The Italian consumer electronics brand Phonola was originally incorporated by the Poss family in Saronno in 1929 as a manufacturer of insulation. In 1931, the company began producing and marketing radios and ultimately adopted the moniker Phonola. One of the firm’s more popular products was a phone-shaped radio, the Phonola 547, designed by the Castiglioni brothers in 1939. Other notable lines include the Neosinto and Telesinto. With the outbreak of World War II, Phonola’s production was suspended, but later in the 1940s it reassumed its operation and began producing objects for third-party brands including Grundig, Minerva, and Siemens. In 1969 the Phonola brand was taken over by Philips and production expanded to include monitors for medical equipment, among other things. In the 1990s Sèleco acquired the Phonola brand and in 1997 ownership passed to the Formenti group. After Formenti’s failure the Phonola trademark passed to Super // Fluo, and upon that firm’s closure in 2009, the mark was purchased by a new firm, Selek Technology, which still owns the rights today.
