History of Acerbis, from mudguards to Serie A

The Spezia jersey, an armchair and motocross tanks apparently have nothing in common, not even in the remotest of hypotheses would it be possible to find a correlation between the three things. And yet there is a man who started from his garage, like all the big multinationals of today, such as Amazon or Apple, who since 1973 has managed to combine these three things, making the management of three opposite sectors an absolute strong point, so much so that he recorded a turnover of 50 million in 2018. Going back in time, the story of the Acerbis family, or rather of Franco Acerbis, the man who started it all, can be summed up by citing a small episode from the beginning of his career, which helps us understand his vision. In the first year of life Franco Acerbis and his company were producing mudguards for an American company, a very good business if not that after about a year that multinational company closed its doors, leaving Acerbis in a vacuum. One of the problems of the time was putting petrol in the plastic, something considered risky by all. As told in an interview by PrimaBergamo, Acerbis sought new solutions for the world of two wheels: "I did the first tests: I went up on the terrace of my house, on the third floor, I took an aluminium tank and a plastic one, I filled them with water and dropped them. The aluminium one broke, the plastic one didn't. It was the right way."

The beginnings

Franco Acerbis is a long-time motorcyclist, a great enthusiast who knows perfectly all the needs of drivers. In the first years of life the brand focused exclusively on the world of two wheels, two years later he revolutionized the market with his mudguard created to protect the rider from splashes: a revolution that changed this world and to give you an idea of his passion, here is his statement: "I made three - Acerbis remembers - one for me, one for an enduro champion and one to sell", so began the distribution of Acerbis thermoplastic resin mudguards. Two years after its birth, the brand of Bergamo was already on the crest of the wave, collaborating with the best brands and being among the best in the world.

The 1990s and the first technical equipment

With the passing of time, the experience and knowledge gained over the years led to the creation of a business unit dedicated to develop more ways and not stop at one and only one sport. After opening a historic branch in 1985, the 1990s and the arrival of his son Guido as managing director marked the start of a new adventure, Acerbis decides to launch in the production of technical material in the world of two wheels, but at the same time decides to diversify its investments, entering into other worlds. 

The 2000s and the introduction to football

In the 2000s, more precisely in 2006, thanks to Grosso's penalty and the consequent historic victory in the World Cup in Germany, the Acerbis family decided to launch the brand in the world of football. They did so by first dedicating themselves to the world of goalkeepers, creating jerseys and trousers with more protections, experimenting with lateral pads to better cushion falls. However, this path did not bring great results, as in those years goalkeepers began to abandon their suits with protections, trousers and long shirts in favour of the ones we see today. The turning point came in the same year with the creation of Acerbis Football and the first sponsorship of a sports club, Albinoleffe, which at the time was playing in Serie B. An unusual letter "A" stands out on the shirts of Albinoleffe as a technical partner. After Albinoleffe, the Italian brand turned towards the provinces, where football is just above amateurism. Over the years Acerbis, before landing in Serie A with Spezia, accompanied Alessandria to the historic qualification for the Coppa Italia at San Siro, with a kit in which there was a mix of traditional colours and new designs. The following year he relegated creativity to the fans, letting them choose the design and template of the new jerseys.

Serie A and the (almost) final affirmation

Compared to 1985 when it opened its first branch in America, today the company has 260 employees, three branches in Albino, in Val Seriana, three abroad and a production facility in the Czech Republic. A planning based on the diversification of investments that has led Acerbis in a few years to dramatically increase its turnover. This is undoubtedly due to the vision of father and son who, from simple thermoplastic mudguards, have founded a solid brand, which has been able to make great strides at a technological level, designing jerseys with light and sustainable fabrics, in step with the big brands. It was a sponsor of Brescia, before signing an agreement with Spezia, for four years, accompanying them to the top division. And he did it with innovative uniforms, from the point of view of colours and logos, without putting aside the tradition and the classic V that has always characterised the uniforms of Brescia. With Spezia, Acerbis achieved a goal that was missing for both the club and the brand: the top Italian league. Proposing for the home jersey not the traditional and canonical total white, but black details, more precisely an insert that goes from shoulder to shoulder, including the crew-neck collar. In general, however, the jerseys of the team coached by Italiano were quite simple, basing even the second and third on one colour with the addition of contrasting inserts. But Acerbis went even further, going beyond the Italian borders and sponsoring Lugano, where they involved Guè Pequeno in the launch campaign, Valenciennes and finally also Las Palmas.

Today the Acerbis distribution network covers 55 countries around the world, offering an assortment of over 1,800 products also launching in volleyball and rugby, has created the seats of the stadiums creating the seats of Juventus Stadium, the Olympic Stadium in Rome, the sky box of San Siro, also Acerbis now works with Aprilia, BMW, Cagiva, Ducati, Honda, KTM, Triumph and Yamaha and for two years now is in the top Italian football league with Spezia. Now after the bond issue to finance the brand again, growth is expected to arrive by 2023, allowing Acerbis to sit at the table of the big.