Made For Shade: 5 Heritage Hat Brands To Know

As the summer season heats up in the Northern Hemisphere, people are beginning to comb through their closets in search of an all-important fashion accessory: hats. To find chic headgear that protects one from the sun, while also avoiding those finicky trends that can leave one regretting their purchase (and their beach photos) in years to come, it’s best to bypass offerings from fast fashion labels and luxury clothing brands and turn instead to traditional purveyors – companies who specialise in millinery and have been active in the trade for decades, or longer, and whose designs are well worth the investment.

The first stop on anyone’s shopping list should be Italy, where hat-making has deep roots. In Signa, a town on the outskirts of Florence, millinery traditions go back to mediaeval times, and craftspeople here boast extensive experience in weaving straw for headwear. One established company to seek out here is Grevi, a family-run hatmaker started in 1875. Today, three siblings – Giuseppe, Roberta and Silvana Grevi – run the fourth-generation business, designing and selling models made by their team of veteran seamstresses, who work on antique sewing machines operated by foot pedals to assist them in constructing brims for their classic summer hats. 

Grevi uses natural materials such as raffia straw and Manila hemp to make lightweight models one can easily fold up and throw in a tote bag or suitcase, and then reshape in a snap at their destination. From pinstripe bucket hats to trilby-style models with an adjustable leather strap, their creations cater to men and women. Patrons can pop into their mono-brand boutique set in a quaint courtyard in central Florence, or procure models at leading retailers from Bergdorf Goodman in New York to Trunk Clothiers in London.

Staying in Italy, one can venture south to Rome and the city’s Prati neighbourhood to find the store of Patrizia Fabri. A fashion designer by trade, in 2003 Fabri took over a local hat-making workshop that was originally founded in the Italian capital in 1936 by a family of Tuscan hatters. Today, she has maintained the same level of old-school craftsmanship while focusing on feminine designs and collaborating with major fashion houses such as Valentino and Givenchy for their runway shows. Shoppers not passing through the Eternal City are certain to find her wares at her boutique in Milan on Corso Monforte.

Casting the eyes east to central Europe, the first name to bring up in polite conversation when discussing stylish headgear in Austria is Mühlbauer. Tucked away on the first floor of a nondescript residential building in central Vienna’s Schwedenplatz, the workshop of the Mühlbauer family has been in operation since 1903. 

Managed today by Klaus Mühlbauer, the fourth generation involved in the business, the label offers an extensive collection of classic and fashionable designs for both sexes, as well as a pair of tastefully designed boutiques in Vienna, where fans can peruse the collections. Some of the company’s eye-catching styles include two-tone Panama hats and a crochet-constructed cloche that are ideal for everyday summer wear in town and at the beach.

Like Grevi and Fabri, Mühlbauer places great emphasis on manual production, meaning a single hat can take up to 15 hours to make. Mühlbauer has also moved into making more contemporary headwear, and it has seen its success grow with interest from Hollywood stars and orders from prestigious department stores such as Le Bon Marché in Paris and London’s Harrods. Grevi, meanwhile, has seen its models featured in major motion pictures, including Pretty Woman and Under the Tuscan Sun.

Nearby, in neighbouring Switzerland, another hatter to seek out is Risa Hutwerkstatt, which owns stores in Zurich and Basel, and which has found an attractive niche developing models that emphasise both form and fashion sense. The company’s products are carefully made by hand at its factory in Hägglingen in Canton Aargau, and staff draw from a wide selection of materials such as wool, hemp and silk to deliver fashion-forward styles. 

However, when it comes to headwear, nothing screams “summer” more than the classic Panama hat, the non-rollable, handwoven fedora which most people identify with cinema classics of the past (think Bogart in Casablanca). Lightweight and breathable to beat the heat, this evergreen model is the quintessential look for those in need of a smart accessory to cover their head as they take a stroll through Siena or along a seaside promenade on the French Riviera. 

A reliable source for these traditional brimmed straw hats is La Marqueza, a UK-based company which has its origins in Ecuador – the country which actually gave birth to the design. Made from durable toquilla straw, which is derived from the fibres of palm trees, the hats from La Marqueza require up to six days of hand-weaving to make. For those eager to try the top-of-the-line models, be sure to order the Montecristi style made with double straw that ensures the hat lasts longer.

Thanks to its commitment to maintaining practices from the past, La Marqueza and other reputable producers of Panama-style hats have seen efforts made to recognise the special nature of their business, most notably when UNESCO honoured the art of weaving Ecuadorian toquilla straw by adding it to the organisation’s Intangible Cultural Heritage list. It is also a sign to those in the market for a new hat to know what’s actually behind the label. After all, when you need to protect your noggin from the harsh summer sun, it pays to invest in quality.