Selle SMP

Post World War II, the golden years of the bicycle. An entire country moved around on two wheels, and two champions, Coppi and Bartali, challenged each other on the roads of the Giro and the Tour. These were the years before the economic boom; the motorization of Italy was still yet to come. A young craftsman, Martino Schiavon, produced bicycle seats in an attic in the historical center of Padua. This was the beginning of the story of Selle SMP, an Italian story based on age-old values such as tenaciousness, spirit of initiative, courage, and the desire to embark on a new enterprise, counting on the strength of one’s own ideas. Over the years the company grew and developed until becoming one of the main producers worldwide in terms of innovative capacity and number of products sold. Then, at the beginning of the 2000’s, the sector was hit by a serious crisis caused by formidable competition from Asian producers. The only company on the panorama of national producers, Selle SMP decided to face the global market difficulties without taking the route of delocalization in countries with low labor costs.