Words: Ilídia Pinto
Vandoma Ties
wins over Pitti Uomo
From June 2021, Vandoma Ties — Portugal’s most iconic tie, bow tie and scarf brand — will be available through Pitti Uomo, the world’s leading male fashion trade fair. A dream for many years is now a reality. “After waiting in line for three years, it was a pleasant surprise to be accepted by the most important men’s fashion fair, especially since the tie is not in fashion. It is a niche product, a symbol of elegance, the use of which is no longer a requirement or a necessity, which gives us special pleasure in this challenge to work with something that is not fashionable,” said brand manager Ana Sousa.
Established in 1982, the Vandoma brand is owned by the Porto textile producer, António Manuel de Sousa, and is named in honour of the city’s patron saint. It produces ties, bow ties, handkerchiefs, waistcoats and scarves for men and boys, using the best silks imported from Italy from the same companies that supply renowned labels such as Armani, Gucci, Prada and Boss. The quality of the fabric has always been a key factor at Vandoma. It is a small family concern with just ten staff, but it exports its ready-to-wear items to a number of European countries, including Spain, France, Italy and the United Kingdom, and is now also available in the United States, Dubai and even Japan.
Bordallo Pinheiro
136-year-old brand aiming for a global presence
At 136 years of age, Bordallo Pinheiro is committed to becoming a global brand. The ceramics brand, which is a leader in the art field, already has a store in one of Madrid’s most important retail centres, the Xanadu Shopping Centre, and two in Paris: on the Boulevard Saint Germain and in the Les Marais district.
Its utilitarian and decorative pieces help spread the prestige of Portuguese culture and industry around the world. As do its partnerships with internationally-renowned designers. The most recent collaboration, Cloudy Butterflies, inspired by nature and its colours, was designed by the supermodel Claudia Schiffer, who is a fan of the brand. The collection includes eleven pieces of various size and purpose, designed for hanging on the wall or for the table in the case of the cake stand and the fruit and salad bowls, all of which are decorated with butterflies of many colours.
Since September, the Bordallo Pinheiro Museum has been available on Google Arts & Culture, so now anyone, even in the most remote part of the world, can get to know the work of Raphael Bordallo Pinheiro.
It was Raphael Bordallo Pinheiro, one of the most important characters in Portuguese culture, who established the pottery factory (Fábrica de Faianças) in Caldas da Rainha in 1884. It was his remarkable work that won gold medals at the international exhibitions in Madrid, Antwerp, Paris and St Louis in the United States. Today the 136-year-old brand is a symbol of tradition, which can be seen in its ancestral manufacturing techniques, and modernity, thanks to the continuous reinvention of its products.
