Le Santorine

“Le Santorine”: two entrepreneurs (but first of all sisters) that become an hashtag

Our father had a butcher shop for 30 years in Cisternino, in Apulia region, precisely in the Itria Valley, where Trulli are our homes – yes, the traditional Apulian dry stone hut with conical roof that you can see in all kinds of postcards from Apulia.

He sold for years local meat, with passion and knowledge, growing up as a good craftsman but also as the young busboy of the shop.

After years selling meat and cold cuts from local firms, in 2000 he decided to build his personal and real company to make his passion a structured job. Finally he had the possibility to sell his own cold cuts: with Beppe and Piera (our super parents) Salumificio Santoro was born – and it would become our second home.

Things were going very well at first, then less, then badly, then truly bad.

Well, together, we pulled out all our resilience – which we didn’t even think to have: we focused on the production of high quality cold cuts, we made no compromises with anyone and we had to look for a new path, a new way to communicate what we were doing, but first af all we had to figure out  where to go and how two young girls could help their family to find the way for the entire family business to succeed.

We produce only by hand and only with excellent raw materials; we changed the corporate image, we aimed high, we chose the right fairs and then, step by step, effort by effort, things began to change!

Our company became one of the producers that gave birth to the Association of “Capocollo of Martina Franca”, the most well-known and appreciated local product, undisputed king of the Apulian norcineria, and restaurateurs arrived (starred and otherwise), then was the turn of Harrods Warehouses, in London… and we grew, slowly, more and more, everyday.

What about us two young ladies? Well, we become “Le Santorine” for everyone and an hashtag bears witness to that!

We are the two girls who, instead of making the “showgirls”, have chosen to work in a masculine world, mixing butcher business with girls passion around fashion and lifestyle. An example? Our last idea is a “recipe kit”: a glamour clutch pochette – signed by Santoro – in which you can find indications to do “orecchiette al Capocollo” and all the ingredients to do it (with some slices of Capocollo di Martina Franca in pole position, of course!). In few words, we try to change a masculine world, as the one of cured meats is, make it beautiful, lively, new: for girls like us!

Day by day we think about new gadgets, ideas, outfits and gifts for our “followers”, matching together artisanal friends for collaborations that make GREAT our food world and not only.

We want to be glamorous but with substance: for us, that is key. Tradition and local knowledge don’t mean old rules.

Today, with a turnover that becomes important and a team of 13 collaborators working together with the same passion everyday, people from all over the world come to visit us to see how a Capocollo of Martina Franca is made.

Well, we can say that we try to do our best everyday and mom and dad are proud of us, the one and only thing we care about.

Santoro sisters

We are two sisters: Angela and Micaela Santoro.

I’m Angela, born in 1986, graduated in economics with a residency on Facebook and Instagram; in the company founded by my father I deal with marketing and communication, but also with eating – quite a lot with eating, actually…

Then there’s Micaela, my little sister, born in 1989, blonde for a long time and platinum since a few years; precise and punctual, in our company she deals with administration and accounting, agents and banks and she has a great, enormous talent: selfies!

We are girls in a men’s butcher world, and we try to change it a bit…

Santoro Butchery

Le Santorine

Le Santorine