Piacenza 1733

Cashmere and noble fibres from Pollone, since 1733

Piacenza has spun and woven noble fibre at Pollone, near Biella, since 1733, when Pietro Francesco Piacenza established the mill. It is one of the oldest names in the trade and has never left the family. The founder's descendants still own and run it, and the house belongs to the Henokiens, an association reserved for companies that have stayed in family hands for two centuries or more.

The house's own history follows Mario Piacenza on his travels. In the deserts of the Middle East he discovered camel down, which by that account revolutionised the coat, and on an expedition to the Himalayas in 1913 he found the soft, warm cloth the Sherpas tied around their ankles.

The house once traded as Piacenza Cashmere, and that name tells you where its heart is. It works extra-fine wools and noble fibres, with cashmere as the signature: jacketings and coatings that carry real warmth at very little weight.

You feel that combination on the shoulders. A Piacenza overcoat insulates the way a heavy coat does without asking you to carry the kilograms, and a cashmere jacket drapes softly instead of standing away from the body.

We hold Piacenza lengths in the cloth library for exactly those commissions: soft jacketing, and cold-weather coats where the brief is warmth without bulk. If you are thinking of a winter coat, ask for the Piacenza book at your fitting.