After Visiting Poltrona Frau, ‘Craftsmanship’ Has a Whole New Meaning

As the train pulled out of Milano Centrale, weaving through small towns and rolling meadows in the wake of Milan Design Week, one thought stayed with me when I arrived at Poltrona Frau’s Interno Marche hotel in Tolentino: there couldn’t be a more fitting place for an Italian leather brand to call home. Tolentino is a well-known center for leather goods and fitting a location for a company that has spent over a century perfecting the art of leather craftsmanship.

Founded by Renzo Frau in 1912, Poltrona Frau quickly became synonymous with Italian design, luxury, and materials that age with grace. Its cobblestone streets and architecture made the area feel less like a real town and more like the opening scene of a romantic film. 

 

Interno Marche, a design experience hotel housed in the historic Villa Gabrielli—once a leather factory and later Poltrona Frau’s headquarters—is as much a cultural project as it is a place of hospitality. The hotel was designed to both celebrate the history of Italian design and the company’s own legacy. 

“What makes this place special is how it blends international flair with local tradition,” says Stephanie Sammet, sales manager at Interno Marche. “Poltrona Frau has worked with over 2,000 designers and architects globally including names like Zaha Hadid, Renzo Piano, and Jean-Marie Massaud—many of whom chose Tolentino as the home for their work.”

Each room of the hotel is dedicated to a design icon. The first room I visited was filled with furniture and objects by Luigi Massoni. The furniture’s fuchsia pink leather made the space feel inviting and playful but still luxurious. In the corner of the room Luigi’s circular Lullaby Due bed stole the show, doubling as a backdrop for spontaneous photo ops.

I stayed in the Roberto Lazzeroni room and though I didn’t know at the time, it would provide me with the best sleep of my entire journey through Italy. Roberto’s Volare bed was incredible—sleek, minimal, and leather-wrapped with a warmth that made it impossible not to sink into. The headboard and canopy made the space feel cozy and contained without feeling closed in. I laid down once and immediately felt like I could stay there for hours.

The rest of the room followed that same logic with its palette of browns, blues, and whites. After days of bouncing between cities, trains, and hotels, the room felt like a reset. 

The following I visited the Poltrona Frau Museum, which felt more like a living history book of Poltrona Frau’s past than a museum. There were chairs and sofas from the 1920s on display, old advertising sketches tucked into glass frames, and posters from that looked like they’d been pulled from someone’s personal archive. 

One of the newer pieces on display was the Vanity Fair armchair—specifically, the updated version they’ve reintroduced for today’s customers. It’s officially known as model 904 and while it was first produced in 1930, it didn’t pick up the name Vanity Fair until the ‘80s.

An original version of the company’s Bergè armchair from 1919 was also on display alongside its modern reissue. It was interesting to see which elements of the original chair were retained versus dropped in the 100 years since its creation. The Bergè had clearly grown in size and was upholstered in a different fabric but kept its original tufted backing. Funny enough, the updated chair also retained its original swivel ashtray. 

“The Bergè was designed by Renzo Frau inspired by the traditional features of the 17th century wing chair,” says Eleonora Vissani, the museum’s training and heritage coordinator. “It was made for Filippo Ludovico di Savoia who was a lover of cigars.”

 

I quickly learn that the company has also crafted seats for the European Parliament, interiors for Ferrari and Maserati, and the furniture in the Richelieu Wing of the Louvre. As we viewed Poltrona Frau relics spanning from the 1960s to modern day, these were some of my favorites:

After the museum I toured the Poltrona Frau factory. The inside was filled with the hum of activity, the scent of leather, and the quiet focus of artisans at work.

As a journalist in the design space you hear the word “handmade” all the time, but seeing it up close is something else entirely, where every stitch carries the care and precision that only comes from human hands.

I began the tour in the leather preparation area where hides were being inspected, cut, and dyed. I watched as artisans closely observed the leather and circled any “problem” areas to avoid. Eleonora tells us that each leather batch, typically sourced from hides about 50 to 60 inches in height, undergoes rigorous testing before it ever reaches the shelves. 

Once the leather passes these stages, it’s stored and prepared for incoming orders. Poltrona Frau uses leather sourced from meat industry by-products, making them a sustainable and recycled material. 

“We begin with what we call ‘organoleptic’ tests, assessing the leather’s softness, surface texture, color range, thickness, and natural scent,” Elenora says. “After this initial quality check, we select key samples for physical and mechanical testing in our laboratory.” In fact, Elenora says Poltrona Frau’s process yields zero leftover material. The company utilizes every scrap of leather to produce small goods and samples.

As we made our way through the factory, we came across the bustle of massive cutting tables where heated tools sliced leather into specific shapes. Curious, we stopped to ask the artisans what they were working on. They explained that the pieces were being prepped to upholster theater seats. 

We moved to the upholstery section next, where the last steps of the production process happens: piping is cut, fabric is glued to the leather, and branding is applied to the correct location. 

It was amazing to see these artisans in their element. One woman paused to show us how she brands leather pieces with the Poltrona Frau logo, pressing a heated stamp into the material. We watched as these workers carefully pulled leather tight over furniture frames, smoothed it down with heat, and checked every curve for precision.

What stood out most to me alongside the machinery and scale was the intimacy of the work. Nothing felt rushed, and the artisans seemed happy to be immersed in their craft.

Following the factory tour, we spent the rest of the day exploring the Marche region’s charming towns and coastline. Winding through narrow streets lined with quaint buildings and restaurants, we stopped for gelato, admired the architecture, and wandered into small shops filled with local goods. It was the perfect way to end an eventful two days.

Saying goodbye to Tolentino and Interno Marche was harder than I expected. As our car pulled away from the town’s hills and stone streets the next morning, I found myself already hoping to return someday to experience more of the Marche region.

And who knows—maybe one day years from now, I’ll find myself sinking into my very own Vanity Fair armchair, thinking back to the time I spent a weekend with Poltrona Frau.

poltronafrau.com