Fratelli Guzzini is among the new entries at Milano Home. The Marche-based company participates in the Milanese event with a range of proposals and solutions for the world of tableware and kitchenware. We interviewed the CEO, Sergio Grasso, to learn about the objectives and purposes of the Italian brand and to get a preview of the offerings at the fair.

Aesthetics, functionality, quality: these are three elements to which Guzzini has always paid great attention. How are these aspects combined in business planning?

"These three elements must never be missing in our products. Aesthetics, because Guzzini has always made use of the collaboration of national and international designers to bring beauty to the daily lives of its customers; functionality is a must because we were born with a payoff that encompasses the profound meaning of the concept of functionality 'Design to be used,' and quality is our point of pride: creating durable objects, made with food-safe materials and, for several years now, also capable of respecting the environment thanks to second-life raw materials characterizes our production."

What are the characteristics that give value and strength to a product?

"I would say that the ability to bring innovation, to offer products that have a story to tell in terms of aesthetics, materials research, and colors are an excellent starting point for differentiating oneself in a crowded and complex market. Furthermore, Guzzini focuses on brand credibility: translating promises into tangible realities, such as all our commitment to sustainability, is fundamental to building customer loyalty."

Stylistic innovation, research in form and decorations, impactful aesthetics, new colors applied to best-selling collections.

Collections for the home; accessories for the table and kitchen, furnishing accessories. The Guzzini world is wide and colorful, and that of plastic and color is a characteristic that the Marche-based company first brought to the home segment.

Can you anticipate some new product/collection news for 2025?

"There are many new products that we will present this year. Three worlds that we will explore through our new products: the kitchen with three collections of pots designed by Spalvieri&DelCiotto, a pair of designers who have been collaborating with us for many years; three collections for the table: Vanity, our flagship for 2025 thanks to the completeness and depth of the range, the stylistic innovation, a contemporary and impactful aesthetic, and last but not least a collection made of bio-based material, further proof of our concrete commitment to sustainability.

For the mise en place, we will present Josephine, a refined collection with researched shapes and decorations, and Riviera, fresh, bright, and smart. All three collections bear the signature of Pio and Tito Toso, Venetian designers who have brought the preciousness of Venetian glassmaking tradition declined on our materials to Guzzini. The decorations of Josephine and Riviera are by Rosy Grigolon. Furthermore, there will be new colors applied to best-selling collections such as the Murrine and a fashionable line of thermal bags designed for food consumption outside the home."

Specialized retail is a fundamental partner and precious ambassador of Guzzini.

How do you evaluate the relationship between Guzzini and specialized retail?

"It is one of the fundamental pillars of our development path. We evaluate it extremely positively, both for the mutual trust that has been built over time and that allows us to face market challenges and seize opportunities together, and for the common goal of putting the consumer at the center of our commitment, each for their own areas of expertise. Together we try to better understand the needs of our customers, anticipate their desires and, above all, offer solutions that combine quality, innovation, and design, always in the name of respect for the environment.

We are convinced that only through continuous dialogue and a common vision of intent is it possible to create a truly fulfilling purchasing experience. For this reason, we will continue to further strengthen the link with specialized retail, a fundamental partner and precious ambassador of our values."

Creativity is a basic element of the design process, two concepts that have always distinguished Fratelli Guzzini products. The former stimulates innovation, while functionality supports design. Together with constant research and innovation, are these the ingredients that give Guzzini the role of a leading brand internationally?

"I believe that design combined with functionality is the combination that best represents us in Italy as well as abroad. Well-made objects, easy to use, that are space-saving or dishwasher-safe, that are stackable or that allow you to see the contents inside a box. These and many others are the aspects of functionality that our products offer, always combined with an impactful and original aesthetic. I believe that our strength also lies in the people who collaborate in the construction of our products, from designers to decorators, not forgetting all those who take care of the technical and production aspects."

2023 saw an increase in corporate profitability. In light of an international scenario characterized by uncertainties and turbulence, what objective does Fratelli Guzzini set for itself in the short and medium term?

"2023 was a significant year for Fratelli Guzzini, with results that confirm the solidity of our strategy and the strength of our business model. Our commitment for the short and medium term is clear: to continue creating value, side by side with our distribution partners, whom we consider true allies in building a sustainable and shared growth path.

Our approach starts from a deep conviction: the quality of the products, the excellence of the service, and the ability to represent authentic Made in Italy are not only competitive advantages, but values that transmit trust, especially in difficult times. Made in Italy, in fact, is not only synonymous with style and quality, but also with safety, reliability, and speed of the supply chain, aspects that make the difference today.

Guzzini has acquired a majority stake in Domo, a Marche-based company producing cookware.

In line with this vision, we have acquired a majority stake in Domo, a company that has been operating successfully for thirty years in the non-stick pots and pans sector. Our strategic objective is therefore to promote and extend a sustainable and authentically Made in Italy industrial model, now also in the cookware sector, to offer design and high-quality products, supported by a reliable and efficient production chain.

We look to the future with determination and enthusiasm, investing in innovation and sustainability, with the aim of offering the market solutions that combine beauty, functionality, and responsibility."

What do you expect from the next edition of Milano Home?

"We are returning to MILANO HOME after several years of absence. We felt it was necessary to participate in this event, precisely this year, because we have so many new products to present, a renewed management, an acquisition, that of Domo, a Marche-based company producing cookware, to share with our customers. 2024 was a year of large investments both from a production and industrial point of view.

We believed that, while many are increasingly turning to the Far East to produce cookware, it was important for us to continue to strengthen our identity as an Italian manufacturing company that offers Made in Italy products. We wanted to tell all this here, to our sales force, to our Italian and foreign customers, to our press and to all those who will do us the honor of visiting our stand."

How much of the production is destined for export?

"Fratelli Guzzini is a company projected towards the international market; exports represent about 40% of our production. Europe remains a reference market, with countries such as France and Germany expressing a high appreciation for our Made in Italy. The strength of our brand is expressed on a global scale, thanks to a path of growth and consolidation that has led us to be present in numerous world markets. The United States, for example, represents a strategic area where our design and Italian quality are increasingly recognized and requested. Latin America is also becoming a region of growing interest for our commercial development."

Sustainability is an issue that cannot be ignored today. What do you do to promote responsible interaction with the environment?

"Sustainability is a very present issue for Guzzini. We addressed it already in 2018 by creating the first collection – Tierra – made entirely with second-life raw material, post-consumer recycled PET, and from there we have not stopped. We have continued to invest in research, reaching the point of producing entire collections with bio-based materials, such as the latest VANITY collection, raw materials derived from organic waste. We are also one of the few companies that has chosen to voluntarily draw up the Sustainability report, which we have been publishing since 2020.

The document confirms how Fratelli Guzzini is one of the first companies in the world, the first in Italy in its sector, to 'produce new beauty from second-life materials.' The voluntary Sustainability report is a gesture that makes our commitment to this issue public, by free choice, even in the absence of regulatory obligation. Guzzini puts its sustainability objectives in black and white: production with the use of recycled plastic, use of recycled materials and biocompatible inks for packaging, zero production waste, self-production of energy from renewable sources. With these premises, the transition to a Benefit Corporation was a natural consequence. It was in 2022, in fact, that we achieved the status of Benefit Corporation, which places us among the companies that include in their statute the commitment to operate in a responsible, sustainable, and transparent way towards the environment and people."