Santha strengthens its presence in Italy, triples its number of showrooms

Calabrian designer Danilo Paura, fresh off an investment in his clothing brand Paura by Manifattura Paoloni, spoke to FashionNetwork.com about the latest developments for his sneaker brand Santha, which continues to draw inspiration from the world of skateboarding.

The Santha collection is developed in collaboration with Manolo Clementi and fellow partner Marco Raparo. The Florentine footwear brand D.A.T.E. holds the distribution and marketing license for Santha and is part of its corporate structure with a minority stake.

Santha’s Spring-Summer 2027 collection continues to represent the skate scene. “It comes naturally to us because we’ve personally experienced its evolution—not so much in terms of performance, but in terms of the culture and subculture that stem from it,” Danilo Paura tells FashionNetwork.com. “This collection builds on what we’ve done in previous seasons, but through the product, it conveys feelings that we feel are our own.” Yet the insole bears the words “not for skate.” “It’s our usual paradox- a statement that begins with a negation. Santha always aims to be provocative,” says the designer.

Surfing- as a culture, a tradition, and an atmosphere- is perhaps the discipline that most closely aligns with Santha’s universe. “Anything that glides over something represents us in some way,” confirms Manolo Clementi. “And it defines the brand’s aesthetic: skate and surf with a very artistic flair, given that Santha owes its name to an artists’ collective active in the ’90s in Sant’Arcangelo di Romagna, which no longer exists, and featured in a really cool documentary.”

The embellishments and craftsmanship make Santha’s SS 2027 shoes- strictly genderless- look well-worn, as if after a real ramp session, and they feature accessories like scoubidou, or punk- or rave-style rings and pins. “Stylistically speaking, we imagined that one of our customers, who bought the shoe a couple of seasons ago, had worn them, worn them out, and when they went to have them mended, had an appliqué added- giving them not a second life, but a second version,” explains the Calabrian designer.

In production, Danilo Paura’s brand is supported by D.A.T.E. “In the world of sneakers, it’s now essential to be able to produce on a scalable basis, but above all to maintain the same target audience. And only a true professional can do that- you don’t mess around with shoes,” says Paura.

Revenue grew by double digits again in 2025, after six seasons in business. The e-shop is also performing well. The brand currently has about 60 customers. The focus remains on Italy, which still generates 90% of revenue. “Strategically, it will be important, first and foremost, to consolidate the domestic market and only then consider expanding abroad,” continues Clementi, “with a distribution network that will always remain separate from that of D.A.T.E. However, we do have some active clients in Japan, the United Arab Emirates, and the Netherlands.”

Santha currently has three major distribution areas in Italy, each with its own showroom: Milan (which handles the rest of Italy) and two regional showrooms- one for the MUAM region (Marche, Umbria, Abruzzo, and Molise) and one for Campania- both of which operate independently. Until last season, only the Milan showroom was active.

Clementi says he is satisfied with the first four months of 2026. “In stores, people are beginning to view Santha not just as a shoe model, but as a brand that produces shoes. Thanks to the efforts of D.A.T.E., we’ve managed to position ourselves in a more affordable price range compared to the initial retail price of 300 euros. Today, a pair of Santha shoes starts at 188 euros and goes up to 279 euros,” concludes Danilo Paura.