In 1934, the brothers Giovanni and Giacomo Canali founded a tailoring workshop dedicated to the manufacture of high quality clothing. In the 1950's - with the contributions of the family's second generation - sales swelled. As the firm specialised in fine menswear, its presence began to influence the Italian market. By the mid Seventies, the firm had opened its doors to foreign buyers, and exports consumed 50 percent of the entire Canali production in 1980. The range of Canali products broadened with the launch of the Canali Proposta and Canali Exclusive lines, as well as expanding to encompass an accessories collection of shirts, ties, belts, shoes and the distinctive line of Canali Sportswear.