Furla's candy bag, George Clooney and other delicious topics

MANILA, Philippines - Lunch with Alessandro Bartoli, the CEO of Furla for Asia Pacific, is such a delicious experience. And not only because we are talking about arm candy.

Bartoli has interesting stories about his neighbor in Italy — who else but George Clooney — but only because we pepper him with questions. Yes, Clooney does have a girlfriend, as we can see in red carpet reports on TV. Yes, the paparazzi  stand  in front of his gate daily, hoping to shoot photographs of him with whoever.

In fact, one day when Bartoli went knocking on Clooney's door, the paparazzi gasped: What, this guy has the temerity to knock on the door ! He must be a friend! Friends they are, and Bartoli says Clooney is such a gracious neighbor.

Bartoli is also friends with a lot of  movers and shakers in the fashion retailing industry, which makes him always in the loop when it comes to trends. Bartoli knew, for instance, that when Furla launched its now-iconic candy bag, it would be a hit. Proof of its success is the fact that it has been a much-copied bag. "How to tell the fakes from the real Furla candy bag ? There is the hard-to-copy stitching below to connect the top of the bag with the bottom part," says Bartoli. You get such excellent craftsmanship only from a bag that truthfully and proudly says: “Made in Italy.”

Visiting Manila to launch Furla's  new concept store at Greenbelt 5 in Makati, Bartoli  explains that "the store draws inspiration from the architectural details of the beautifully restored 18th century villa in Bologna, Italy — the brand's headquarters — where tradition fuses with contemporary design."

Founded in 1927 by the Furlanetto family, Furla is one of the major players in the international leather goods market.

Furla is now available in 71 countries. "The Furla DNA is expressed through values of Italian craftsmanship, creativity and timeless elegance. Simplicity and uniqueness, femininity and modernity blend in the bag designs," adds Bartoli.

In the Philippines, Furla is exclusively distributed by SSI (Stores Specialists Inc) and has other stores in Rustan’s Makati, Shangri-La Plaza Mall and Newport Mall.  —MM