Massimo Leather

I bought my leather jacket from Massimo for my 26^th birthday. I had looked for the perfect jacket all week in Florence and couldn’t find anything that I liked. I had been to the leather market multiple times and could not find the perfect fit. Luckily, on my last day, I found Massimo. It was a match made in heaven! I am from Alabama and an Auburn fan and he is too! It was fate that we met and I bought the exact jacket that I had been looking for all week. Recently, I looked Massimo up on Facebook to buy my boyfriend a leather jacket for his birthday. We picked one out for him over the Internet and it fit him perfectly! He loves his new Italian jacket. I am going to upload a picture of us in our jackets as soon as I can. I seriously get so many compliments on my jacket and I can’t say enough about my incredible experience getting my boyfriend’s jackets. I highly recommend Massimo for your leather goods from Florence!

The best leather prices in all of Italy with the nicest people. We had the best time in their store and got an amazing jacket that I get compliments on every time I take it out. Excellent quality.

Based on reviews on Unilocal and other places I shopped here at a recent trip to Florence. I bought the perfect jacket with their help. The price ended up being lower than even I expected and the patience of the assistant could not have been higher! Massimo definitely cares about his online reputation, and that is a good thing. If I have the fortune to be back in Firenze, I would return to his store.

This is THE ONLY place you should go to buy leather goods in Florence. Sure you can go to the leather school and to the outdoor go market to browse but you should only make your purchases at Massimo. We ended up coming twice during our trip to Florence and walked away with beautiful purses, wallets, and a leather jacket. His associate, Anka, is also very helpful. They are very knowledgeable and are not pushy at all — they truly want you to be completely satisfied with your purchase. Their products are high quality and their prices are very competitive. Massimo, thanks for a great shopping experience =)

Best decision of my Florence trip was to come here. We ended up here through a recommendation and it was a fantastic one. Massimo is extremely personable. He was awesome and was talking to us about his products, politics, etc. He even gave us a shot of some great tequila he had!
I bought a bag, wallet and jacket here. This is high quality stuff, but you aren’t paying the super high prices you are in some other places. The absolute best part was that the jacket actually fit me. I am a small, petite person and so finding things that fit in the U.S. can be a challenge. As they told me in the shop though I am small like many of the Italian women and the jacket was amazingly beautiful and fit me like a glove. It you are a large person or have large chest then you probably need to get something custom made. They also shortened the sleeves for me for free which was great. They also have a pretty good selection of bags so I recommend checking out this place before you go to others. I spent 220 Euro on my jacket and 120 for BOTH my wallet and bag. AWESOME.
This place makes me want to return to Florence every year to shop!!!

Massimo is absolutely fantastic! We were visiting the area and buying a leather jacket wasn’t particularly on our list of things to get because I already have one but we stopped by just to check it out. My boyfriend and I found the styles we liked but we were still unsure so we told him we would stop by before we left Florence if we planned on buying. In the meantime, we checked out other stores for similar styles and prices and no other stores offered us what we wanted so we ultimately came back to Massimo’s store to see if they still had the ones we wanted. Lo and behold, he did and best was that he remembered us and which jackets we wanted! We were blown away overall at the fact that he really just takes the time to know you and your style and remembers his customers whereas other places may not. He gave us a good discount on the two leather jackets and threw in two small leather pouches as a gift. Thank you Massimo! I will surely return in the future and recommend him to my friends!

Massimo was fantastic! His leather jackets were hands down the best! He and his wife were very friendly and I would recommend him to everyone. The shop is a little hard to find but is worth serving for.

I have been living in Florence for a few months and shop/​hang out at Massimo’s consistently! He is incredibly welcoming, honest and works very hard. It is difficult to know that you are not being ripped off by leather stands. Massimo puts his customer’s first and really goes out of his way to make sure they are happy both before AND after they purchase. I highly suggest shopping for leather here!

We visited Massimo’s place and was greatly impressed with the range of jackets and bags along with the friendly and helpful staff.
Prices were reasonable.
Note that the location shown on Unilocal,at the time we were here, was some 400m out. Google Maps has the location closer to the actual location.
Enjoy.

I chose to come back here after my friend got a leather jacket here a few years ago and I’m glad I did! I probably spent an hour in the store between trying on jackets and talking with Massimo and his staff. Really friendly guys with quality leather jackets for a good price. If you’re a student studying in Florence, this is the place you should go! They also have bags now which I didn’t look at but is an addition to what they had a few years back. So happy with my jacket and have already received so many compliments on it!

While visiting Florence, I wanted to get a leather jacket but felt completely overwhelmed. I looked online and found Unilocal reviews of Massimo and I went. True to every word. The jackets are stunning and, as importantly for me, Massimo was delightful, honest and fair. He was busy when we were there, so a lovely, stylish and sweet yopung woman named Anca helped us. If she is there, ask for her. She has great taste and knows exactly how much to help. A great experience and I LOVE my new jacket.

I must disagree with other reviewers. Came here with very high hopes and left empty handed and disappointed. Sales tactics are no different than anywhere else. I found a jacket I liked quickly. However, Massimo pulled the classic «lighter» trick (please, spare me) — and when I said I would shop around and come back, I was told: «This jacket will not be here in an hour. I have all the students and people from around the world who shop with me. You don’t want it? No problem. I have 10 more customers today.»
Bottom line: go elsewhere. I ultimately found a jacket at Tosqana Leather near Santa Croce. Friendlier staff and better quality. Buona fortuna!

Here’s the skinny: if you’re looking for the sweet spot where high end quality meets reasonable pricing, Massimo Leather is the shop for you. More details to follow below.
Preliminaries: I’ve never Unilocaled before but I feel like I must after my experience at Massimo’s Leather. Massimo undoubtedly stands behind his products. And this is especially compared to the San Lorenzo market stalls which the shop is on a perpendicular street to. He shared how his wife has tons of bags and he doesn’t seem to be the type to not bring bags into his inventory his discerning wife wouldn’t want.
Store lowdown: You’ll find leather jackets and bags in separate stores. The staff speaks English well, especially Massimo. Compared to a lot of the other leather stores I wandered into, Massimo Leather is relatively uncluttered which I appreciated. I often find that a cluttered space is a cluttered mind and that makes it tough to make a clear decision. The staff are helpful in helping you find what you’re looking for. He shared how he purchases his inventory from premium leather artisans from Tuscany and that these artisans also work on other super premium branded leather goods. What you’re getting from Massimo Leather hits the sweet spot of high end Italian leather and workmanship quality without paying for the branding. The shop represents a great value point on the spectrum of cheap leather that won’t last at all to ultra-​premium famous leather goods brands. In his bag shop, probably 90% of his inventory were handbags and the other 10% were luggage and men’s briefcases. He shared how his inventory rotates seasonally so the bags you see on the website weren’t all available in the store; there are more options in the shop, but the website gives you a sense of the the bag styles you can expect to see. Luggage options are fairly limited; if you’re looking for leather luggage, David’s Leather Factory on Via Rascoli has more selection with great quality. His men’s briefcases selection were great mixing up classic colors and shapes and some more atypical colors and shapes. If you’re coming during low season, check to see if they’ll be on vacation by e-​mailing them. He shared with us that he’d be gone on vacation for a couple weeks.
Shopping strategy: Find Massimo (he’s the bald guy standing in the middle in Jeckyl H.‘s photo), go to the other store & see if you like anything, identify what item/​s you like but don’t buy at the store he’s not at. Go back to the store he’s in and see of you like anything and try to bundle your purchase together telling him if you like something else at his other shop. If you’re a student, like other reviews have said, let him know and he will definitely honor the student discount because he realizes the budget you’re on and appreciates you saving to spend money at his establishment. If you’re a student with your parents visiting or with friends bundle your purchase together and see if you can get some buying power to negotiate a better deal. Jackets weren’t in our budget but we came away with a handbag and a briefcase my wife and I are loving very much.

Nothing but good things to say about massimo! I studied abroad in Florence and was told I had to go to him for a leather jacket. He was amazing and knew exactly how to help me find the right style/​fit, such a great experience! Just recently though, the jacket that I bought ripped so I sent him a message and he was completely willing to take care of it! I couldn’t believe how fast we was able to ship me a new one all the way from Italy! I was so surprised and very happy. It is very comforting to know he stands by his products and if there is a problem it will be taken care of. The customer service is amazing, this is the best place to go without a doubt! I will definitely be back to see Massimo next time I’m in Florence!

This review is going to be against all others on this site and many other reviews that I have read about Massimo Leather. I hope others will read my review and understand my situation and the experience I dealt with while shopping here. This is several weeks after my trip, so I have had time to think about my experience and am not acting out of rage, merely to help others avoid this place.
Massimo and his staff are extremely friendly when you begin your search for a jacket. They help you find which one fits you correctly and will even knock the price down around 300 euros for a student discount. This was my first red flag upon discussing whether or not to buy a leather jacket. No one who can sell a jacket worth 500 euros for sub 200 just because you are a student or you are special. The logic behind it just wouldn’t make good business sense.
I tried on a few pieces, but nothing truly wowed me to make me risk paying 200 euros for a jacket that I wasn’t sure of its quality. I acted hesitant and the salesman said he could do 190, which I still wasn’t sure on so I went off to get some dinner.
I returned after dinner about 30 minutes before closing time (2 – 3 hours later) because I still wanted a leather jacket and considering that 4 out of the group of 6 I was with (and Massimo knew I was with) had bought jackets, I was confident that I could get a good deal. This is when I noticed that on the jacket I was thinking of buying were very blatant ink/​dye runs from when the jacket was painted (I’ll explain about painted leather later). The salesman tried to assure me that this is with every leather jacket and is extremely common. There is simply no way that a good leather manufacturer would let something like this past them. It wasn’t hidden or in a part of the jacket no one would see, it was right on the left chest, with several distant runs that ended in solid black dots that stood out from the garment. I was assured that this is the way painted leather was and all jackets have this, I was made to feel stupid and lacking any knowledge of what a good leather jacket should be like.
The salesmen then proceeded to tell me that the jacket was 200 firm and he would not budge at all. This confused me because only 2 – 3 hours earlier he had dropped the price to 190 for me. I pointed this out to him and he told me I was wrong and he never would have stated that price as he was already lowering it from the 220 (which I was never quoted). I remained calm throughout this endeavor, never yelling or getting upset, but I merely stated how he was lying to me and I knew that they could do at least 190, if not something better then 200. With the stains on the jacket there was simply no way I was going to pay this much for something that was stained so blatantly. This is when the salesmen talked to Massimo who proceeded to tell me how the jacket was already severely discounted from 500 for students and there was no way I could get it for 190 and that I had remembered incorrectly what I was quoted earlier.
I stood firm saying I was quoted 190 and felt that I was being lied to. At no point did I say I wanted to purchase that jacket at 190, merely stating that for the condition it was in I was not going to pay 200. Massimo grabbed the jacket from me, yelled «fine, I’ll do 190» and ran over to the cash register to try and secure this sale. I told him I wasn’t going to pay 190 and had never agreed to pay that. It’s at this point that he yells at me and my girlfriend (who had bought a jacket from him only 3 hours prior) to get out of his store, calling me a stupid customer as I walked out.
The staff here are friendly because they know that they can sell marked up merchandise to students. In my time at the store I saw many students come in and rave about the steep discounts Massimo gave and how great and friendly everyone was. I received a very different treatment once I began pointing out the flaws of the garments and wouldn’t blindly fall for their sales tactics.
What everyone needs to understand is that this is not high quality leather. It is leather, just not worth 200 euros. Above I talked about painted leather which is different from dyed leather in that it doesn’t permeate below the surface of the leather and will wear away much quicker. Lower quality clothing is notorious for being either fake or made from cheap leather and painted, no high quality leather store would be caught selling painted leather.
I know my review stands out from everyone else’s, but I am just describing my experiences and the knowledge I have gained about leather to give myself a deeper understanding of what I am paying so much for. Massimo jackets are not worth their price tag and I hope others will steer clear of this place. I understand how tiring shopping at the market can be, just don’t fall for this places tactics.

As a tourist visiting florence, everyone wants to know the best place to buy leather goods… and THIS IS THE PLACE.
Massimo is kind, honest, and will help you find the perfect jacket for your body type and skin tone! He will always give you the best deal, no bullshit!
Not only does it have the greatest styles in all of florence at the best prices, but he makes you feel extremely comfortable right when you walk into the store. You will feel as if you have known him forever! He also remembers EVERYONE.
I was in the store, and another American student studying abroad walked in and said «Hi Massimo! My older brother studied abroad here and recommended i come see you!» he asked for the girls last name, and when she told him what it was, he remembered her brothers name and the exact semester he studied abroad there (it was 6 years prior.)
I rarely write Unilocal reviews, but feel so passionately about the experience i had at Massimo Leather, i just had to share! Happy shopping!

I’ve been searching for a quality leather store in Florence for about one week. I’ve read reviews online, on Unilocal,consulted guidebooks, waded through the sketchy marketplaces, and stopped into several shops. It’s overwhelming to pick the perfect place because Florence has so much leather stores (including many selling overpriced or fake goods). All signs pointed to Massimo, so I went there today.
Immediately I felt that the service would be excellent. The owner was very warm, accommodating, and professional. He and his female assistant (she’s in charge of the purses) did not try to push anything on me. She let me take my time, personally adjusted straps for me, and she even refused to hard-​sell a product to me (I said I liked a purse and she said it looked nice but that she didn’t want to «convince» me and encouraged me to continue browsing.) There was a large selection of purses in many different styles and colors.
After I selected the purse that I bought (and love– nice lined inside as well as quality outside, which is rare to find in the marketplaces which often sell purses that are unfinished on the inside. Pretty design with extra internal and external pockets), she said I could make an exchange within the next few days as long as it wasn’t dirty (I wanted to make sure my camera fit, which I had neglected to bring with me). We also had a nice conversation about leather that I found interesting and informative. I will definitely be going back here for a jacket!

The thing about buying leather in Firenze is that it all looks the same. There are a limited number of patterns, unless someone designs a piece themselves. The difference is in the grade of leather. And in the dealer.
Had a BS-​free experience at Massimo. Wasn’t hustled. Staff seems professional, which puts them way above 98% of the other stores.
Of course, if the briefcase I bought doesn’t last ten or twenty years, I’ll have to come back and change my review.

I have dealt Massimo and his wife Colette for over six years. Nine jackets, three purses, two totes and one backpack later, I can say each purchase was of the highest quality, and the most reasonable price. Save yourself some time, there are hundreds of leather vendors, stands and shops in Florence, go to Massimo’s for the best value, highest quality, kindest treatment, and most reasonable shipping home. If your selection doesn’t fit you perfectly, for a minor cost, it will be tailored to you.
You will first go there for the incomparable quality of the merchandise, and return over and over again for the friendship you develop with the owners. A sublime Florentine experience.

There are certain ‘musts’ when visiting Florence and buying leather is one of them.
There are tons of leather shops, street vendors, and even a school of leather. It’s hard to know who to trust and you don’t want to spend a lot of money or time (= money) on an inferior product that is not made in Italy.
I spent a lot of time in the different leather shops until I found out about Massimo Leather. He’s highly rated on Trip Advisor, Rick Steve’s, and Betch Loves This — check it out … hilarious site and comments! last paragraph and comments:
.
Massimo has been running his shop for 25-​years and he’s a very warm and genuine individual. The leather selection was great and he works hard to find the jacket that looks great on you (i.e. he’s not shy to tell you when a jacket doesn’t look good. I respect that.).
I honestly fell in love with a lot of the jackets there. I even bought a jacket for my wife — who didn’t accompany me on the trip. Massimo helped me with her sizing and said that if it didn’t fit, to ship it back and he’ll send a different size. Shipping is FedEx 3-​day for 30 euro. Very reasonable.
Prices were excellent for the quality! I didn’t haggle at all, because I had a good idea of what the prices were from visiting other shops, and Massimo’s prices were inline. Massimo was considerate and treated me well — I wanted a transaction where both parties leave happy (which I definitely did — check out how much nice leather jackets cost in the US and you’ll know Florence leather is a great deal!)
Definitely check out Massimo Leather. I would check a few shops beforehand so you get an idea of what’s out there (and pricing) before seeing Massimo. Do check the School of Leather since it’s inside the Santa Croce church… It’s cool since it’s really tucked away (but limited selection, high prices).
Anyway, a few tips for buying leather:
— Smell the leather. There should be no chemical scent. It should smell like leather.
— Touch the leather. It should be soft.
— Check the stitching. Make sure it’s even, straight, etc.
— Check the tags. Not a guarantee, but you want to see Made in Italy. If it only says Italian leather, it was probably made in an Asian country.