counter, destined to revolutionize the concept of shoes: it was made of regenerated latex and leather – namely, salpa. The creator of this product is Vittorio Biasiotto, an affable entrepreneur internationally renowned in the accessories sector for the footwear industry. Sergio Biasiotto, owner and CEO of the family business founded by his father, tells us about the origins of the company that has always carried out its job with passion, knowing that the perfect design of the components is essential to enhance the work of the stylist and the shoe factory.
Sergio Biasiotto, you were the forerunners of the shaped counters. How was that business born? The idea was born in 1957 when my father was 17. At that time, his family was facing an economic crisis as my grandmother’s shoe shop went bankrupt. Vittorio Biasiotto decided to find an agreement with the creditors: to pay off the debts, he would go to work for free at the different shoe manufacturers in the area. Unbeknownst to his parents, instead of attending high school and graduating, every morning he took the bus to Stra, a small town in the province of Venice: his job in the factory consisted in hand sanding the leather with which the flat counters were made. That’s a hard work that companies could barely manage internally. The intuition and subsequent entrepreneurial adventure started from there. A couple of years later, after having paid his dues, Vittorio got a loan to buy leather and machinery; he started to manufacture counters at night in the home garage and deliver them to shoe factories during the day. But leather was expensive and the profit margins were not enough. An alternative material had to be found. Vittorio got the idea from a Pirelli advertisement: in addition to tires, the Milanese company produced the salpa, a regenerated latex and leather material used to bind bibles and notebooks. Meanwhile, word had come that cutting-edge counters, innovative in terms of shape and materials, were being manufactured in France. The entrepreneur started to travel from Vicenza to Strasbourg up to the district of San Mauro Pascoli. Sample after sample, he finally obtained what he thought it was “the perfect one”, and he invested everything he owned in two flight tickets to New York, for him and his partner, to attend a trade fair: there, he would present what he had created to the most important brands in Italian fashion. It was a real success that led to the definitive turning point: the industrialization of the shaped counter. For many years we were the only ones to produce it.
What is salpa’s added value? Salpa lets the shoe be softer, more wearable and comfortable. Unlike leather, the salpa is a shape-memory material and avoids the premature deformation of the shoe. Together with the toe-puffs and the insole, the counter is the skeleton of the shoe. Without a correct design of these components, the shoe would not keep its shape and would not ensure a regular fit.
In addition to the historic headquarters in Vicenza, the Biasiotto Group now has two more factories in Romania and Serbia. Why did you choose to relocate part of the production? This choice is not related to labor costs, instead it is a better way to promptly and punctually meet the needs of our customers headquartered in the most important hubs of Italian and foreign footwear production. The factories in Romania and Serbia make it possible to optimize logistics, providing an out-of-the-door delivery service, which is essential to always be one step ahead of competitors.
Is still possible to invent something new in terms of performance and design in the counters sector? There is always the possibility of inventing something new, even for a “ghost” item like ours, hidden inside the shoe. We keep on evolving together with footwear fashion, satisfying the needs that come according to the different shape of shoes developed each season. However, the focus is mainly on the materials’ innovation. “Sneaker”, for example, is a cutting-edge product, developed together with another company of the sector, which integrates the quality features of the salpa with those of thermoplastic materials, widely used in the athletic shoe sector. The result is a counter able to increase the breaking resistance of sneakers, whose original shape generally fades right in the heel area. The combination of different materials also defines the Anima patent, designed by my father, an exclusive counter intended for elegant footwear, which perfectly fits to its shape, guaranteeing an extremely smooth look. The latest innovation, which concerns the coloring of materials, is called Alteray®. It is a certified water-based blend of metal free pigments that lets fabrics, leather and soles made of rubber, TPU, PU and EVA change color through sunlight or UV rays.
What is your commitment to product and process sustainability? The salpa is an eco-sustainable, recycled and recyclable product. Our thermoplastic material suppliers have achieved Global Recycle Standard (GRS) certification. As transformers, we select only certified and traceable materials in compliance with the specifications required by the big brands. The Alteray® technology, for example, fully complies with the requirements of the Reach CE 1907/2006 standard. Regarding the sustainability of our facilities, we are installing a new photovoltaic system with solar panels to meet at least part of our energy needs.
What are your strengths in terms of customer service? Among our main customers we rank brands such as the Kering group, Alexander McQueen, Golden Goose, Yves Saint Laurent, Christian Dior, Chanel. They rely on us because we are able, thanks to an efficient organizational structure, to guarantee them quality service, product stability, excellent production capacity and a prompt raw materials supply. These features are difficult to be found elsewhere, but, thanks to them, we are able to always foresee the client’s requests. We work seriously and this is normal for us.
What role does craftsmanship play in a technologically advanced company like yours? As we’re aimed at an unceasing improvement, our technology has evolved over the years through a transformation process based on the combination of digitalization and automation. The functionality of each machine is constantly renewed and customized according to customer needs. However, machines are not competitors of labor, but cooperate with it. The handcraft stands out in the finishing process up to the quality control and the packaging of the final product.
What do you foresee in the post CRV era? It is a difficult period for everyone, we would never have imagined finding ourselves in the same situation of uncertainty one year after the start of the pandemic. 2021 will be even more difficult than 2020. Companies’ warehouses are full due to lockdowns that have forced stores to close their doors. The light went out on that part of the supply chain located between Verona and Brescia, which managed 90% of the European footwear large-scale distribution. Only the big brands, although they have reduced their turnover, keep on investing by believing in the recovery. Because, they say, when we finally see the light, we will see a lot of it.
www.gruppobiasiotto.com

Sergio Biasiotto (on the right) with Dario Passoni

Some historical images of Mr. Vittorio Biasiotto and of the namesake company he founded in the 1950s