At Milan Fashion Week this January, Ferragamo unveiled the inaugural chapter of “Legends, Reimagined,” a project that celebrates the brand’s iconic footwear tradition. It positions the house’s storied Tramezza shoe as a cultural artifact, a physical manifestation of the same relentless pursuit of perfection that defines elite athletic achievement. The partnership with Italian skiing icon Alberto Tomba is no arbitrary celebrity alignment. It’s a deliberate meditation on what happens when raw talent meets disciplined craft.
Outsider Who Conquered the Mountains
Alberto Tomba’s story reads like a narrative designed to challenge convention. Born in Bologna, a city known for its culinary heritage and medieval architecture rather than alpine terrain, Tomba arrived at competitive skiing without the geographic advantage that typically shapes champions. He didn’t emerge from the traditional mountain communities of the Dolomites or the Swiss Alps. Instead, he carved his path from the Emilian hills, bringing an explosive, almost theatrical approach to a sport that often rewards methodical precision.
Five Olympic medals. Two World Championship titles. Fifty World Cup victories. The statistics alone position Tomba among skiing’s immortals, but numbers fail to capture the essence of his appeal. His technique combined raw power with an almost balletic grace, a duality that made him as compelling to watch as he was difficult to beat. When Ferragamo describes him as “a true outsider in the skiing world,” they’re acknowledging something fundamental about both the athlete and the brand’s own heritage.
Tramezza: 160 Steps to Perfection
The Tramezza shoe occupies a singular position within Ferragamo’s men’s footwear collection. Its name derives from the Italian word meaning “something in between,” a reference to the distinctive leather layer expertly positioned between the insole and outsole. This construction technique, patented by Salvatore Ferragamo himself in the 1920s, creates a structure that balances stability with remarkable comfort, molding to the wearer’s foot like a second skin.
Each Tramezza requires over 160 handcrafted steps, a production process that transforms shoemaking into something approaching sculpture. The incorporation of Salvatore Ferragamo’s patented steel shank provides architectural support, distributing body weight with engineering precision. These aren’t shoes designed for a season. They’re conceived as lifetime companions, objects that improve with age and wear.
LATEST SHOES STORIES
The connection to Tomba becomes clearer when you consider the parallel disciplines. Both the skier and the shoemaker operate within traditions that demand technical mastery, yet both found ways to transcend convention through innovation. Salvatore Ferragamo studied anatomy at the University of Southern California to understand how feet actually function. Tomba developed a skiing style that prioritized explosive acceleration over the more conservative approaches of his contemporaries.
The Tramezza Atelier: Immersive Craft
For the Milan presentation, Ferragamo transformed The Wilde into what the house termed the “Tramezza Atelier,” an immersive environment designed to engage multiple senses. Lighting, scent, materials, and sound converged to create what the brand describes as a space where “craft, culture, and charisma converge.”
The presentation featured the core Tramezza collection alongside Tomba’s personal wooden last, a detail that underscores the bespoke nature of true luxury footwear. The Made-to-Order programme took center stage, offering clients access to precious leathers including alligator, ostrich, and hand-finished calfskin. Personalization extends to initials set directly into the insole, transforming each pair into a unique expression of individual identity.
A new Tramezza boot also made its debut, expanding the collection’s range while maintaining the construction principles that define the line. The current Tramezza offerings span plain toe Oxfords, penny loafers, double monkstraps, and Oxford brogues, with prices ranging from euros 1,290 to euros 1,490.
Cinematic Storytelling
The campaign visuals center on a cinematic portrait of Tomba that moves beyond conventional celebrity endorsement. The imagery captures the athlete in moments of reflection and movement, lacing his Tramezza shoes, finding his balance, tracing the motions that once propelled him down alpine courses. These gestures become metaphors for the duality that defined his competitive career: discipline and instinct, precision and spontaneity.
“With ‘Legends, Reimagined,’ we want to highlight the profound connection between the artistry of the human hand and the spirit of those who reach for greatness,” explains James Ferragamo. The statement positions the project as something more than marketing. It’s an attempt to articulate why certain objects and certain achievements transcend their immediate contexts.
Heritage as Living Practice
What distinguishes “Legends, Reimagined” from conventional brand heritage campaigns is its insistence that tradition remains vital only through continuous reinterpretation. The Tramezza isn’t presented as a museum piece but as a living expression of principles established nearly a century ago. Salvatore Ferragamo’s innovations, his anatomical studies, his patented constructions, continue to inform contemporary production.
The choice of Tomba as the project’s inaugural figure reinforces this philosophy. His career demonstrated that excellence often emerges from unexpected places, that convention can be challenged without abandoning fundamental principles. He didn’t reject the technical foundations of alpine skiing. He found new ways to express them.
The Significance of Made in Italy
At a moment when luxury fashion increasingly grapples with questions of authenticity and provenance, Ferragamo’s emphasis on Italian craftsmanship carries particular weight. The Tramezza represents what the house calls “the finest expression of shoemaking,” a claim supported by the transparent articulation of production methods and material sourcing.
The 160 handcrafted steps aren’t merely a marketing statistic. They represent a commitment to processes that resist automation, that require human judgment and accumulated skill. In an industry often criticized for opacity, this level of detail offers something increasingly rare: verifiable substance behind luxury positioning.
Looking Forward
“Legends, Reimagined” is announced as an ongoing series, suggesting future chapters will pair additional iconic Ferragamo designs with figures who embody similar values of excellence and innovation. The project establishes a template for brand storytelling that moves beyond product features to explore the cultural resonances that give objects meaning.
For Ferragamo, the Tramezza serves as an ideal starting point. It connects directly to the founder’s legacy while remaining thoroughly contemporary in its execution. The partnership with Tomba adds narrative depth without overwhelming the footwear itself. The athlete’s story illuminates the shoe’s qualities; the shoe, in turn, provides a physical anchor for abstract concepts like dedication and mastery.
The result is a presentation that respects its audience’s intelligence while delivering genuine emotional impact. In the crowded landscape of Milan Fashion Week, that combination of substance and sophistication stands out.
The Tramezza collection is available at Ferragamo boutiques worldwide, with Made-to-Order services offered at select locations.
