Casadei

The life of Cesare Casadei and the history of the footwear company he is now the creative director of are so closely intertwined that they can no longer be distinguished from each other. Cesare was born in 1962 to Quinto and Flora Casadei, two artisans who founded Calzaturificio Casadei on the outskirts of Rimini in 1958. They initially produced sandals for tourists and later expanded to the national and international markets. For Cesare, there are no boundaries: home, factory, and leather warehouse have no walls; everything flows seamlessly between prototypes, production, skilled artisans, and expert hands creating those small masterpieces known as shoes. During his adolescence, Cesare's studies took him to Switzerland, where he received an international education. It was the 1970s, a time of revolution and innovation: travels, a thirst for freedom, and the desire to discover new horizons fueled him more than anything else. His passion for the family business drew him back to the company where, in the mid-1980s, he started his own production with a team of 10 people. It was the toughest and most formative time: work became a serious activity, relationships with suppliers became more intricate, and shoe production steadily increased. They began with unisex models, ventured into sports styles, and eventually reached the most spectacular creations. Mistakes mingled with successes in a crescendo that increasingly defined the Casadei aesthetic - the ability, rather the necessity, to experiment fully with processes and raw materials never tried before. In 1990, the first showroom opened in Milan, and in 1994 Cesare became the brand's creative director. Perhaps this was the most delicate and difficult transition: during these years, the fashion system was undergoing radical changes, and the internationalization of markets demanded a new modus operandi. Cesare's vast experience in production, combined with direct relationships with suppliers and traders, allowed him to elevate the company to a new level of quality that was hard to match. Today, Cesare works closely with a seasoned stylistic team, relying on a production and craftsmanship apparatus that is a small jewel of engineering and creativity, as only Made in Italy can guarantee. Each shoe model is produced internally, and most of the raw materials are exclusively made for the maison. But what characterizes the creative director the most is "that indescribable pleasure when I see a woman wearing one of our creations," Cesare always recounts. "At that moment, the magic of a shoe truly tells the story of all the dedication and passion I have always put into this beautiful craft."