The Bridge - Pelletteria Il Ponte

The Bridge

English Based in Florence, Italy, The Bridge was established in the early Sixties. They began as a small handicraft workshop, and have grown steadily over the years into a company that today, despite its size, knows precisely how to blend tradition with style, and craftsmanship with technology.

The Bridge have developed a long-standing and close relationship with the tannery Il Gabbiano, and this has allowed them to maintain both the quality and consistency of the skins used in the manufacture of their products.

Cowhide leather is used to manufacture their leather goods, and tanned using animal fats and vegetable tannins. It does not involve the use of any harmful chemical substances. The skins are coloured with aniline dyes using wool buffers that are passed repeatedly over each hide by hand. As a result, each hide has unique colourings that make it different from any other. Hand dyeing brings out the natural beauty of the leather, and transforms the surface details into characteristic features.

An amber roller is then used to enhance the oils applied during tanning. This gives the leather depth & shine, and makes it soft and pliable. The amber roller is a traditional craftwork technique that produces truly unique results. All dyes are completely nitrogen free, and surpass even the most stringent of standards required by European law. 
At the foundry, the metal accessories for the bags are made using original designs that are patented around the world. The hot brass is pressed in exclusive The Bridge moulds, and once it has solidified and cooled it is polished by hand giving it the brilliant shine that brings it to life.

In the designers’ studio, ideas are processed using CAD (Computer Aided Design), and a plotter is used to cut out the patterns or cardboard models of each part of the bag. These patterns are used to cut models for the prototype, and to create the metal punches that are used during production. The bags are assembled in the workshop, and machine stitched using the very best German yarns.

So what is behind the popularity of The Bridge in Italy and the rest of the world? We believe that the 5 main factors behind their success are; their meticulous selection of only the best quality hides, their painstaking attention to detail, their intelligent use of old processing methods, their willingness to exploit the benefits of new technology
whilst not compromising traditional skills, and the constant broadening of the product range. However, none of these factors can stand out alone, as lasting success is always about balance and teamwork.

Over the years, all this has made The Bridge a much sought after brand, both treasured and imitated throughout the world.


Italiano The Bridge nasce alla fine degli anni ’60 come piccola realtà artigianale, per trasformarsi nel tempo in una grande azienda dove tradizione e attualità, manualità e tecnologia convivono in un equilibrio felice e perfetto.
La ricerca di nuovi materiali e il recupero intelligente di antiche lavorazioni, l’innovazione tecnologica e il rispetto della saggezza artigianale, la creazione di uno stile sempre verde e l’ampliamento costante delle gamme prodotto: tutti questi fattori, sempre armoniosamente bilanciati, hanno contribuito all’affermazione dei prodotti e della personalità dell’azienda in Italia e all’estero.

La lunga e preziosa collaborazione con la conceria Il Gabbiano ha permesso a The Bridge di mantenere costanti nel tempo le qualità uniche del pellame utilizzato. L’ottimo cuoio pieno fiore viene trattato con maestria artigianale, dalla selezione alla concia con tannini naturali, dalla tamponatura a mano alla lucidatura al rullo d’ambra. Tutto questo ne ha fatto negli anni un vero e proprio "marchio di fabbrica", apprezzato ed imitato in tutto il mondo. 


Francais The Bridge naît à la fin des années 60 comme petite société artisanale pour se transformer, avec le temps, en une grande entreprise où tradition et actualité, travail manuel et technologie cohabitent en un mariage heureux et parfait. 
La recherche de nouveaux matériaux et la reprise intelligente d’anciennes manières de travailler, l’innovation technologique et le respect de la sagesse artisanale, la création d’un style toujours vif et l’élargissement constant des gammes de produits: tous ces facteurs, toujours dosés avec harmonie, ont contribué à affirmer les produits et l’entreprise en Italie et à l’étranger.
La longue et précieuse collaboration avec la tannerie Il Gabbiano a permis à The Bridge de conserver constantes dans le temps les qualités uniques de la peausserie utilisée. L’excellent cuir pleine fleur est traité avec une maîtrise toute artisanale, de la sélection au tannage avec des tanins naturels, du tamponnement à la main au lustrage au
rouleau d’ambre. Tout ceci en a fait, au fil des années, une véritable "marque de fabrication", appréciée et imitée dans le monde entier.


Deutch The Bridge entstand Ende der sechziger Jahre als kleiner Handwerksbetrieb, der sich mit der Zeit in ein großes Unternehmen verwandelt hat, in dem sich handwerkliches Können und Technologie zu einem gelungenem und perfekten Gleichgewicht vereinigen.
Die Suche nach neuen Materialien und die intelligente Verwertung antiker Verarbeitungsmethoden; technische Neuerungen und die Achtung handwerklicher Weisheit; die Schaffung eines "immergrünen" Stils und die ständige Erweiterung des Produktangebots: all diese harmonisch abgestimmten Faktoren haben zum Erfolg der Produkte und zum Ruhm des Unternehmens sowohl in Italien als auch im Ausland beigetragen. 
Die jahrelange wertvolle Zusammenarbeit mit der Gerberei "Il Gabbiano" hat es uns ermöglicht, die einzigartige Qualität des verarbeiteten Leders beständig zu bewahren. Das ausgezeichnete Leder "Volle Blüte" wird mit handwerklicher Meisterschaft behandelt: von der sorgfältigen Auswahl bis hin zur Gerbung mit natürlicher Gerbsäure, vom Tamponieren von Hand bis hin zur Satinierung der Bernsteinwalzen – All dies hat The Bridge mit den Jahren zu einem wahren Markenzeichen werden lassen, das in der ganzen Welt geschätzt und imitiert wird.