Con and facere are the Latin words for confection. Con means “with” and facere means “to make or prepare.” Simply stated, confection refers to something sweet -- a fancy dish of edible treats like candy and pastries.

In the early 1600s, an Italian merchant, Francesco A. Carletti, introduced chocolate to Europe and, like Jackie Gleason always said, “How sweet it is.”

What Hershey, PA is to chocolate kisses, Perugia is to Perugina candies and Baci kisses.  Indisputably, Perugia of the Umbrian region is the chocolate capital of Italy. The town breathes and lives chocolate. They have the Chocohotel resort featuring chocolate ambiance, menu and amenities, manufacturer conventions, a chocolate museum and a chocolate maker’s academy.

To the forefront comes Luisa Spagnoli, who was born in Perugia in 1877. She was 22 when she was selling her homemade candied almonds in her husband’s drug store. They proved to be so popular and sales so brisk that she partnered with some investors to open a factory to produce these chocolates under the brand name Perugina in honor of her hometown.

In 1922, Spagnoli came up with another chocolate creation. She coated hazelnuts with dark chocolate and called them Cazzotti della Perugina (Perugina Punches).  They later took on the name of Baci or “Kisses.” In an ingenious marketing plan, Spagnoli packaged each candy in tin foil and included a sentimental romantic poem or thought. Sales went through the roof and Baci became Perugina’s signature product. The success made Spagnoli a very wealthy woman.

With so much money in hand and the Baci business doing so well, Spagnoli found time for a hobby and once again, her ingenuity paid off. She raised angora rabbits and, sure enough, she found a way to gently and harmlessly comb from these animals of their soft and delicate fur and then weave them into scarves, sweaters and apparel trimmings. At age 51, Spagnoli was in the clothing manufacturing business specializing in angora and soon after into other top-notch quality materials and designs.

Spagnoli SpA remains a success story with the great grandchildren absorbing the founder’s ingrained legacy of ongoing creativity, energy and ingenuity. Luisa Spagnoli, who died in 1935, will forever be remembered as one of Italy’s most remarkable women of business.