SuitArt becomes Italian

Traditional Italian tailoring family takes over the Swiss made-to-measure suit brand SuitArt

Eleven years ago, the young Swiss entrepreneurs David Bachmann and Mathias Böhm started out with the vision of the “first Fairtrade made-to-measure suit brand” and went on to found SuitArt. Now they are handing the brand over to the Italian Lucente tailoring family.

The four Lucente men and the craft of bespoke tailoring

The head of the family, Beldono Lucente, is a master tailor of the old school. From the age of five he spent his free time working in his father’s workshop and in the workshop of his father’s friend, a classic sartoria italiana. From the age of 11 he was fully involved in tailoring, and he later trained as a fashion designer and draughtsman.

Today, at 60, Beldono Lucente is one of the most experienced master tailors in the world. That is easy to write, but a look at his royal clientele bears it out. Roger and Mirka Federer are among his many famous clients.

The new owners of the SuitArt brand live and do business mainly in the greater Zurich area, with headquarters in Wettingen. Beldono’s brother, Vincenzo Lucente (59), is also a tailor.
The takeover also brings expansion to Canada. The third master tailor, Peter Lucente, lives in Windsor and runs a tailoring business there, which now becomes part of SuitArt. The next generation is involved too and is taking over the business. Beldono Lucente’s son, Emanuele Lucente (31), took over as managing director on 1 November 2019, after gaining several years of management and market experience at other companies. Emanuele did his apprenticeship in fashion retail at Esprit. At the same time, he too has known the secrets and the craft of bespoke tailoring since childhood.

From now on, every SuitArt suit is made full canvas

With the change of owner, the way the suits are made changes too. From now on, SuitArt makes its made-to-measure suits only in the finest construction there is. A full-canvas suit takes about 15 hours longer to make. In return, the suits meet the highest possible quality standard and adapt to the body in a supple, elastic way.

Full canvas means real classic handwork (hand-padded shoulders and chest) and a horsehair canvas. This construction puts SuitArt made-to-measure suits in the finest category of suits. Many details show it, such as handmade buttonholes (picture above).

The new Italian owners and the Italian style they bring will decisively shape the Swiss made-to-measure suit brand as it enters a new decade. From now on, SuitArt suits are even more prestigious and play in the top league of bespoke tailoring.

Handing over the SuitArt brand to the new owners