LOCMAN OPENS A NEW SINGLE-BRAND STORE IN FLORENCE

A new single-brand store by Locman, the famous watch company based on the Isola d’Elba, is opening its doors in via Tornabuoni 76, Florence.

The inauguration will take place in one of the most stylish spots in the world: side by side with the most prestigious shop windows, the Locman jewelry store in Florence is going to be hosted on the lower floors of one of the most ancient palaces in the city, Palazzo Tornabuoni, next to Palazzo Strozzi, jutting out onto the street with a beautiful fifteenth-century lodge called Loggia dei Cigoli, protected by the Soprintendenza ai beni architettonici e ambientali of the Council of Florence.
To emphasize the cultural standing of its Florence début, Locman paid a tribute to the city of Florence by restoring the entire lodge according to the guidelines set by the Soprintendenza.

This project is the result of the close collaboration between Locman and Pineider that started about a year ago. Pineider, a most-famous, traditional Florence-based company established in 1774, developed the new Locman collections of leather products and writing tools under license and devoted its historical showroom in via Tornabuoni to seal this major alliance between the two Tuscan companies.

The shop, which continues to be managed by Pineider, will host both watch collections and the latest leather and writing tool collections.

The via Tornabuoni project, designed by the Milanese architects Luca Piatti and Sandro Masotti in collaboration with the architect Nando Rossi, has produced a space out of time, modern and yet connected with the historical context it was built in. The very use of materials – serena stone on floors, wood paneling on side walls and steel for the furnishings – recalls one of the founding elements of the LOCMAN brand: to create harmony between hi-tech elements and the various aspects of tradition, between technological materials such as aluminum, carbon fiber and titanium and traditional elements such as diamond, wood and Italian style.

“The bond between Locman and Tuscany is unbreakable, explained Marco Mantovani, the founder and managing director of LOCMAN, “and the international symbol of Tuscany is Florence, an eternal a capital of art, culture and fashion. For us, to be present in Florence is not just a question of business, but rather a confirmation of our identity and our origins, of which we are endlessly proud”.

Emphasizing tradition is one of the communal elements to all single-brand LOCMAN stores, from the one in Tokyo, in Namichi Dori, to the ones in Porto Cervo, Brescia, Salò and the two jeweler’s stores on the Isola d’Elba, looking over the lanes of Portoferraio and Marina di Campo.

The Tokyo shop, opened in November 2002, features a minimalist, ultra-modern design (according to the most sophisticated Japanese taste) contrasting with the warmth of natural wood panelling on the walls and with the steel furnishings.

Sardinian stone and whitewash are, on the other hand, the materials that identify the store in Porto Cervo that was opened last August right in the middle of one of the trendiest piazzas in the world and was immediately welcomed by the habitués of the Costa Smeralda.

An all-Lombard elegance and understatement are the characteristics of the stores in Brescia and Salò, managed by the Gnutti family, a fundamental element in the company’s financial assets through the merchant bank Hopa.
Opened in August in the central via San Carlo, the single-brand store in Salò placed its bets on the contrast between the sophistication of oakwood and the aesthetic impact of two large modular crystal cubes containing the watches on display. In corso Zanardelli, in the very center of Brescia, the LOCMAN shop looks like a hyper-functional space, featuring a wide back-lit screen showing the latest LOCMAN creations.

LOCMAN Spa is an industrial company specialized in designing and producing top-level watches. Amongst the best-known models is the Diamond Tonneau, glamorous and elegant with its typical barrel-shaped, diamond-cast case, or the NUOVO CARBONIO, a sports model with an aggressive oval case made with carbon fiber and titanium.

Over the last few days, the new Latin Lover model has been launched by the Elba company: the wide curved face with dials and Arabic numbers and the rounded steel case connected to the strap by two big mobile curves are indeed conquering the hearts and wrists of watch lovers worldwide.

Press Office: Marchio Giallo - Via E. Chinotto, 28 - 20147 Milano – Tel 02 36577.922 -Fax 02 36577.924 – marchiogiallo@locman.it