The processing of gold in Valenza can be traced back to the initiative of Vincenzo Morosetti, who in 1845 opened a laboratory by calling two skilled workers from Alessandria to assist him: Franceso Zacchetti and Carlo Bigatti. In reality, a statistic from a few years ago already records the presence of two goldsmiths, two watchmakers and two sellers of gold objects in Valenza. Presumably these were modest businesses, both in terms of size and quality, whose product, often costume jewellery, was intended for local customers. Morosetti, thanks to his experience, apparently acquired through emigration, started a production of a certain quality using more refined production techniques. Subsequently Bigatti and Zacchetti left the laboratory and started their own businesses. Carlo Bigatti's company based production on criteria that were no longer artisanal, but with an initial form of division of labor.
The qualifications of its workers, revealed by a census, were: engravers, goldsmiths, enamellers, cleaners. In 1850 there were three goldsmith workshops in Valenza, in 1872 two more were added and, overall, they employed 110 workers. The following year, a well-travelled Valencian, Vincenzo Melchiorre, returned to his native city and opened a goldsmith's workshop, bringing the fruits of the technical experience and taste he had acquired first in Turin in the Twerembold atelier, then in Paris in the Second World War. Empire, then the European temple of fashion and luxury, at Vaubourzeix Boucheron, and then again in the new Italian capitals, in Florence at Marchesini and in Rome.
Melchiorre's production was of a higher quality level than the Valencian average, he used precious stones and set them in an artistic way in jewels. In 1911 Melchiorre & C. employed 86 workers. His example was followed by other companies: Raselli Nicola (1875), Cunioli e Repossi (1880), Marchese e Gaudino (1882). The birth and growth process of what would become the gold district was therefore achieved thanks to knowledge acquired abroad and through imitation by qualified workers, through a process of quality improvement. At the beginning of the new century, in 1902, a Cooperative of Producers of Jewelery Products was founded, an anonymous company with unlimited capital, whose members were mostly specialized workers and whose production, on the eve of the First World War, stood on a value of 220,000 lire.
At that date there were at least 44 goldsmith companies in Valencia, of which 8 employed more than 25 workers. The raw material, gold, was purchased mainly on the Milanese market, the precious stones came not only from Milan, but also from Paris, Amsterdam and Antwerp. As for the machinery, since 1840 the Mino GB company had been present in Alessandria, an esteemed factory of goldsmith machinery, which served the Valencian producers. Around 1910, the production of chains began in Valenza, which allowed for greater mechanization, even if the goldsmith's work remained largely manual work. Male labor predominated over female labor.
The women performed unskilled jobs, such as cleaning gold objects, which required patience, but not particular skill or preparation. Sales were initially aimed at the local market, then gradually spread nationwide after the Unification, while the first exports date back to the late nineteenth century and were directed towards South America. Sales took place thanks to a traveler, often the owner of the laboratory himself, who visited customers at their homes. A real boom in production occurred in the years following the end of the Second World War. Subsequently, the sector was strongly affected by the general trend of the economy. This trend, moreover, was present from the beginning: since we are dealing with discretionary and luxury goods, the contractions in sales are very evident in periods of negative economic conditions. The district, as recognized by the Piedmont Region, includes eight municipalities, three of which are in Lombardy, born through "budding".
Medium-small businesses still prevail, often working on sub-commissions, the supply chain is complete and includes jewellery, precious stone processing and costume jewellery. In 2007 the district's production covered 13.8% of Italian exports in the sector, which however were decreasing compared to previous years due to foreign competition.
In recent decades, the global jewelery market has seen the advance of internationally renowned brands and the entry of new producers such as India, China and Turkey. All this has created marketing problems for small and medium-sized Valencian businesses which have created the DiValenza brand for high-end goldsmith products.
