Innovation is as important as a tradition at SCARPA. The company, founded in 1938 by a family, has its headquarters in northern Italy and manufacturing facilities for performance footwear in the same areas.
SCARPA was founded in the Dolomite Mountains at the foothills. It is located in the Asolo/Montebelluna region. This area is well-known for its hand-crafted, high-quality footwear. SCARPA stands Societa Calzaturiera Asolana Riunita Pendemontana Anaonima. It is the Associated Shoe Manufacturing Company in the Asolo Mountain Region.
This tradition of craftsmanship and heritage was where Luigi Parisotto began to make fine shoes. He would later purchase the company along with his brothers. Parisotto started his apprenticeship at the age of 11 in 1940. He then went on to work for SCARPA as a technician in 1942. Parisotto was passionate about hand-crafting footwear from the very beginning. He started his shoe-manufacturing company, S. Giorgio, with his brothers in the 1950s, producing between four to 15 pairs of shoes daily. These shoes were sold to farmers who wanted durable and comfortable shoes.
Parisotto, his three brothers, and their family gathered enough money in 1956 to offer SCARPA a contract. They accepted the offer, and soon the company grew to include 17 shoemakers. During these years, they produced between 50 and 60 pairs per day. SCARPA’s high quality was noticed in other areas of northern Italy, and word spread about them in the 1950s.
It was one of the first companies to realize the demands of the rapidly growing northern Italian climbing and mountaineering culture and create footwear tailored explicitly to these pursuits. These features, together with the brand’s legendary durability, fit and fit, helped SCARPA shoes to be used by many of Italy’s first mountaineers. An Italian-American living in Boston started importing SCARPA shoes in 1965. This made it the first Asolo region company to export to the U.S.
In the 1970s, SCARPA was still innovating. They developed the Rally boot for alpine skiing and pioneered a high-altitude plastic boot that could be used for mountaineering. This boot was first known as the Grinta, then the Inverno, and is now internationally known as the Vega. This boot was used by top climbers and explorers in the Himalayas, Antarctic, and elsewhere. It was also adopted by the U.S., French and Spanish militaries to be used by troops in harsh conditions.
SCARPA has maintained this pioneering spirit. SCARPA is proud to have been the first company to create a Goretex boot and plastic telemark ski boot. This boot was introduced in 2007 and became compatible with alpine and telemark touring.
The next generation of Parisottos is committed to creating innovative mountain footwear. Cristina, Piero, and Davide Parisotto are still the company’s leaders, producing the best footwear for alpine running, climbing, mountaineering, and trekking.
SCARPA’s North American headquarters was opened in 2005 by a team of veterans from the North American outdoor industry. After decades of SCARPA’s brand being managed by distributors in Canada and the U.S., this was a significant step forward. The Boulder, CO office works with the Parisottos, assists in product development for Canada and the U.S., and manages North American sales and marketing.
We are passionate about what we do. We love bootmaking.
