Inside the René Caovilla atelier, where shoes become glittering objects of beauty
If a natural disaster were ever to strike Fiesso d’Artico in Veneto, it would mean the death of designer shoes as we know them. "A hundred per cent of women’s luxury shoes are made within two kilometres of here," says Edoardo Caovilla, third-generation creative director of René Caovilla, looking out at this jewel in the luxury fashion crown from a balcony atop his factory. Venice proper is just 20 minutes away, and in sight is Villa Pisani, a baroque masterpiece once owned by Napoleon.
The Caovilla family have been making shoes since 1934. It’s not their only interest: there are Caovillas in real estate, media, finance… Edoardo himself worked in the financial sector before joining the brand built by his father, René Fernando Caovilla, and his grandfather, also Edoardo Caovilla, before him. Edoardo the younger is a relatively new addition, then – a little like the balcony and the slick factory underneath, built carefully around René’s original office.
The elder Edoardo’s workstation has been preserved too, and sits in the Caovilla archive, hidden behind trick mirrored panelling on the first floor, although there are plans underway to open a René Caovilla museum in Venice, so that anyone might share their history.
And it’s certainly some archive. Several of the most referenced motifs in modern shoe design – a snake wrapping around the ankle, a glitter sole – originated at René Caovilla. Crystal embellishment has been integral to the brand since day one: even the oldest designs sparkle still.
In the past 84 years, Caovilla has been worn by “the first lady, the dolce vita [Anita Ekberg], all those. My father has been a close friend to many of these actresses,” says Edoardo, who in his dual role – as well as heading design, he’s also chief operating officer – has been charged with introducing new customers to the brand.
So far, he has attracted the likes of Jessica Chastain, Nicole Kidman and Rihanna, as well as more than a catwalk’s worth of supermodels: both Hadid sisters, Georgia May Jagger, Heidi Klum et al: they love the modern and the signature styles alike.
An endorsement list like this is no mean feat for any PR department, especially one that doesn’t pay celebrities to wear the brand: Caovilla relies instead upon women wanting to wear its shoes, and appreciating the craft that justifies those designer prices. Accordingly, no element of those shoes – and they are exquisite – is left unconsidered.
All the production is done by the brand’s team of specialists – not even the most minute detail is outsourced. “When I was six years old, I used to climb the production machine, or play hide and seek within the materials here,” Edoardo reminisces.
Now, cutting-edge laser technology sits shoulder to shoulder with the artisans who hand-apply every tiny crystal. A few have watched as the business has passed through the family, but many more are young, a new generation of craftspeople. René can still regularly be found in his office, or on the factory floor, although he handed over the reins in 2011.
Since then, his son has built momentum, increasing turnover from ￡7.8 million to ￡39.4 million. The next step is the redesign of Caovilla’s stores, from antique-stuffed treasure troves (said antiques often coming from René’s personal collection) into sleek, bright reincarnations that reflect a more modern understanding of luxury.
René laughs as he describes his son’s impact as an “explosion”, but it’s clear he approves, that he’s proud: “The beauty of staying together: when you are synchronised, then you have more strength.” It’s only a few minutes’ drive from the factory to the family home, Villa Zanetti.
Here is proof of a family who love beauty for the sake of beauty. A 17th-century Venetian-glass chandelier hangs in the relaxed dining room. As Edoardo gives me the tour, he points out family photographs, and fluid paintings of Caovilla shoes by his mother. He doesn’t mention the Tintoretto hanging opposite.
Upstairs, an Andrea Urbani trompe l’oeil-painted sitting room overlooks the grape-covered pergola and tennis courts; just out of sight are the kitchen garden and an area of grass flattened by helicopter landings.
When Edoardo’s five-year-old son, the youngest after two daughters, comes of age, they will be able to rename the place Villa Caovilla, as in Italy three generations of the male line are required to have lived in a property before they can lend their name to it. And perhaps that coming of age will also mark four generations of the family at the helm at René Caovilla.
“This was started by my grandfather, and I hope that my daughters or my son will keep it,” says Edoardo. “When people ask me, 'How many hours do you need to make a pair of shoes?,' I say, it’s not a question of hours, because hours you can buy. You can have more employees. It’s a question of: how many generations of secrets do you have?”
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