Who we are

The origins.

The Rispoli company was founded in 1904 as an umbrella manufacturing and repair business. In a small room in the historic center of Salerno , Domenico Rispoli and his son Aniello work with a spirit of sacrifice and passion, reaping great satisfaction from this new adventure. Only after the first half of the last century, however, the son of Aniello, Domenico , who had also begun to help his father and grandfather, decided to expand the business with haberdashery items, thus following in their footsteps and moving to another room but always in the same street of the historical centre, in via delle Botteghelle. In 1954 Domenico marries the very young Maria who years earlier had already decided to support him not only in life but also in work. It was a period of uncertainty but also of great enthusiasm and his wife, with intelligence and stubbornness, was able to learn the "tricks of the trade" in just a few years and successfully manage the sale of haberdashery items. Domenico and Maria build their clientele day after day who, in addition to buying ready-made goods, also commission them with handicraft items related to tailoring such as, for example, belts and buttons covered in fabric . Meanwhile Domenico Rispoli abandons the handicraft production of umbrellas due to industrial competition, continuing the activity of repair only. The sixties and seventies were characterized by a notable economic boost and the work of the Rispoli spouses had by now considerably increased, especially as it was necessary to stay in the shop all day, above all to satisfy the demand for handcrafted belts, buttons and covered buckles. The linking of nylon stockings is introduced by Mrs. Maria who, with a great entrepreneurial spirit and as a completely self-taught person, goes to the province of Naples to buy the necessary equipment to start this new craft activity which gives her great satisfaction for decades, at least until at the end of the seventies, when the cost of women's stockings decreased to the point of making their repair inconvenient.

The Haberdashery.

Merceria Rispoli quickly becomes a point of reference for professional seamstresses but above all for ladies who prefer to make their own clothing. The packaging is still in a high-quality phase and clothing stores have not yet suffered the invasion of "Made in China" fashion, so whoever decides to buy a suit knows he has to spend an appropriate price for the quality of the product. Ladies who know how to sew thus go to via delle Botteghelle with the fabric they have just chosen and buy the beautiful buttons and stupendous trimmings from the Rispoli haberdashery.

The eighties.

The last two decades of the last century are characterized by a very slow but progressive decrease in the requests for haberdashery and handicraft items. Due to the increase in manufacturing at an industrial level and the decrease in prices in the clothing sector, the demand for packaging items and accessories begins to wane. Even mothers who once loved to sew, now that they are grandmothers are not always able to satisfy the requests of their children and grandchildren. At the beginning of the nineties, Domenico's son, Roberto , decides that he will continue the long family relay. Proud of a past of sacrifices and successes, he begins to follow above all the secrets and teachings of his father, a very good, tireless and punctual craftsman. Thus he dedicated himself to making belts with the customer's fabric and repairing umbrellas. He realizes that the sale of haberdashery will undergo a significant decline in the years to come and so he dedicates himself to the study of what he likes to define "creative recovery" , a form of craftsmanship linked to sartorial repair but characterized by the search for perfection, both in the execution of the work than in the result. For Roberto, a damaged garment must not only be repaired but the work carried out must be perfect, like new, and if this is not possible for various reasons, the recovery must have aesthetic and functional characteristics indistinguishable from an object that has just left the factory.

1999: Merceria Rispoli changes its look.

Renovation is an indispensable process in the life of a business and Rispoli decides to renovate the premises as well with a cleaner and more modern look but always with references to the past and its roots. The chosen color is blue which conveys security and professionalism, characteristics required by those who decide to rely on the now famous haberdashery in via delle Botteghelle.

The third millennium.

It sounds like the title of a film but the challenge we now have to face is really tough. The first decades of the new millennium are those where Merceria Rispoli faces the most difficult period as the sale of classic items has decreased enormously. However, Roberto's stubbornness is the basis for a new project, linked to the experiences of the past and which are projected into the years to come. High professionalism, sense of responsibility and passion for his work have allowed Roberto to stand out in the artisan field which, even today, has never lost its strength and value.

Rispoli haberdashery today.

Proud of their roots and sure of being able to offer you today all the experience acquired in more than a century of activity.

At your service, since 1904.