MILAN — Mariano Rubinacci, the second-generation member of the namesake Neapolitan tailoring atelier, who’s credited with having spurred its international expansion, died Wednesday at age 83.
“He was a hard worker, and among the many things I learned from him, one in particular stuck with me: never give up, keep moving forward, fully aware of who we are and what we can achieve,” his son Luca Rubinacci, who is currently at the helm of the company, told WWD.
“I’ll miss our routine, but even more, I’ll miss our early-morning conversations. I spent my whole life listening to him, and only now do I understand why, in recent years, his calls always started with: ‘You’re the one who needs to tell me new things.’ He always listened. He was as curious as a young boy, asking me a thousand questions,” Luca Rubinacci said. “We were perfectly in sync: sure, we argued sometimes, but then everything would go back to normal. I loved teasing him, getting on his nerves just to laugh together afterward. As he used to say, I was ‘a bit of a rascal.’ I thank him for raising me to be like this,” he said.
“Today we say goodbye to you, but your elegance, your example, and your love will remain with us forever. Thank you for everything you gave us,” the family added in a social media post and on the brand’s website.
Born in 1943, Mariano Rubinacci was the son of Gennaro Rubinacci, known as “Bebè,” an art collector and entrepreneur who in 1932 opened a tailor’s workshop in Naples’ Chiaia neighborhood named “London House,” in nods to his appreciation for British elegance. He was the tailor to the last king of Italy, Umberto II di Savoia.
In 1961, Mariano Rubinacci officially took the reins of the family company — which had already garnered high-profile fans including Vittorio de Sica, Curzio Malaparte, and Eduardo De Filippo, among others — after his father’s death, although he had already been mingling in the atelier on Via Filangieri for several years.
“I started going to the shop in the ‘50s with my father… I was a child, no more than 13 or 14, when my father charged me with selling ties. At that time the ties cost, if I remember correctly, 1,000 lire [about 0.52 euros] it was a fortune, a fortune,” Rubinacci is credited by the company as saying.
Inside the Rubinacci tailoring workshop.
Courtesy of Rubinacci
The entrepreneur carried on the legacy of the Rubinacci sartorial tradition, rooted in the softly lined, six-button, double-breasted blazer originally crafted from thussa silk and designed to enhance freedom of movement. Some of its signature details have remained ubiquitous in Rubinacci’s tailoring, including the slightly ruched stand-up shoulder line and armhole, known as “mappina,” the elliptical breast pocket called “barchetta,” and “pignata” patch pocket shaped like a brandy balloon.
Under Mariano Rubinacci’s lead, the tailoring house rebranded as Rubinacci in 1963 and opened an outpost on Milan’s Via Montenapoleone in 1974. He also boosted the company’s international awareness and footprint, setting up shop on Mount Street in London’s Mayfair, a full-circle moment that honored his father’s love for Britannia.
The Rubinacci store in Naples.
Courtesy of Rubinacci
For the boutique’s 10th anniversary in 2015, Rubinacci told WWD that his workshop was the only fashion outlet on the street at the time of the opening.
“Whenever I come to London, I stay at The Connaught and I always thought this was the best street in the city,” Rubinacci said. “When we opened there was nothing but antique stores on the street. Even Scott’s [a restaurant] was closed then because of the two IRA bombings there in 1975.”
Rubinacci is survived by his wife Barbara and four children, including Luca; Alessandra, in charge of the Neapolitan branch of the brand; Chiara, executive manager of the London’s boutique and business, and Marcella, in charge of e-commerce operations.
The Rubinacci family
Courtesy of Rubinacci
A funeral service is planned for Thursday at the San Giuseppe church in Naples.
