Founded in 1973 by Mario Giannini, founder and owner of the business for many decades, he managed to transform it from a small business to an industry. The brand, originally known as DUCA (meaning "duke"), to designate a product developed for an elite clientele. Mario's dream and his passion for Inglese shoes took him to England in the seventies, to a boarding school with handmade shoes. Mario went beyond his training. His desire was to create shoes that would stand the test of time, but above all be comfortable compared to the stiffness of Inglese shoes. So when his children entered the business, he pushed them to research, with the result that today the designs of Doucal shoes resemble Inglese, but incorporate the comfort of the Italian shoe guaranteed, due to the special coating of the inner sole that offers comfort, freshness and antibacterial activity. This particularity has given Doucal's shoes an edge that was much appreciated by the new emerging markets