Cappelleria Melegari
Cappelleria Melegari is mainly a hat shop. Why am I writing about it? Well, it’s just one of the many characteristic shops which you can find in Italy, where the chain store uniformity has yet to take hold. Cappelleria Melegari is an example of just how wonderful shops can be. It sells more than just hats, you can find shirts, including my favourite grandad shirts, jackets, womens’ wear and childrens’ clothing, not to mention other winter gear such as gloves and scarves. The prices are not low, but the quality certainly is. It does not restrict itself to Italian clothing and accessories either, you will find stuff from the UK, Ireland and even Australia, plus a few other places. Then there are the hats.
I like hats and I bought a wonderful, for me anyway, leather Australian riding hat from Melegari some time ago. This hat is brown, waterproof and very practical, allowing me to do away with a cumbersome umbrella. However, Melegari does not just sell Australian riding hats, it sells a whole range of head toppers, from top hats to simple woolly things. My other half bought a simple cashmere number for 35 Euros there yesterday. The range of hats is stunning and it would be a dangerous place for a hat-a-holic, I’m sure.
The shop itself is quite small, but is on three floors. On the ground floor, where you pay, there is a range of sweaters, shirts, jackets and too many other things to mention. next there is the first floor, which has no window and is smaller than the ground. Here you will find ladies clothing and childrens’ wear, with one or two other things mixed in for good measure. Browsing is just about possible and the staff are not too intrusive, especially when they are busy, which gives you more time to have a look around. The shop is a bit of an Alladin’s cave and there are plenty of treasures to be uncovered.
Finally, there is my favourite second and last floor, where you will see all the hats. The variety is bewildering. They are stacked everywhere. At the moment we are in a winter phase, so Panama hats are not to be seen, although I’m sure they are there somewhere. There are big mirrors in useful places so you can gaze at yourself before plumping down the cash, which, incidentally, you can only do after a helpful assistant gives you a little ticket with a price on for you to take to the till on the ground floor.
Visiting this shop is quite an experience, I think. Cappelleria Melegari even has a website here, be sure and have a look at the ‘catalogo’. In the mens’ section you can even find a ‘Fidel’ style cap. Just the thing for when you are feeling a bit dictatorial!! If you are feeling adventurous, why not have a look at an ‘Indiana’? Oddly enough there seems to be more hat wear for male heads than for female ones, but I guess that is just because lots of hats can be worn by both sexes.
My hat goes off to this great shop. There is also another branch in the centre of Milan in Via Vittorio Emanuelle, 40 in Monza.
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Photos from Flickr
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