A brush with luxury

By Dinah S. Ventura

07/15/2010

With her easy demeanor, sweet smile and simple elegance, Elisa Gera does not strike one as a woman running a 140-year-old company that has managed to maintain a luxury status worldwide.

“I’m not young, I’m 44,” she laughs at our observation that she looks much too young to be singlehandedly heading a company that sells over 300 kinds of products, all produced with the same consistent high quality. But run Acca Kappa she does, with an ability no doubt inherited from her enterprising ancestor, Hermann Krull, who founded a hairbrush manufacturing company in 1869 in Treviso, Italy, when he was just a student.

Espousing “hard work, passion,” Krull’s great-great-granddaughter recalls how their family business grew to become the official brush supplier of the British Royal family. The company produced brushes for every purpose, from hats and clothing to horses and even bicycle cleaning. Its name was derived from the Italian pronounciation of the letters of Krull’s name, H (acca) and K (kappa).

Today, each of Acca Kappa’s products bear these lofty initials, a sure sign of quality, dedication and craftsmanship.

“Acca Kappa’s tradition and family roots are its most valuable assets,” she shares. “It’s not easy, keeping a company for more than a century through two world wars. I guess (what has made it endure is) the passion for the brand,” adding, “We really feel attached to this company, it’s like a family.”

It remains 100 percent family-run, that’s for sure. Gera tells the The Daily Tribune that she started working in the company when she was 23 years old. “I’ve grown in it,” she smiles. “When you start working when you’re young, you’re very curious, you start from the beginning. If you’d like to learn, it’s not so difficult.”

Gera, who was in Manila last summer to open Acca Kappa’s first lifestyle boutique in Rustan’s Makati, is responsible for expanding the company’s product line, introducing body products, shaving accessories for men and natural bath accessories.

Expansion, naturally

“The introduction of body care products was started by me. We started with fragrance, the White Moss (Muschio Bianco in Italian), which was an international bestseller,” she says. “I think it’s very important to be in the market as much as possible, to study the markets in different countries, to keep up to date.”

Acca Kappa is now known for its nature-inspired fragrances, including Calycanthus, Lavender, Glicine, Hibiscus, Mimosa and Rosa for women. Its 1869 and Cedro collections carry fragrances and skin care for men. While high-quality brushes for professional and personal uses remain its core business worldwide, Acca Kappa’s bath and beauty products have proven to be quite popular.

The White Moss range is a hit among both men and women, says Rustan’s brand manager Therese Calma, who also reveals that in the Philippines, Acca Kappa has been exclusively carried in Rustan’s department stores for 10 years now. The fragrances still make up the bulk of sales at 65 percent, with the brushes at 20 percent.

The White Moss fragrance, which has a very fresh, clean and light scent, is well-suited to our tropical country. “I love the White Moss, too, because it was my first fragrance. It brings back memories for me,” Gera says, adding that they will be introducing another fresh fragrance, the Green Mandarin, this year.

Today, Acca Kappa produces about 200 different kinds of brushes, and more than 100 body care products ranging from skincare to haircare. “We try to bring the Italian lifestyle through our products,” she says.

Keeping it ‘niche’

In spite of its long history, Acca Kappa remains a luxury niche brand in the bath and beauty category. “People are looking for niche brands,” Gera acknowledges

the upward trend in its sales. “People are looking for more quality, not just the name. People like products that are a bit unique, not found everywhere.”

One might observe that the Acca Kappa president herself epitomizes the brand’s principle of simplicity. Her first priority, she shares, is being a mom to her two kids, Virginia and Federico. She also professes a love for gardening, which many times have given her the inspiration for some of the company’s new product lines. Most of their scents, in fact, are inspired by blossoms, fragrant wood and natural scents of plants. Gera tends to “a big garden with 300 varieties of roses,” she says, every weekend.

Gera’s simplicity in lifestyle is reflected in Acca Kappa, whose products are uncomplicated, yet very special and lasting. The company operates from its original site in Treviso, and continues to stay relevant in a rapidly changing world by never compromising quality of materials and ingredients and continuously offering new lines and products, all produced in Italy.

Their quality products remain uniquely Italian, using ingredients native to its country of origin. To date, the brand still prioritizes the exclusive use of natural ingredients such as rubber, wood, vegetable fibers and Mediterranean sponges. The company also uses environment-friendly technology.

“We use different types of wood and bristles for our brushes for all types of hair and for all types of uses,” Gera notes. In Asia, which makes up about 30 percent of the brand’s export market, Acca Kappa enjoys a good reception. “People now appreciate quality. Our hairbrushes make hair breathe, clean and make it lustruous and healthy.” For Asian hair, Gera recommends an oval brush or a paddle brush with natural brustles and nylon bed.

Filipinos can browse through the products at the brand’s Venetian-style boutique in Rustan’s, which is similar to two others that Gera also launched in Hong Kong. The store features most of Acca Kappa’s range of hairbrushes, body care, hair care and fragrances. New among the classics is the Blue Lavender line.

Four generations later, Acca Kappa remains rooted in its traditions, yet branches out ever wider and always profuse with simple yet luxurious offerings.

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