History of the saponificio
Saponificio Varesino was established in 1945 in Brebbia (VA), near the shores of Lake Maggiore, by Dante Bardelli, a soldier of the Alpine Regiment who got back from the War and started the business from scratches, as a way to sustain his family by producing artisanal soap and then selling it in the area, aboard his motorcycle Lambretta, and later on expanding to the national territory. Through the refinement of the crafting method and the new processing techniques over the next decades, Saponificio Varesino consolidated as an excellent producer of laundry soaps, toiletries, flaked and industrial. Still retaining the old method of saponification born in Marseilles, now heritage of increasingly rare soap factories, stands out today for its ability to meet any need with basic products of the highest quality brands for third-party customers.
In the following picture the registration to the Office of Commerce and Industry of Varese, signed by the founder Dante Bardelli:
Our Tradition…
Marseilles Soap
The ancient method
Experience, patience, attention to detail. These are just a few requirements that the soap maker owns, when the saponification is not intended as a chemical process, but a crafting process where the management electronic tools are not needed, since it’s the man who makes the soap. Knowing how to properly assess the consistency of the base, and then test the balance of the raw materials with the aid of a steel trowel, enhance the skill and experience of the handcrafted-soap maker who creates and works every single 12.000 kg boiler. The eyes follow each stage of the production process, supporting and correcting it.
It starts from the filling of the boiler, saponification, cooking, washing and then to the liquidation, until you get the real bar of soap, which only enhances the ability of man, rather than an industrial plant. Values and traditions are passed down from generation to generation, to honor the passion and the art of Bardelli Dante, who in 1945, while the Second World War came to an end, had the courage and the ability to create the company.
Saponificio Varesino Brand – Gift Soap Sets and Wrappings
In 1948 Saponificio Varesino created the “Stella Alpina” Soap Bar, a brand product that still today is distributed and which represents our main production of laundry soap (in both sizes 10.5 Oz and 14.0 Oz), cube shaped and printed on six sides. This is certainly a piece of our history.
In the 60s SV produced its first own-brand toilet soap, the Lavender Soap. Then came Velours Paris Soap, in 1965, in response to market demand for soaps with more ergonomic and refined forms. Shortly before 1980 is added to the product brands the Orchid Soap, a 4.5 Oz oval soap featured by special finishes, still appreciated by the national market.
2012 is the year of the SV Brand, a gift soap set line, enriched by precious wrappings or multiple boxes and by the refined scents. This production is characterized by the 100% usage of our coconut/palm soap base (certified Econat).
The Caldron Traditional Processing
The caldron production process of soap represents the artisan tradition by which man created soap for centuries. In a first phase called saponification the fats – mainly consisting of glycerides and fatty acids – are converted into sodium salt. This operation must be carried out so that the resulting product is of good quality and suitable to be subjected to further steps of processing . It is therefore necessary to obtain a pumpable mass easily , generally containing 30% of water, with the least possible amount of alkali and electrolytes, as well as glycerol whose recovery is an economic factor of this process.
The transformation from fats to soap therefore can be obtained with the traditional Cauldron Processing (Lavorazione in Caldaia).
Just as in the tradition then, we still produce soap with this ancient and natural method, which ensures the final product top quality and at the same time its cleaning power and a very gentle and soothing treatment for the skin, that after frequent uses becomes soft and more elastic.