Borsalino fedoras in Italy

[jeboat]

I am in Montecatino near Florence today and just priced some Borsalinos. The so called travel hat is priced at 145 euros and regular fedoras are 195 euros. The euro is 120 percent in dollars so the price of a factory, glued in liner(cheap quality), mediocre felt and craftmanship(?) is about what Fedora will sell you a custom 100 percent beaver fedora.

To those who are interested in Borsalinos, stay with either vintage hats or, better yet save sending your hard earned dollars to Italy and buy an Adventurebilt!!!

jeboat:cool2: :cool2: :cool2:

 

[Mycroft]

Those travel hats in the U.S. also are really "cheapy," and its just by looking at them in the shop. How are their kosher hats?

 

[feltfan]

I am in Montecatino near Florence today

As I recall, there are vintage clothing shops and at least one
decent fleamarket in Florence... I wonder what happened to
all those vintage Borsalinos...

 

[riccardo]

I am in Montecatino near Florence today and just priced some Borsalinos. The so called travel hat is priced at 145 euros and regular fedoras are 195 euros. The euro is 120 percent in dollars so the price of a factory, glued in liner(cheap quality), mediocre felt and craftmanship(?) is about what Fedora will sell you a custom 100 percent beaver fedora.

To those who are interested in Borsalinos, stay with either vintage hats or, better yet save sending your hard earned dollars to Italy and buy an Adventurebilt!!!

jeboat:cool2: :cool2: :cool2:

Hi jeboat,
may I advice you to take a look in Milano at the "Cappelleria Melegari" Via Paolo Sarpi,19...near Garibaldi railway Station.
There you can find mr. Sergio Anzani, he is a fine hat maker, he mades custom hat how do you want.
He has my 7x Open Road for reblock and clear it.
New Borsalino are only a "griffe", you would look for a vintage in "extra extra qualità" so you could look a nice Borsalino's hat.
Enjoy Italy,enjoy Florence and...take a look in Sicily...a great place.

Come back soon,in Italy.

Take care.
Riccardo.

 

[MattC]

In defense of the Borsalino "Traveler"

I am pretty much a vintage hat guy. I know about the superior quality and workmanship of classic hats, and most of mine are vintage. But one of the few exceptions is an olive Borsalino Traveler I bought from Noggintops about 3 years ago. I have worn it around the world, in steaming heat, in downpours that lasted hours. It has never run, lost its shape, shrunk or tapered. It is very soft, easy to shape with your hand. It was crushed for 10 hours on a flight to Tokyo, and looked like new 5 min after I put it on. A lot of what Borsalino makes today is junk. But a few of their hats are really fine, and we should be fair about that.

 

[jeboat]

Borsalino traveler

I also own a Traveler from Noggintops but I took it on one vacation and it is anything but quality. Poor shape holding and not very durable. Maybe I bought a later built hat than you did.

I brought a Stetson fedora purchased from Noggintops, the one with a leather band. It has been a very good selection for travel and is now "broken in" with lots of compliments. By the way, most men do not wear hats in Italy! I have seen maybe 5-6 fedoras(on old men) and a few caps after 3 weeks of traveling.

jeboat:cool2: :cool2: :cool2:

 

[riccardo]

I also own a Traveler from Noggintops but I took it on one vacation and it is anything but quality. Poor shape holding and not very durable. Maybe I bought a later built hat than you did.

I brought a Stetson fedora purchased from Noggintops, the one with a leather band. It has been a very good selection for travel and is now "broken in" with lots of compliments. By the way, most men do not wear hats in Italy! I have seen maybe 5-6 fedoras(on old men) and a few caps after 3 weeks of traveling.

jeboat:cool2: :cool2: :cool2:

Hi,
you are right, jeboat.
Here there aren't a lot of hat lover's...only old men ...
Regards

 

[MattC]

Quality

Maybe the quality is inconsistent. Mine is about 3 years old

 

[besdor]

Florence Italy

I have just returned from Florence Italy and the hat situation there isn't very pretty . The one Borsalino store across from the Piazza wasn't very busy . The owner didn't seem to be to interested in taking care of the customers . When I told him that I was in the "business" , he just shugged his head . The other store is closed .
The store in Milan in the Galleria is a different story . This small little store sells more hats than you can imagine . It's as if they were giving them away.
Most of the buyers are tourists who really dont know that much about what they are getting .

 

[Erich Johann]

Hope this is the right thread ...

I was in Milan for a day last September and obtained a new Borsalino from their store in the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II. I had expected something like a two-story shop with humongous numbers and varieties of hats, but was a bit sobered when I finally found the store. It is one of the smallest stores in the galleria, just at the entrance vis-à-vis the opera, about 20m² big. Sure, the shelves were full of hats; I had the feeling, though, that they only sold the standard models, these though in quite a variety of brim widths and colors (though not each color in each brim width) for both ladies and gentlemen. The one I got is a light grey fedora with a very large brim and not much of a taper in the crown (dark blue lining, black sweatband)--the most "vintage"-looking style I could find (in addition to the color I wanted). Sure, I paid 5-10 Euros more than these usually go for online (well, they have to pay for the rent in the galleria too ... and it is a very touristy area), but I got the kind of hat I had in mind and a nice souvenir on top of that (not to mention that I could actually try it on to see if it fits me). A foldable pasteboard hat box came gratis, as did the ubiquitous large logo paper bag. Basic communication with the sales lady in English worked out, although the advice that I should use the synthetic "ring" one finds in hats to stack them on top of each other to clean it seemed a bit ... peculiar to me, but oh well, I have a hat brush, so whatever. The hat has so far served me well during rain and snow this winter.

Unfortunately, I did not make it to Capelleria Melegari because that shop is in a somewhat different part of town and I did not want to drag my companion on a search for and from hat store to hat store

All in all, if you are around the cathedral in Milano and desperately want to buy a slightly (but not much) overpriced standard contemporary Borsalino, their store in the galleria is the place to go. If you are a more discerning hat wearer and collector, I suppose and suggest that you go looking elsewhere.

 

[besdor]

You should have gone to the main Borsalino store in Milan. it has two floors . Probable their nicest store.

 

[-30-]

"Probable their nicest store."
QUOTE: besdor.

I doubt that their "domestic market" product is any better than goods shipped to N America, and as I am

not "buying the store", only the product, I could care less how their retail outlets appear. The new(er)

Borsolino effort is of a very questionable quality, with poor workmanship being it's prime fault. Eg:

1) Hat band not meeting the brim.
2) Due to the above, sweat band stitching showing below the outer band at brim.
3) Sweat band stitched to crown, not reeded. (See above.)
4) Tacks/stitching showing numerous places on o/s band & bow.
5) Glued-in liner.

I have seen two examples of their "work"; how the mighty have fallen!


Regards,
-30-

 

[Erich Johann]

If you want to bash Borsalino, you can do that all you want in another thread--all I was trying to do is give some advice to anyone who might be travelling to Milan and thinks about getting a Borsalino there. Thanks.

 

[-30-]

"If you want to bash Borsalino, you can do that all you want in another thread--"
QUOTE: Eric Johann.

This thread started-out as a Borsalino criticism which was continued through eight of the thirteen postings, yours included* -

"If you are a more discerning hat wearer and collector, I suppose and suggest that you go looking elsewhere."
QUOTE: Eric Joann.*

I personally feel (not "happy/fuzzy" at all) that when a "World Class" manufacturer & seller describes themselves as:

"Today, Borsalino owns sixteen single-brand sales points in Italy and one in Paris; moreover, the brand is also sold in the most elegant boutiques and in the most prestigious department stores across the world: Berdgorf & Goodman, Barney's, . . . (et al)"

and they do not perform even to the minimum quality standards of production. With that said, the above* forum members I included, have every right to complain.


Regards,
-30-

 

[jbucklin]

I must be clueless then, since I have 5 modern Borsos I ordered from Bencraft and am quite happy with all of them. And yes, I do own a vintage Alessandria to compare them to.

 

[ptjoe]

I just purchased a new Borsalino Compania , qualita superiore, from Hats in the Belfry for $189.55 with promo code.
Originally 399.00 on sale for 223.00?
This hat is exclusively made for Hats in the Belfry
The hat is rollable and packable?
I will see when it arrives how good the quality is, since this is my first Borso, I'm expecting something really special?
I was advised to order a 71/4 as opposed to my usual 71/8 since the tend to run small?
My Stetson Temples have never disappointed me as well as my Akubras.
I just wanted to treat myself to a Borsalino, lets see when I make the comparison how it rates.
If I'm not happy it's going back and I'll exchange it for another Stetson!!!!

 

[Tiki Tom]

Well, I've said it before... Am very happy with my Borsalino. It is pretty much my "go to" hat. I bought it about 3 years ago. The difference MIGHT be that I bought it at an actual brick-and-mortar hat shop that carried numerous brands. I spent a lot of time kicking the tires on a lot of hats until I found one that was just the right color and weight and fit perfectly and I was able to eyeball the workmanship before I bought. Granted, I was born deep in the last century and am not especially comfortable with buying my groceries on line, etc., so it is probably not surprising that I'd be very hesitant to buy a fedora on line. But that's just me.

 

[kavu]

How did that Borsalino Compania turn out? I just bought a Borsalino Crusher from Hats in the Belfry for 127 and I am really delighted with it...Was eyeing the compania with the coupon (which I forgot to use on the crusher).

 

[Delawareguy]

As I recall, there are vintage clothing shops and at least one
decent fleamarket in Florence... I wonder what happened to
all those vintage Borsalinos...

I have my grandfathers...


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