Salvatore Ferragamo was born on the 5th June 1898, in Bonito, Italy, and was a shoe designer and the founder of Salvatore Ferragamo S.p.A., best known for his work with Hollywood stars in the ‘20s, and in particular for his handmade footwear. He passed away in 1960.
Have you ever wondered how rich was Salvatore Ferragamo at the time of his death? According to authoritative sources, it has been estimated that Ferragamo’s net worth was as high as $50 million, an amount earned through his successful career as a shoe designer, which started in the 1910s.
Salvatore Ferragamo Net Worth $50 Million
Salvatore Ferragamo was the eleventh of 14 children born into a low-income family, and he developed an interest towards shoes since the early age, when at just nine years of age, Salvatore made his first pair of shoes, actually for his sister’s confirmation, and apparently decided to make a career of making footwear, even at that age!
He moved to Naples to study shoemaking for a year, and then returned home to open a small shop, but in 1914 Ferragamo emigrated to Boston in the US to join his brother in a cowboy boot factory. Salvatore didn’t stay there for long, as he soon convinced his brothers to move to Santa Barbara, California and later Hollywood., as he felt that he could thrive in the show business capital of the world, and he was right, because tHollywood celebrities embraced his shop for repair and handmade shoes. However, Ferragamo was disappointed that his shoes weren’t comfortable despite being pleasing to the eye, so he decided to study anatomy at the University of Southern California, in order to then develop better shoes.
Following his 13-year stint in the US, Salvatore returned to Italy and settled in Florence, where he made shoes for some of the most powerful women on the planet such as Eva Peron, Marilyn Monroe, and the Maharani of Cooch Behar. He even designed a platform shoe for actress/singer Judy Garland, apparently because of her rather diminutive stature. Getting involved with world famous celebrities increased his net worth significantly, so Ferragamo became filthy rich. At his peak in the ‘50s, Ferragamo was apparently producing up to 350 pairs of shoes a day, and had a workforce of 700 employees. Right now, the company is owned by the Ferragamo family; his widow Wanda, five children, and 23 grandchildren.
Regarding his personal life, Salvatore Ferragamo has been married to Wanda Ferragamo Miletti and had six children with her. He has passed away, but his legacy still lives, and in 199, a museum dedicated to Ferragamo’s life and work was unveiled in the Palazzo Spini Feroni. Salvatore died on the 7th August 1960 in Florence, Italy
