Has anyone mentioned yet the obvious point that Italian names just sound cooler? Colnago and Bianchi and Tomassini and Battaglin and Bottechia all just sound exciting. (By contrast, Fondriest doesn’t, even though he was a great rider and his bikes look gorgeous). Much more so than Schwinn, or Raleigh or Peugeot, which all sound a bit utilitarian.
The aesthetics of the bikes, and the caliber and reputation of Columbus steel, and Campagnolo components, and Fausto Coppi with his Persol shades, are all part of what always looked cool whenever any of us got into cycling.
It’s also the race car effect. The analog to the Colnago or Bianchi was always Ferrari or Alfa Romeo. But Schwinn was an Oldsmobile, Raleigh a Morris Minor and Peugeot a, well, Peugeot.