the story began with a small collection of hand–finished t–shirts. grown in the fashion business, the forte brothers hail from veneto, one of the manufacturing districts in which made in italy has taken its shape and identity over the years, turning the artisanal process into an industrial one while keeping intact its values and peculiarities. giada and paolo have absorbed this ethos since childhood, in the family’s knitwear factories. giada trained at nottingham trent university, where she studied knitwear design, while paolo studied finance. after autonomous experiences in their respective fields, they decided to join forces on a project based on the values they believe in: the beauty of creativity as a filterless bond between the creator and the consumer. giada is in charge of design, paolo is the business strategist. robert vattilana, art director and giada’s life partner, is the third member of the group: the one who translates visions and sensations into images and spaces, or graphic and editorial choices. forte_forte is the offspring of the three’s joined efforts: the family name is doubled, christening the brand with an incitation that is already an expression of strength; the lower case font signals a desire for intimacy as opposed to ostentations.