Litrico marks 75 years as Rome's legendary tailor enters Italy's Historic Brands Register

Rome — Sartoria Litrico, the Roman tailoring house that dressed presidents, royalty, world leaders and film stars, has been officially entered into Italy's Special Register of Historic Brands of National Interest as it celebrates its 75th anniversary.

Founded in Rome in 1951 by Angelo Litrico, the celebrated house became one of the defining names in Italian men's fashion, earning an international reputation for combining traditional craftsmanship with diplomatic elegance.

Born in Catania as the eldest of 12 children in a family of fishermen, Angelo Litrico arrived in the capital with little more than ambition and talent. Over the following decades, he would tailor suits for figures including United States President John F. Kennedy, Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev, Italian President Sandro Pertini, the Shah of Iran, conductors Mstislav Rostropovich and Giuseppe Sinopoli, and actors Marcello Mastroianni, Vittorio Gassman, Burt Reynolds and John Huston. More recently, clients have included James Franco and Claudio Baglioni.

Today the house is led by his nephew, Luca Litrico, who welcomes Italian and international clients to the family's Roman atelier for fittings, while production has returned to the family's Sicilian roots in Catania. Every garment is handmade by a team of 14 young artisans.

"Passing on the art of tailoring to younger generations is especially important at a time when everyone is talking about artificial intelligence," Luca Litrico said.

"For us, intelligence is artisanal. AI may be able to design a suit, but who is going to make it?"

Angelo Litrico was also a pioneer of modern menswear. He was the first designer to present men and women together on the runway, helped establish the male fashion show as a spectacle in its own right, and transformed the tailored suit into a symbol of international diplomacy.

One of the house's most famous stories dates back to 1960, when Khrushchev famously banged a custom made Litrico shoe on his desk during a United Nations session. The incident made headlines in 37 countries and unexpectedly brought worldwide attention to the Roman tailor, with newspapers joking that Litrico had "cut through the Iron Curtain" between East and West. Kennedy soon became one of his distinguished clients.

Seventy five years after its founding, Sartoria Litrico continues to blend Roman elegance with Sicilian craftsmanship, preserving one of Italy's most enduring traditions of bespoke tailoring.

PS