It is 1921 and Mrs. Maria having just lost her husband must find a way to support her family.

She decides to take advantage of her skills as a
seamstress to start sewing her first ties, hiring her eldest son Aldo to sell them.

Aldo travels by train with his suitcase full of ties and hope.

Initially he sells in Friuli, business were good and therefore he needs to open a real workshop. He decides to found it in his hometown, Bassano del Grappa and that his company will be called "ABIBI", it’s 1923.

belt factory in the 60s

At this point he also involves his brother Alfredo, initially hired in production but who later becomes his partner.

The two brothers began this adventure together and they expanded production including also  belts.

Unfortunately, Aldo died shortly after, followed by Alfredo a few years later.

diver's helmet with belts and ties Paolo Da Ponte

Everything therefore passes into the hands of Alfredo's son, Alessandro Baggio, who in 1971, thanks to the particularly positive performance of the Company, builds a factory that can satisfy the new production needs, also bringing his brother Paolo with him who becomes his partner.

A new beginning, a new name: it was decided in that year to change the name, from "ABIBI" to "Paolo Da Ponte".

A fusion between the name of one of the two partners and the surname  of a famous Bassano painter Jacopo Da Ponte, an exponent of Venetian painting who lived in the 1500s.

In the meantime, generations follow generations and also Michele, Alessandro's son, and  Andrea, Paolo's son, join the company as partners. 

This set-up works until 2000, when the partners decide to divide the company in two: Alessandro and Michele will have the Italian market, the other two partners the foreign market.

Currently, the only existing headquarter of Paolo Da Ponte is the one of Via Mattarella in Bassano Del Grappa with majority partner Michele Baggio who in 2019 bought the brand also for abroad, making it return to its original form.

The production of accessories over the years has further expanded and renewed, now the collection also boasts the presence of shoes, cufflinks, leather gloves, wallets and the great novelty introduced in 2021, our hand-painted belts and bow ties.

The style has changed, while maintaining that timeless refinement and elegance characteristic of the brand: a skillful blend of tradition and innovation that still pushes our customers to choose us among many.

Despite the trend of recent times to move production to foreign countries, Paolo Da Ponte remains faithful to the Italian spirit, both from the point of view of raw materials origin and manufacturing.

This is our history, this is the soul of our accessories, this is the tradition of a family that from generation to generation has handed down those ancient and wise gestures that have characterized the quality and uniqueness of our products for a hundred years.