The House of Salvatore Ferragamo has been Italy's most famous shoe brand for almost a century. Over the years of its existence, his clients list included all the movie stars and celebrities of his time, among them Audrey Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe and Margaret Thatcher. The House of Salvatore Ferragamo owns over 20,000 models in its shoe library and held over 350 patents, some of which are the cork wedge, the ballerina flat, and the gloved arch. The founder of the House, Salvatore FERRAGAMO (1898-1960), was born to a poor family as the 11th of 14 children and discovered his passion for shoemaking at an early age. He was 9 years old when he made his first pair of shoes for his sister’s communion and then went to study shoe making in Naples. When he was 13 he opened his first shop in his parents’ home in Bonito. In 1914, when he turned 16, he joined one of his older brothers in America, where he was working for a shoe factory in Boston. Machines and modernity were fascinated Salvatore, who however was concerned about the quality of those products. In the beginning of the 20’s, FERRAGAMO moved to Santa Barbara, California, where he opened a shop as a cobbler. In the meantime he began to study human anatomy, chemistry and mathematics at the Los Angeles university. During his stay in California, he patented an internal steel support, the "shank", which solved the problem of distribution of body’s weight on the arch of the foot. This support allowed the shoes to become lighter but resistant. In 1923 he opened the "Hollywood Boot Shop" and started to make shoes for movie stars such as Joan CRAWFORD and Gloria SWANSON, as well as for such films as Cecil B. DeMille's feature film "The Ten Commandments". In that time he officially got the title “Shoemaker of the stars”. In 1927 he decided to return to Italy, where he settled his business and laboratories in Florence, which have been always renowned as a city of incredible artisans, specialized in crafting leathers. The current shoemaking company regards 1928 as the date of its foundation, however, and it therefore celebrated its 80th anniversary in 2008. During the years after WWI, the House of Salvatore Ferragamo successfully exported its products to USA. The Wall Street Crash of 1929 blocked the exportations and FERRAGAMO was forced to declare bankruptcy in 1933. However, his business was to sell shoes, not only to the American market, but also to the rest of the world. In 1938 he was already able to buy Palazzo Spini Feroni, one of the great palaces of Florence where he settled the shop and a couple of laboratories. Today this building houses the store, the museum and the headquarter of the House. The company flourished after World War II, expanding the workforce to 700 craftsmen producing 350 pairs of handmade shoes a day.[citation needed] After Salvatore's death in 1960, his widow Wanda took over the running of the business and expanded its operations to include eyewear, perfume, belts, scarves, bags, watches, and a ready to wear clothing line.