Alzano Lombardo: Bergamo's oldest haberdashery reopens after the pandemic

In Alzano Lombardo, 7 km from Bergamo, a city that has become a symbol of the tragedy of the last three months, there is one of the most beautiful basilicas in the area, in a composite style, made of white marble, wood, and gold. It overlooks the town's main square, Piazza Italia, which is the intersection of one of the narrow streets named after one of the town's longest-standing artisan families, Via Fantoni. At number 49 of the same street is an old-fashioned haberdashery for older customers, selling pajamas, textiles, and underwear.

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HISTORICAL HABERDASHERY OF ALZANO LOMBARDO

The Merceria, as it's called, is linked to Piazza Italia not only for topographical reasons: the architect who oversaw the redevelopment of Alzano's central square in 1855, Martino Attilio Nicòli, was the uncle of the first owner of the tailoring and haberdashery shop, founded in 1856. He ran it, receiving it as a dowry from his father-in-law, until his daughter Jolanda took over in 1930. And so it continued, like a family heirloom, until 1977, when Luigi Rossi, known as Gino, took over the shop. Since then, he has never abandoned his haberdashery, always courteous, elegant, and kind, serving his customers. He is loyal, despite the competition from shopping malls. 

A few days ago, after the lockdown ended, the haberdashery's shutters opened again. Gino, 86, shrugs, as if it were simply the natural flow of things. 

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GINO ROSSI, HISTORIC HABERDERIVER OF BERGAMO

"I'm not dead, even though the country sent condolences to my wife on Facebook," he revealed in an interview with Corriere. "I'm fine, just like my business is healthy. We were just away for a while." Indeed, the much older business, now 156 years old, has seen two wars, the dark years of fascism, and now, a pandemic. Gino has no doubts: this too will pass, and we'll bounce back soon. His sense of reality is the display case with pajamas, underwear, and lisle socks, his place behind the counter, which he's simply set up differently: sanitizer, disposable gloves, a printed sheet indicating social distancing, 5 meters between customers.

Gino Rossi isn't used to giving up, actually. Ever since he served in the military in Friuli, his motto has been "resist, resist, resist." Already at the end of December, worried by the news arriving from nearby towns and cities, he considered closing the haberdashery, but out of a sense of responsibility, he remained open to supply his customers with whatever they needed. After all, he says: "Summer will soon be here, and then Christmas. This haberdashery has been through a lot, but life goes on."

(Featured image from Corriere.it // Photocredits: Corriere.it )

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