Salvatore Ferragamo: Brand Heritage as Main Vector of Brand Extension and Internationalization

Abstract

As with many other family businesses that collectively comprise Italy’s economic fabric, Salvatore Ferragamo began as a workshop that soon grew into a global player within its industry, all while maintaining a core spirit of familial entrepreneurship in the form of its organizational structure and identity. Today, the company operates in over 90 countries via its own 33 subsidiaries. The Salvatore Ferragamo Group has pursued a coherent corporate branding strategy over time. Its brand heritage serves as an intrinsic feature of its value proposition and brand positioning, having been cohesively maintained even amid brand extensions and internationalization. Leveraging this heritage, the company has evolved during its 88-year-long history from a single-product company to a multi-category company; from a product-oriented brand to a retail-oriented brand; and from a family business to a publicly owned global business.