An Englishman and Italian-American Walk into a Bar

How ‘Piacciono’ Was Born

Whether it be fate or just good fortune when our lives came together the shared passion for debonair men’s style, and a natural entreprenurial disposition, there was an inevitability about what was to come.

Let us introduce ourselves. We are the most likely of unlikely business partners. James comes from an Italian-American background from the mean-streets of Chicago, with a splash of Hollywood glamour. Benjamin originates from rural England, with a pinch of British society. We might tell you about the origins of our tags one day.

Our friendship developed over the years through working in the Telecoms and Internet industry together and extended to become a business partnership in with the official scrawling of an agreement on a napkin in a back-room of the Old Ebbit Grill in Washington, DC, the oldest saloon in the American capital.

It was a fitting location for such a memorable occasion. In surroundings of old oak panelling, complemented by the beautiful young people of Washington DC, the we agreed to realise an oft-discussed dream of making fashionable lapel pins accessible and available to all. 

Inspired by the stylists at British designer Ted Baker, who sell their sports coats with a lapel pin the we wanted a way for the everyday man to be able to look stylish and make a statement without needing to spend $750 on a blazer.

With a nod to our shared European heritage, we set out sourcing pins that would be the cornerstone of the Piacionno range. It’s our dream that owners of a Piacciono pins feel a sense of the passion and that has gone into creating something special and an identity they can associate with.

As our idea developed and we shared our vision and our Founders Range with more and more people the one constant we heard was ‘like’, or as our Italian friends say ‘piacciono’! 

We want everyone to have some fun with our Piacciono pins. Why worry about getting a ‘like’ on social media when you can wear a Piacciono. You may even get a few ‘piaccionos’ too.

We have created a dedicated part of our website for ‘People and Places’ for us to share your pictures and stories of you enjoying your Piacciono pin. Just follow and tag us on any of our social media accounts and we’ll do the rest!

Ciao!

Benjamin & James