History

A Brief History of Necchi in the United States

All over the world Necchi is synonymous with sewing technology, in both domestic and industrial sewing. The origin of this worldwide success dates back to seventy years ago, when the first sewing machines left the foundries in Pavia, Italy; this represented the first turning point of Necchi's production. Steadily in step with the times and always ready to capitalize on every technological and design innovation, the present Sewing machines Division proudly keeps the role of ambassador of Necchi's images and creativity in the world.

In 1948, the American housewife was introduced to a sewing machine that performed sewing feats she didn't know existed. The Necchi Model BU zig zag head could sew on buttons, make buttonholes, overcast seams, sew decorative stitches, and blind stitch, all without attachments.

In 1952, Necchi marketed an attachment called a Wonder Wheel, touted as the first special appliance that made the sewing machine semi-automatic. The Wonder Wheel was activated by the balance wheel and used a pattern disc connected by a metal rod to the stitch width lever to make decorative designs. The Wonder Wheel extended the scope of the machine enormously and simplified the work of the homemaker who was then able to produce a variety of designs without even having to move a lever.

In 1955, the Necchi Automatic Supernova marked the third advancement in the history of modern sewing machines - a fully automatic machine which could produce hundreds of designs using drop-in cams. The Necchi Supernova Series machines incorporate a round needle plate that can be rotated to three different positions for straight stitching, zig zag, and decorative stitches.

The Supernova Ultra followed in 1958, incorporating "technical and aesthetic advancement", according to Necchi.

In 1961, Necchi introduced the advanced Supernova Julia. The Julia incorporated Necchi's "Micro-Electro Control, which controlled electricity to the sewing motor independent of the knee or foot control. The Micro-Electro Control helped to make buttonholes and decorative details automatically and shut the machine off when the buttonhole or design was complete

A man named Leon Jolson had represented Necchi in Poland before World War II. When the war came, he fled to the United States and opened a sewing machine repair shop in New York City. Mr Jolson thought that American women wanted something new in sewing machines and felt that Necchi was the answer. In February 1948, when Necchi debuted the first household zig zag machine (the BU), Leon Jolson and the Jolson Co. became the importers for Necchi, and began selling Necchis from a small rented office on Lower Broadway. It caused a lot of comment, but even though Necchi was a big seller in Europe and Africa, early sales in the U. S. were slow getting started. A few years later, the Jolson Company became distributors for both Necchi & Elna. (Stores called Necchi/Elna Sewing Circles). A few years after that, he started importing Japanese machines and stencil branding them as Nelcos, which he said stood for Necchi-Elna Co., which was what he considered his to be. Necchi & Elna did not see it that way, and both took their machines from him, leaving him with only the Nelco. Then Elna went with White and Necchi went with numerous regional distributors. Eventually, Necchi eased away from the regionals and went with Allyn International.
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