The Merchant of Prato

Rarely do we have the opportunity to read in detail about the marketing practices of a merchant active in the second half of the fourteenth century. Looking backward more than half the length of this millennium, one cannot help but be intrigued not only with all that has changed so significantly in the way that business is conducted but also, and more surprisingly, with what has remained in many respects essentially the same.

Francisco di Marco Martini, the Merchant of Prato referred to in the title, was born, as far as can be determined, in 1335. By 1350, he had left his native Prato to begin a career as trader and merchant in Avignon in France, at that time the seat of the Papacy. From that date until early in the next century, he was active in trade with his headquarters sequentially in Avignon, Prato, and Florence. Martini also operated with subsidiary partnerships or joint ventures in almost all of the then important centers of trade.