THE PUCCIS

Sergio (click here to see the photo)

He was born in country village, in the outskirts of Florence; then he and his family moved to town, where he studied and grew up.
His passion for art and drawing led him to a career of  designing leather bags.
He used to work for several famous brands, (Timberland, Mandarina Duck...).
Then, he opened his own factory, to create, produce and sell the bags he had designed.

Years later, together with his wife Paola, he opened a leather shop in the center of Florence.
“SergioBags” was the name of the shop, famous during the 80’s for its original leather bags and for its interior design. The store was shaped like a sailing boat, with authentic naval furniture (with mast, sails, wood deck…), bought in the shipyards of Genoa and Cinque Terre.
Maybe some of you still remember the odd shop settled in Via Calzaiuoli (between Piazza Duomo and Piazza Signoria) and its distinctive leather bags.

The adventure continued for several years, then Sergio decided to change his life.
He closed the shop and purchased an estate in the country: Villa Cafaggiolo; his move there  combined his love of nature, horses and country life.
He still works as a bag designer, and together with all the Puccis, runs the holiday business.
Some guests have said: “Sergio, is the man in the background who makes a lot of things happen!!!”

Paola (click here to see the photo)

She was born in Florence, married Sergio in 1970 and helped him design the bags and run the leather shop in Florence.
She loves cooking Tuscan food and is a passionate collector of everything old: any kind of furniture, bottles, straw baskets, books…. Her passion for antiques started as a way to decorate the various apartments that Paola and Sergio occupied after they were married.

Her passion has since grown so much that during her travels around the world, she never misses an opportunity to visit antique dealers and flea markets, looking for treasured old objects and second- hand goods. She spends many weekends strolling around the stalls of antique markets in Arezzo, Lucca, Florence, Siena…alone, with Sergio or sometimes with guests, in search of unique and rare pieces.
She is always intrigued by what people collect and how they live with their antiques; she likes to share her secrets for finding old objects and she loves helping guests finding what they need to enlarge their collections. The apartments in Villa Cafaggiolo reflect Paola’s taste and talent for furnishing and décor.

Paola brings to Cafaggiolo a love for cooking and hospitality along with several years of housekeeping supervision. Caring for our guests is her first priority.
She looks forward to making sure every detail is taken care of, so our guests can relax and make Villa Cafaggiolo their home away from home.
Paola loves cross stitching too; she has done more than 300 and you can find many of them in the apartments. She is always happy to exchange schemes and drawings with friends.

Niccolò (click here to see the photo)

He was born in Florence, lived and studied there and graduated in architecture.
He used to work in an architectural studio, where he got experience restoring old farmhouses and designing fashion shops.

Sice years he works together with his family running the Villa Cafaggiolo holiday business; he currently also manages other holiday apartments near Cafaggiolo.
He loves to welcome overseas visitors to Tuscany; he loves this job because it means having a window on the world and having contact with different cultures and traditions.
Also, it gives him pleasure in being able to introduce people to Florence, the Chianti area and the surroundings: Tuscany, his beloved, wonderful land, with its Art, Beauties and flavours.

He  has several contacts in Florence and Tuscany, so he can help guests tailor their holiday, accommodate  their needs  (museums tickets reservations, wine-tastings tours, cooking classes, Tuscany tours…), and make their dreams come true!

He has a great passion for travel and has enjoyed travelling in Europe, in the Usa, in Africa.
He loves art and history, gardening and horses.
Niccolò is also a keen photographer; he has a large archive of photos of Tuscany.  

Barbara (click here to see the photo)

She also was born in Florence and studied there; she earned a diploma-certificate at the Tourism Institute. She married Niccolò in 2006.
Barbara loves horses and dogs and taking long strolls in the countryside amid the Tuscan hills.
She has a great passion for gardening and helps maintain  the gardens at Villa Cafaggiolo: pruning and watering the roses, the lemon trees, the hydrangeas…

She also owns and runs a beautiful Irish Pub in Florence, that she inherited from his father years ago.
Fitzcarraldo Pub is it’s name and it has been a “must” for hundreds of guys since 1985.
You can find her here: http://www.myspace.com/fitzcarraldopub

Lucrezia (click here to see the photo)

She is about 2 years old and she is starting now to discover this strange and lovely world.
She loves pasta al pesto, doing steps up and down and to hide any kind of stuff she can grab (mainly keys). Her favourite word in: No, No, No.

Gherardo (click here to see the photo)

He is the new arrival in our family; of course he brought love and joy.
He is a good boy, he eats and sleeps; that’s all..., for the moment.