Archive · History
The history
One factory at Lambrate, three product lines. Origins and the four eras first, then each narrative on its own subject; dates and technical data live in Models.
Origins
How the Lambretta came to exist
The tube maker
Ferdinando Innocenti, born in Pescia on 1 September 1891 to a blacksmith, moved to Rome in the early 1920s and built a business in steel tubing and scaffolding — the "Innocenti pipe" — with works at Lambrate, Milan.
The commission
After the liberation of Rome in 1944, inspired by the American Cushman scooters of Allied soldiers, Innocenti commissioned the young aeronautical engineer General Pier Luigi Torre to design a simple, economical and robust scooter for the working classes.
Experiment O
The first prototype was developed in Rome. After the war Innocenti regained control of the destroyed Lambrate factory and converted it for mass production.
10 October 1947
The first production Lambretta 125 M — later Model A — left the assembly line, named after the Lambro river beside the factory. Open tubular frame, engine on show, 135,000 lire.
"Sono le 20 e 35… è l'ora della Lambretta!"
Pre-War
A blacksmith's son from Pescia builds one of Italy's great industrial houses.
Ferdinando Innocenti was born in Pescia on 1 September 1891, the son of a blacksmith. In the early 1920s he moved to Rome and established a successful business in steel tubing and scaffolding.
By the 1930s the company had grown into one of Italy's leading industrial enterprises in heavy mechanics, tubes and scaffolding systems — the famous "Innocenti pipe" — with its works at Lambrate, Milan.
War
Lambrate is bombed flat; an American scooter in Rome plants the idea.
During the Second World War the Milan factory in Lambrate was heavily bombed and largely destroyed.
After the liberation of Rome in 1944, Ferdinando Innocenti was inspired by the American Cushman scooters used by Allied soldiers. He immediately commissioned a young aeronautical engineer, General Pier Luigi Torre, to design a simple, economical and robust motor scooter for the working classes.
The first prototype, known as "Experiment O", was developed in Rome.
After the War
Ten October 1947: the first Lambretta leaves the line, and Italy gets moving.
In 1946 Innocenti regained full control of the destroyed Lambrate factory and converted it for mass production. On 10 October 1947 the first production Lambretta 125 M — later called Model A — left the assembly line. The name was taken from the Lambro river that flowed beside the factory.
The scooter was deliberately designed with an open tubular frame that showed the engine, in contrast to the enclosed Vespa. It was priced at 135,000 lire and launched with a revolutionary radio advertising campaign: "Sono le 20 e 35… è l'ora della Lambretta!"
Licensed and assembled production followed across Spain, Germany, France, India, South America and beyond. The last Innocenti Lambretta left Lambrate in 1971 and the complete tooling was sold to Scooters India Ltd.
New Innocenti
The marks come home: Innocenti, Lambretta and Lambro under one roof in Lugano.
Innocenti car production continued under British Leyland, then De Tomaso, then Fiat, until the factory finally closed in 1993. In 1979 Lambretta S.A. was established in Lugano, Switzerland, and from 1994 to 2006 international trademark rights were progressively acquired and strengthened.
Innocenti S.A. was founded in Lugano in 2008; Lambretta S.A. was incorporated into the new entity. In 2010 Liliana Querci Innocenti, representing the family line of the original founders, formally assigned the combined Italian "Lambretta / Innocenti" trademark to the Swiss company.
Today Innocenti S.A. is the global owner of the trademarks Innocenti, Lambretta and Lambro, and continues the legacy with new products under the three brand pillars.
Go deeper
In this section
The Lambretta scooter
From Experiment O to the last DL — the scooter that motorised post-war Italy.
Open →The Lambro three-wheeler
The commercial vehicle that carried Italy's small trade, 1949 to 1972.
Open →The Innocenti car
The car marque, 1960 to 1997: BMC, British Leyland, De Tomaso and Fiat.
Open →The India chapter
How the Lambretta name and tooling passed from Lambrate to Lucknow.
Open →Company chronicle
Year by year, 1891 to 2008: capital, plants, workforce, contracts and closures.
Open →Master timeline
Every milestone year from the 1930s to today, filterable by era.
Open →