Paolo Castelli SPA: from family business to international company
The group is among the protagonists at Expo 2015, furnishing Pavillion Italia
Paolo Castelli Spa stands as one of Italian small but active companies that will be a protagonist at Expo 2015. In particular, it will supply all the furniture for the Pavillion Italia. The enterprise has about 50 employees and manages renovations and decors for libraries, hotels, museums and airports within the national territory and abroad.
As most of Italian companies, Castelli's Spa origin is linked to the family. Mr. Paolo's great-grandfather started the business in Bologna with a small cabinetry in 1800s. Over the years, the trade evolved, becoming a supplier of some piece of furniture - such as Plia chair - exposed in MoMa museum in New York. In particular, Paolo Castelli Spa was created in 2011 from the union of Modular (specialized in curtains) and Domodinamica (a great brand of Italian design) with participation of Alberto Masotti as partner, detaining a 45% share.
The company structure is defined by Mr. Castelli as "simple and flexible" able to adapt to the different needs of the customers. Their production style can be defined "Kilometre 0", stressing the fact that everything is manufactured by local craftsmen, no more than 10 km far from the production site.
Precisely, Castelli commissioned some activities to Lombard and Venetian partners for Expo 2015. It represents a big challenge for the company since the pavilion will remain as an important shopping window of Castelli's skills for national and international potential clients. In fact, the successful Italian company now aims more and more to an expansion abroad.
All the same, Expo 2015 stands out as a greatest achievement and the President defined it "a commission of almost 7 billion Euros that make us extremely proud". Other landmarks that show the talent of the company are Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Milan and the internal set-up of three funicular railways on Mont Blanc. It is certain that Castelli's company excels as a successful Italian family story to encourage many others.
Follow @castaritaHK