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This Fashion Magnate Is Reviving a Medieval Italian Hill Town

Brunello Cucinelli—whose cashmere sweaters can sell for $3,000 or more—is crafting a gentler life for his employees in the village of Solomeo.

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By Devon Pendleton

November 5, 2015 at 12:00 AM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

This article is part of the December 1, 2015 issue of Markets.

Italian fashion magnate Brunello Cucinelli takes time out from meetings with designers of his 2016 winter collection to discuss work—and why people shouldn’t exhaust themselves doing it. It’s a drizzly mid-September morning in Solomeo, the 12th-century hamlet where the 62-year-old CEO has located both his home and the global headquarters of his namesake fashion house.

Atop the cypress-forested hill is a medieval castle that Cucinelli has restored for his living quarters and a school. Nearby is a library open to employees featuring Cucinelli’s favorite thinkers, including Kant and Ruskin. Farther down the hill, artisans weave $3,000 cashmere sweaters from the undercoats of rare Hircus goats. He asks the 1,000-member staff to knock off work at 5:30 and not to send business-related e-mails after that to conserve their creative energies. “People need their rest,” Cucinelli says. “If I make you overwork, I have stolen your soul.”