The Shop of a Florentine Mercer, Lapino di Vico di Lapino: Goods, Consumption and Clientele Between Urban and Regional Markets in Early-­Quattrocento Tuscany

Fashions and attitudes towards consumption, already in the aftermath of the Black Death, were rapidly evolving, accompanied by a gradual increase in the purchasing power of the population, who, especially in the first half of the 15th century, was able to devote ever larger sums of money to the purchase of a wide range of items. This is reflected in the increasingly diverse nature of products placed on the market. Professional categories like the mercers (it. merciai) satisfied many needs, meeting tastes and tickling desires and vanities. All this is echoed in the accounting records contained in the Ricordanze of a Florentine merciaio, Lapino di Vico di Lapino. The register, which shows all the sales he made between 1415 and 1424, is of great importance for a analysis of the day-­to-­day activity of a medium entrepreneur, but above all for the understanding of a series of issues concerning the nature of the goods he sold, his clientele, and the urban and regional market within which he operated. What emerges is a multifaceted world of relationships and business practices specific to various production and distribution sectors. This highlights the remarkable variety of commodities that were supplied by artisans shopping at the Florentine mercers, who operated between retail and wholesale distribution.

Keywords: Florence, 15th Century, Mercers, Retail Market, Wholesale Market, Consumption.

Alessia Meneghin, La bottega di un merciaio fiorentino, Lapino di Vico di Lapino: merci, consumi e clienti tra spazio urbano ed extra urbano nella Toscana del primo Quattrocento in "STORIA URBANA " 176/2023, pp 5-26, DOI: 10.3280/SU2023-176001