Ruggieri Family

“Elegance can be learned, style cannot…”

In 1886 Innocenzo Lorenzo Ruggieri, born in 1849 and of Abruzzese origin, arrived in Cagliari with his family, where in the Marina district he carried out commercial activities of various kinds. In his emporium under the Portico of Sant’Antonio one could find everything, from fabrics to paintings, from gold to accessories, needle and thread, skeins of wool, suitcases and much more.

Ferdinando Ruggieri, the eleventh of his children, a boxing enthusiast, together with his wife Anna Pirlo, a devoted mother and tireless worker, continued his father’s activities, dedicating himself in particular to the thriving retail and wholesale trade of canvases and fabrics in the Marina district.

With the help of his wife and his four children Ruggero, Lucia, Marialuisa and Innocenzo, Ferdinando also ventured into the construction sector and in 1973 opened the doors of the Sardegna Hotel.

Ferdinando’s children, pioneers of prêt-à-porter in Cagliari in the 1960s, also intensified their commercial activities with great skill and passion, eventually managing 12 prestigious clothing, footwear and accessories stores featuring the best national and international brands.

Ferdinando’s eldest son, Ruggero, a graduate in Economics, first an athlete and then President of Amsicora from 1983 to 2009, the oldest sports club in Sardinia (whose stadium hosted the historic Scudetto victory of Cagliari football team led by Gigi Riva in 1969–70), took charge of the hotel from its opening, making a significant contribution to the development of tourism in Cagliari.

In 1989 Ruggero, engaged in other business sectors, passed the baton to his brother Innocenzo, also a graduate in Economics, who from a young age had distinguished himself for his determination and love of sport, particularly athletics, a discipline in which he achieved the Sardinian absolute record and the Italian university title in the 400 metres hurdles, the Italian university title in the 4×100 relay, 25 Sardinian titles in various events, including 2 absolute Sardinian titles in the Decathlon and several in the 100, 200 and 400 metres and relays, as well as having been called up for national team training camps.

Innocenzo, known to everyone in Cagliari as Lilli, endowed with a keen business instinct and great determination, over the years redeveloped the hotel structure by improving the common areas and rooms through significant investments and meticulous attention to detail, supported by his nephew Gianluca and his sister Marialuisa (owner of the prestigious Seventyfive boutique for over fifty years), wife of Giorgio Mazza, former owner of the most important cinemas in Cagliari, who with her innate aesthetic sense contributed to furnishing the renewed Sardegna Hotel with valuable antiques, transforming it into a luxurious and modern 4-star hotel.

Since 1994, Marialuisa’s son Gianluca Mazza, a lover of sport and nature, after achieving numerous successes as a tennis player and obtaining a degree in Economics and Commerce, has managed the family businesses and the Hotel, preserving its efficiency and family atmosphere in an environment that is always well cared for and highly professional.

The La Scala restaurant, the flagship of the hotel, has become increasingly renowned over the years and has distinguished itself, even among local Cagliari clientele, for the authenticity and freshness of the finest local ingredients, the skill of the Chef and the courtesy of the staff.

With the same unmistakable style, in 1992 the Ruggieri family purchased and restored the Antico Caffè, the city’s most illustrious historic café founded in 1855 in Piazza Costituzione at the foot of the Bastion of St. Remy, protected by the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, restoring it to its former glory. Even today, as in the past, this literary café, awarded by Gambero Rosso with the highest rating (3 cups and 3 coffee beans) among the 11 best bars in Italy, is an integral part of Cagliari’s history and daily life.