Ancillotti Becomes a Historic Brand and Relaunches Enduro with Motorcycles and Bicycles

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The Ancillotti brand, a historic name in motorcycles and bicycles, has been recognized as one of five historic brands by the Ministry of Economic Development. With over 50 years of sporting and commercial success, the company is looking to the future with new projects and collaborations in the fashion and luxury watch sectors.

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The ANCILLOTTI brand returns to the spotlight, relaunching with the recognition of five historic trademarks. The brand has been officially included in the Special Register of Historic Trademarks of National Strategic Interest by the Ministry of Economic Development, with the numbers 29, 126, 128, 402, and 732.

 

These are trademarks that have been continuously used for over 50 years, marking a significant milestone that revives and updates a glorious history.

"The Ancillotti mechanical workshop," explain Massimo Viti and Maurizio De Rosa (respectively left and right in the photo above), CEO and Social Media Manager of the company, "was founded by Ernesto Ancillotti in 1907 in San Frediano, a district of Florence. The business was later carried on by his son Gualtiero, who began to make a name for himself as a motorcycle tuner.

 

From his workshop came the first Harley-Davidsons with modified frames, elastic instead of rigid, and tuned Lambretta Innocenti scooters. With these, he achieved the world speed record in Monza in 1965, and in 1966, two world speed records at the Elvington circuit in England, which remain unbeaten to this day for the standing quarter-mile and flying kilometer. Following these sporting successes," they continue, "the production and commercialization of Ancillotti tuning kits for Lambrettas, sports seats, and exhausts began.

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In 1967, Ancillotti began producing motorcycles under its own brand. Thanks to the innovative ideas and constructive inventions of Alberto, Gualtiero's son, including the Pull-Shock system, these motorcycles achieved numerous victories in national and international competitions. Ancillotti also achieved significant commercial success, evolving from a craft-based operation into a structured company with a modern production site and assembly line in Chianti, Sambuca Val di Pesa (Florence) in the early 1970s.

 

This growth led to an annual production capacity of about 3,000 units, totaling over 40,000 vehicles built. More than 100 motorcycle models were produced here, including enduro, cross, trial, regularity, and competition bikes, all renowned for their high performance, making them a status symbol for off-road enthusiasts and an icon in the sector. The most famous model was the Scarab, available in 50 c.c. and 125 c.c., highly coveted by many young riders of the time.

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"Production continued until the mid-1980s," Massimo Viti recounts, "when the pressure from competition, especially from major Japanese manufacturers, became unsustainable. In 1995, the Ancillotti Historical Register was created and registered with the FMI, along with the Scarab Club, founded by Alfredo Gramitto Ricci (Ricordi Publishing), who set up a museum dedicated to the brand in Milan, featuring over 180 motorcycle specimens."

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From 1986, Alberto Ancillotti transferred his expertise from cross motorcycles to mountain bikes. By the late 1980s, the brand became a leading name in competitive enduro and downhill cycling, achieving significant success, including the national title in 1992, two world titles in 1993 and 2009, and wins in the DH and Enduro World Championships in 2019, 2020, and 2023. In 2005, brothers Alberto and Piero Ancillotti sold the brand," Viti explains, "and the new owner incorporated them into Ancillotti Motorcycles Srl in 2009." In 2018, Ancillotti Motorcycles was sold to its current owners, a group of Tuscan entrepreneurs.

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Today, the holding company owns 100% of the shares in the Ancillotti group and boasts around twenty brands, managing the three main business areas separately: motorcycles, bicycles, and co-branding. "The Ancillotti Motorcycles division focuses on the design and development of new Enduro and Cross motorcycle models," they explain, "both with thermal and electric engines, as well as the research and creation of integrated electric motors for MTB and Gravel bikes, and the design and construction of EU-certified batteries. Additionally, we handle custom modifications for Caferacer motorcycles, artisanal production of sports seats and exhausts for vintage Lambrettas, and the development of custom tuning kits for the new Lambretta Special models, which will be presented by summer 2024."

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The second core business is bicycles. This sector, which began in the late 1980s thanks to Alberto Ancillotti, is managed by him and his son Tomaso under license from Ancillotti Motorcycles. "Ancillotti has created true masterpieces over these forty years: downhill and Enduro MTBs," they recount. "These are ultra-high-performance competition bikes made from 7020 aluminum, handcrafted to order in around one hundred pieces per year. Built in Italy with certified supply chains, they represent excellence from Florence, although frame production has recently moved to Ivrea. Today, Alberto designs and develops new competition MTB models in aluminum and carbon for the Ancillotti brand."

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Other areas of development include: fashion, with the new Iconic T-Shirt collection in collaboration with Gerard Loft Firenze; sneakers; and luxury watches, with a co-branding partnership between Ancillotti and Allemano Time Torino, which will see the release of two models, Day Time Cross Ancillotti Motorcycles 60th Limited Edition, by summer 2024. Additionally, a book on the historic brand will be published soon.

 

These steps, along with the inclusion in the Special Register of Historic Trademarks of National Strategic Interest, project Ancillotti's glorious past into a future of new opportunities.