Alpinestars was originally a technical safety gear manufacturer for motorcycle and auto racing (MotoGP, Motocross, Formula 1 and NASCAR), as well as extreme sports. They then went onto develop a fashion clothing division for men’s and women's sportswear lifestyle apparel, based upon Alpinestars' heritage in motorsports. Founded in 1963 by Sante Mazzarolo in Asolo, Italy, the company started out making hiking and ski boots, but quickly focused on making boots primarily for motocross racing. In the 1990s, the company branched out into manufacturing all types of protective and technical gear ranging from gloves and jackets to full leather suits for motorcycling and today they have offices in Los Angeles and Tokyo while the original headquarters and main research & development labs remain in Northern Italy. The company takes its name from the English translation of the Italian word for "edelweiss" (stelle alpine) which, when translated into English, literally means "Alpine stars".