Farewell to Arnaldo Caprai, the entrepreneur who made crochets and Sagrantino made in Italy symbols

Umbria and Italy bid farewell to a great entrepreneur, first in textile and later in wine: yesterday afternoon, at the age of 92, Arnaldo Caprai passed away surrounded by the love of his family - his wife Fiorella, his children Arianna, Marco, and Luca, and his beloved grandchildren - Arnaldo Caprai, central figure in Umbrian and national entrepreneurship. From textile industry to wine, from crochet to Sagrantino: Arnaldo Caprai embodied excellence in made in Italy for seventy years, building a unique bridge between artisanal tradition and innovation which brought the name of Umbria to the world. “Our father was an optimist and a generous man - explain his children - and he leaves us with the lesson to always look ahead, to believe in enterprise and development. His was a great entrepreneurial vision, first in the textile industry, then in wine. A man who always believed in achieving great things, with a forward-looking vision and a deep social commitment. He was 92 years old and, until the very end, he taught us that the future is built with passion and trust”.
Born in 1933, Arnaldo Caprai began his extraordinary entrepreneurial journey at the age of 22 as a seller of household trousseaus and linens for the house in Central Italy. His work, carried out with passion, expertise, and a strong spirit of initiative, allowed him over the years to achieve such success that he consolidated and expanded his business, eventually starting his own production of household linens. In 1964, he opened his first artisanal knitwear factory. A few years later, in 1968, he founded Maglital society, later known worldwide under the Cruciani brand. By the mid-1970s, he defined and implemented an integrated supply chain which enabled him to develop the entire production process in-house and create elegant, precious home décor pieces. During those same years, his passion for lace craftsmanship emerged, leading him to build an extraordinary museum collection that today includes over 25,000 artifacts, considered as “the most important textile arts collection in the world”. In 2007, he inaugurated the first Virtual Museum of Textile Arts, a pioneering idea which earned him the Guggenheim “Business & Culture” Award. The Arnaldo Caprai textile company became an international benchmark for the quality of made in Italy, with products ranging from fine linens to cashmere garments under the Cruciani brand.
But Arnaldo Caprai worldwide fame is indissolubly linked to Montefalco Sagrantino wine. In the 1970s, when this native Umbrian grape variety was still little known and almost forgotten, confined to a local dimension, Caprai saw an extraordinary opportunity where others saw only limitations. In 1971, he purchased 42 hectares in Montefalco, including four already planted with vines in the Val di Maggio estate, and launched a visionary project to enhance Sagrantino. “Our father bought the first part of this farm with the idea of producing Sagrantino because that was the wine that still made this territory stand out”, his children Arianna, Marco, and Luca recall. His relentless pursuit of production excellence and constant commitment to process innovation - bringing to the wine world the experience gained in the textile industry - secured the international success of Montefalco Sagrantino and the Arnaldo Caprai winery. The company became a leader in producing this extraordinary native grape, playing a decisive role in making Montefalco and its wine known worldwide. Today, the winery (which has grown over the years under Marco Caprai leadership, ed) produces about one million bottles annually, bringing Sagrantino to the most prestigious tables on the planet, with international awards confirming its excellence.
Arnaldo Caprai name will forever be linked to the world of wine through his iconic bottles of Sagrantino, a symbol of a vision which transformed a forgotten grape into a globally recognized excellence. On June 2nd, 2003, Arnaldo Caprai was appointed “Cavaliere del Lavoro” - “Knight of Labor” by President of the Republic Carlo Azeglio Ciampi “for merits in agriculture”. This honor crowned an extraordinary life and career spanning seventy years, dedicated not only to economic success but also to responsibility toward the land, people, and future generations. “Our father taught us great respect for our craft and for the people who work with us”, conclude his sons. The funeral service will take place on Tuesday, January 7th, 2026, at 10:00 a.m., in the Church of San Feliciano in Foligno.