La Florentina

La Florentina is an Italian soap and fragrance brand based in the Florence area, tracing its trademark to 1894 [2]. It produces natural soaps, body care and home fragrances marketed as artisan products made entirely in Italy. Since 2006 the brand has been owned by Saponerie Mario Fissi srl, which acquired the original Alighiero Campostrini soap factory and now sells its products under the La Florentina name [8].

The brand positions itself around Tuscan heritage and traditional soap-making, drawing on plant-based ingredients such as olive oil and shea butter. It remains active, with a current catalogue distributed in Italy and through specialty retailers abroad.

The La Florentina trademark dates to 1894, when its founder, Alighiero Campostrini, decided that the soaps and perfumes he made from what the company describes as "jealously guarded secret recipes" should carry a trademark to promote Tuscan culture internationally [2]. The brand presents this craft tradition as central to its identity, describing its makers as "artisans by tradition."

Accounts differ on the original location. The brand's own history page names the present headquarters at Scandicci, near Florence, without specifying where the 1894 factory stood [2]. The parent company's records place the original Campostrini soap factory in Sesto Fiorentino, also in the Florence area, with the Scandicci address reflecting the business after its later acquisition [8]. Both sites lie within greater Florence.

In 2006, Daniele Bedeschi, head of Saponerie Mario Fissi srl, acquired the Alighiero Campostrini soap factory and developed La Florentina as the consumer-facing brand [8]. Bedeschi described the purchase as a decision to "acquire not only the business, but the history of this company" [8]. La Florentina is a registered trademark owned by Saponerie Mario Fissi srl, which operates from Scandicci, Florence [2].

The range centres on soaps, liquid soaps, hand and body creams, body mists and home fragrances, alongside eau de toilette. Products are grouped into named collections. The Bellosguardo line consists of wrapped, hand-illustrated artisan soaps that the company calls a gift collection inspired by the Tuscan hills, spanning scents such as Iris Florentina, Lavanda, Acqua di Magnolia and Fico Toscano. The Pomario collection pairs soaps and creams with olive oil and shea butter across combinations including Lemon and Ginger and Pomegranate and Red Grape.

Formulations are described as vegetable-based and enriched with natural ingredients, with olive oil and shea (karité) butter recurring as signature components. According to the company, products are still processed largely by hand and checked at each stage of production.

La Florentina presents itself as a Tuscan artisan house preserving traditional Florentine soap-making, secret family recipes and natural formulations as a way of carrying regional culture abroad. The brand emphasises craft techniques "handed down" over time and markets its products as exclusive items aimed at what it calls refined and demanding customers. It uses the tagline "Soaps and fragrances from 1894."

The company markets its products as natural and "100% Made in Italy," manufactured in Scandicci, Florence. The parent company describes ecological and sustainable production as a founding pillar and references a certified "Bio-made in Italy" line for its cosmetics and soaps [8]. La Florentina's handcrafted soaps are certified vegan under the Italian VEGANOK scheme, a certification the body states guarantees the absence of animal-derived ingredients and a cruelty-free standard [10][11].

The brand is active. Its official website returns a current product catalogue, and its products are distributed through the parent company in Italy and via specialty and boutique retailers internationally[8]. Editorial coverage outside trade publications is limited; no Wikipedia article exists for the brand or its parent company, consistent with its profile as a regional Italian artisan specialist rather than a mass-market beauty brand.