Guido Confalonieri opens a typography in Chiavenna, a little village surrounded by the Alps not far from the Swiss border. Elegant and unspoiled nature blends with art and culture, always rich with stimulants in the areas close to the border.

Using the energy produced by the River Mera, Guido Confalonieri diversifies his business activities and starts producing chalk sticks commonly used in schools, tailor workshops, and in pool. He also produced pen ink.

The school stationary range is launched: wood rulers, set squares, pencil cases, pattern maker rulers for tailors. Together with his son Ferdinando and grandson Guido Carnazza, Guido Confalonieri starts to make coloured graphite pencils.

Elisabetta Gallese, wife of Ferdinando, inspired by the culture of beauty, decides to extend the range of products to the cosmetics sector.

Guido Luca Confalonieri, son of Elisabetta makes the decisive move that drives the company to specialise in make-up pencils.

The new production facilities open in Gordona, near Chiavenna.

These are years of large and decisive investments for Confalonieri Matite, both from a structural and a technological point of view. Process automation allows the company to confirm its position on the global market and satisfy customer demand.

Growth is unstoppable and Confalonieri stands out on an international level among companies of the same sector by investing increasingly more in research and development in name of innovation.

Confalonieri starts developing sustainable formulas. Pioneers in the organic market. Constant evolution leads not just to organic formulas, but also to the creation of sustainable paints, pencil caps, and materials.

The new production area is inaugurated. Everything is conceived and produced based on Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), thanks to which the company obtains the ISO 22716 GMP certification.

Confalonieri obtains the PEFC and FSC Chain of Custody certifications for wood. Currently, Confalonieri Matite is the only Italian company that produces make-up pencils 100% Made in Italy.

In the year of the COVID-19 pandemic, Confalonieri Matite opts for a new look. Extensive rebranding to add value to what has been the company’s core business for over half a century. A change to improve while remaining true to the original core values.