Category: Supplier Profiles

CategoriesSupplier Profiles

Dal Negro – Italy’s leading backgammon and game manufacturer

Posted on November 30, 2012by julian

Dal Negro is one of the leading game manufacturers in Italy. The company was once renowned only for its playing cards, but has since established an enviable reputation for the board games it products – like our specialised backgammon and chess sets. When we want luxury backgammon sets, these are the guys we go to – and they have recently released a new and improved backgammon range.

Don’t be surprised to find other manufacturers who copy their designs, the quality and finish of their backgammon sets are so good that games from other manufacturers often pale in comparison. Dal Negro have some of the finest products on the market, and we are delighted to sell them to our customers.

Company Origin

Dal Negro was originally owned by an Austrian company in 1795. Its staple products were playing cards which it produced for 170 years until the end of World War I. In 1928, after the end of WWI, the company was sold to the Dal Negro Family and from this grew into the company that we recognise today.

After its purchase, Dal Negro expanded and improved their product range, with the help of new technological advancements. In time, what was once a small company based in Austria became a globally recognised brand, supplying the world with their playing cards. As the company grew further it gradually started to make specialised backgammon sets, gaming boxes and similar products.

Before long the company’s expansion and enormous growth compelled it to look for larger headquarters which is when it moved to the Viale F.LLi Bandiera, Treviso in North East Italy from its original factory in Piazza Tommasini.

Popular Games and Merchandise

Dal Negro is now most commonly associated with playing cards, backgammon sets and games. Alongside this the brand also make an assortment of other merchandise like watches and accessories.

Dal Negro’s classic backgammon sets include the Dal Negro Luxury Composite Backgammon Set which comes with a resilient brick red fabric with red stitching on the inside. The playing pieces are extra large and come in a beautiful Prussian blue and chartreuse with a lilac background. Inclusive items include pearlescent effect rubber lined dice shakers with dice. The playing stones also have Dal Negro etched on both sides as well.

Game Sets

Dal Negro’s wooden or Topina leather sets are also popular with our customers. Each set is intricately designed with an attention to detail that is exceptional. In other words, a Dal Negro backgammon set isn’t just a board game; it is a work of art. Dal Negro’s latest Deluxe fabric Backgammon is a perfect example.

Other games in the company’s range include specialised chess boards, chess pieces, playing card boxes, dealer sets, dominoes cases, and miscellaneous board game accessories.

What makes Dal Negro Special

The quality and finish of its products, and the company’s heritage, are the main reasons Dal Negro is such an exclusive brand.

Dal Negro has also expanded as a business by offering merchandise like specialised game cards depicting Disney characters, clothing and writing accessories. The company offers merchandise for both men and women in the form of exclusive watches as well as accompanying accessories like an assortment of jewellery boxes for watches.

Looking at their products it is easy to see why Dal Negro enjoy the popularity that they do. 170 years has seen the company evolve from producing simple playing card decks to backgammon sets that are a work of art.

CategoriesSupplier Profiles

Studio Ann Carlton – Supplier Profile

Posted on November 17, 2012by julian

Even a chess set can take you places if it is manufactured like a work of art. SAC chess sets are a sight to behold. The UK based company is world famous for their amazingly themed chess sets. The fact that their most famous products are licensed was enough for us to choose them as one of our suppliers. SAC also happens to be our main suppliers for themed chess sets.

SAC – a History

SAC, or Studio Ann Carlton, was first established in 1969 in Hull, Yorkshire. Traditionally all of their products were manufactured in the UK. However, in 2003 the company was sold to Traditional Games and some of their manufacturing was moved to China, with design and development remaining in the UK. In fact, all SAC line poly resin chess sets are currently being manufactured in China while their wooden chess sets are produced in India. Needless to say, SAC chess sets literally travel the whole world before they are ready for distribution and purchase.

The quality of each set has remained intact throughout the manufacturing process. It shows too. Most of their chess sets were recently introduced and exhibit the skill and craftsmanship that is typical of the sculptures of Studio Ann Carlton.

Themed Chess Sets

Nearly all SAC products exhibit historical characters and settings. The chess sets are designed according to a broad range of themes depicting significant events in history that changed people, cultures and civilizations. Some sets are also designed around famous fictional characters and stories like Alice in Wonderland or Sherlock Holmes.

The amount of research that shows is also astounding. In fact, themed chess sets from popular fiction and media have been designed according to how they were introduced commercially. For instance, the figures from SAC’s Sherlock Holmes chess set are based on the original illustrations that appeared in the “Strand” magazine in 1890.

 

What makes SAC Chess Sets Special?

To say that every SAC chess set is a work of art is almost an understatement. All of the pieces are handmade and are finished with traditional brown or cream colours. Each piece is also sculpted and painted with painstaking detail. Many of the chess pieces are composed of ground stone which is in turn cast and fired thereby making SAC sets some of the most durable sets around.

A work of Heart

Unlike traditional factory made chess sets, the sculptured pieces themselves take months to complete in the hands of an SAC craftsman. Creating the chess sets has more to do with ensuring that the characters are anatomically correct from the sandaled toes to the top of a tiara. Extra care is taken to ensure historical accuracy where appropriate.   The figures are also put through various casting processes until the production moulds are created without having to lose any of the detail.

We receive a lot of orders for chess sets from this company and it is easy to see why. The timeless skill of Studio Ann Carlton artists have been refined to perfection and are enough to make the company one of our best suppliers for themed chess sets.