While the Italian luxury bag company Borbonese has recently opened its new store in Milan, it has also announced that it is focusing on some important strategies in terms of sustainability and customer engagement. Alessandro Pescara, CEO, Borbonese explained The SPIN OFF how the company is achieving its goals.

 

Within the recent opening of the Borbonese store, you said that Borbonese is developing according to a sustainable strategy? Could you please explain how?
We are working on a wide project that is focusing on more aspects. For instance, we are now focusing on seven different certifications that range between ISO 9001, ISO 14000 and ISO 45000, among others. They are focused on safety and health in the workplace, environmental, quality, diversity & inclusion, risk management, governance and auditing on the whole supply chain.

Sustainability is not just the product, but we are trying to define a set of values, trying to communicate them first inside our company - as we are the first ones who have to believe in them -, learn how to behave better and then engage the consumer and transfer to them our values. What we are interested in is not selling a bag, but selling a brand, which is a different thing. We want to give an exact perception of what we are truly doing. Then it will be the consumer who will reward us. Are you also progressing in terms of product?
Sure. We are evolving both it terms of product and collection. We are trying to make the collection become more contemporary according to the consumer's needs. Furthermore, we are not aiming at a particular consumer generation as our purpose is to create a timeless product that is crossing all generations from Gen Z, Millennials, Baby Boomers and Senior. It's not a matter of generation, but a matter of use. We are enlarging the functions of use for daily life, special occasions, and we are trying to widen the offer of other products like scarves, textile products, gloves and hats.

 

Is the collection evolving in terms of sustainability, too?
Our whole product offer is evolving as every nylon bag is 100% sustainable, including its packaging, as made with recycled materials. Speaking of leather, as it is a product of animal origins, sustainability for leather is tied to tanning, which is the most polluting aspect of leather. For this, we want to use only LVG certified tanneries, that have a strong respect for the environment. For this, we are doing audits to all our suppliers. Therefore, we can say that we try to preserve the environment by creating a circular economy, try to be less impactful on the environment and try to be more conscious and educated.

I know that your store in Milan will host a series of collaborations with artists. Is that part of that engagement strategy you were speaking about? Could you please explain more about it?
The history of Borbonese is tied to the art since 1916. In fact, Giacomo Balla, one of the most significant artists of the Futurism movement, designed a very special bag for our brand. Therefore, Art is part of our DNA and has been so important for it. And as we are trying to create a purchase experience, today's consumer also needs to live an experience when entering our stores. A store is not simply a place where a consumer can go and buy a bag, but a place where our brand's values can be transferred and what the brand wants to tell. For these reasons, we will do collaborations with artists, we will present their works and will create that meltin' pot between art and fashion that is so important for spreading a brand's identity and image.




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