NAO History
En 1967 los hermanos Lladró adquieren una pequeña fábrica de porcelana cercana a la ciudad de Valencia (España) y en ella comienzan a trabajar con los mejores artesanos locales. Es el nacimiento de un nuevo estilo, para el que se forma a la plantilla y que da lugar a unas primeras creaciones comercializadas bajo el nombre de ROSAL. De acuerdo con los estándares actuales, el modelado de estas figuras puede parecer menos sofisticado, pero son creaciones rebosantes de encanto e inocencia, características que han sido muy cuidadas en su desarrollo posterior.
Rosal created pieces with themes that would endure as the brand evolved: focusing primarily on a life full of romanticism in an undefined idyllic time.
Following the success of the new brand, the next step came in 1975. The name of the collection changed to ZAPHIR and the factory moved to new premises with larger workshops, with a view to expanding the company in the future. ZAPHIR creations were more stylized and embraced a wider variety of themes. They were the natural result of the porcelain mastery gained by the young artisans.
The popularity of the brand in the USA spread rapidly, confirming it as an internationally renowned brand. This led the Lladró brothers to search for a different business name and to work towards introducing themselves into other international markets. NAO borrowed its name from the old sailing boats from the time of Columbus, and symbolizes a return journey to origins, conveying creativity, skill and magic. This is how the dream of the Lladró brothers came into being: to make porcelain figurines affordable for lovers of beauty.
Today, the Lladró brothers’ original small workshop has now become a corporation where hundreds of artists work every day, producing creations which are sold all over the world.
Evolution of the Logo
The NAO logo has evolved over the years, undergoing slight modifications until reaching its current image. This logo is a guarantee of the authenticity of the brand’s figurines.
The first creations were commercialized in 1967 under the name Rosal. In 1975, it is replaced by Zaphir, coinciding with the expansion of the factory and the opening of its new premises. The NAO brand was born in 1982, and it was then when the logos emerged, with their subsequent modifications: