By the end of the 19th century, Luino was a heavily industrialised town; the textiles industry being particularly strong here, due to the many water courses which could be used to power the machinery and many textile factories were set up in the local area by Swiss industrialists. Although some shadows of this past trade do remain in the names of local streets and villas (Villa Hussy, via Stehli in the neighbouring Germignaga), the activity in this sector has now diminished considerably.
