Christian Delunas, retail general manager of Italian Idea, said the family opened the first store in Sarasota in 2017. However, the family tradition of working in Italian leather goods goes back to the 1930s.
“This is actually our third time opening here,” he said. “We first opened in 2018 but had to close because of the pandemic. Then we opened another store last year, and we had to close it because of the hurricanes. This is our third time.”
Nothing could dampen the owners’ excitement as they settled in for what they hope will be their final reopening on Oct. 25.
“St. Armands Circle is a beautiful place,” he said when asked how they decided on their secondary location. They opened the first Sarasota location at 136 S. Pineapple Ave…