1957 - 2007
fifty years of collaboration fifty years of growth
introduction
Fifty years is just a blink against the vast age of the world, a breath of wind that seems to leave no trace. And yet the wind, even the lightest, can change the environment: shifting desert dunes, bending trees, spreading seeds‌.. Fifty years in man’s terms is a lifetime: half a century of memories; joys and sorrows, some forgotten, others still vivid; the ghosts of events that gave pleasure, the shades of sacrifices. They are people who have travelled life’s roads by our side, who remain by our side, or watch us from the other side, or people who have entered our lives much later, children, perhaps, or grandchildren, who have immediately filled our little world with tenderness.. The story of a commercial business may not seem as interesting as a biography, but when the company is fifty years old, and has been run with the same commitment by a single family, then things are different: then work is not just hard graft; growth in turnover is not
just a number; everything connected with the business is meaningful. The past becomes history, the present reality, the future an aspiration. Perhaps some may think that this is just another of the many businesses founded by one family member and developed by brothers, children and grandchildren, just like thousands of others in Italy and across the world, and they are not wrong. But by the same token, this company is worthy of just as much respect as others and its story deserves to be told and its anniversary celebrated. Every voyage begins with the first tentative step; the sea is made up of billions of drops: the world is a big place, made of small things. The fact that we humbly tell the story of this one small family firm does not mean we forget the thousands of others. We hope this short account of a big anniversary can convey something of how the small can grow and one family’s determination can contribute so much.
I
The late 1950s: the first satellites go into orbit and the first computers are being developed. The war is over, or at least the bombing, the war of words between east and west is in full swing, nations invest in technology to show their superiority. Countries devote time and energy to the reconstruction effort, but still find time for invention and research. In Italy the economic boom is just beginning. The European Economy Community is founded in Rome. Televisions light up Italian houses and the roads buzz with Fiat 500s. Livorno too, moves with the times and the rest of the country. Most of its monuments are destroyed during the bombardments of 1943 and although reconstruction is well underway the Old Fort remains a mini shanty town for the homeless until the 1960s. The town centre is slowly cleared of unexploded ordinances, many of the historic buildings are replaced with modern constructions: Livorno begins to look like 5
Retos
a modern post-war city. The end of the 50s is also when cultural life returned to normal: the Goldoni, the only theatre to escape damage during the war, re-opened with shows and concerts; the city hall was restored and Poccianti’s Cisternino became the centre for cultural events. Not everyone lived in comfort, but it was in this climate of renewed faith in the future that Piero Poggianti and his brother Marino followed their dreams and took their chances with a product they hoped would have a promising future: fiberglass. Marino Poggianti worked at Balzaretti Modigliani glassworks, founded in the 1920s in Livorno. The firm produced sheet glass and bottles and began production of fiberglass in 1934. During the second world war the factory was destroyed and it was only after reconstruction in 1944 that production of sheet glass and fiberglass resumed, followed in 1948 by bottles. In 1946 the company became wholly controlled by SaintGobain, which had begun acquiring shares in 1926. Piero Poggianti was a representative for a Florentine firm dealing in electrical materials. He worked alone, travelling all over Tuscany, Umbria and the Marches selling the company products. Life was untroubled for the two brothers, even if the economic situation could have been better: both were already married, but work filled their days and Piero was often away on his business trips. They were content with their lot, but nevertheless felt the urge to do something new, a hidden ambition for personal and professional growth, in step with the spirit of the 6
fifty years of collaboration, fifty years of growth
times as the country entered the boom years. But for dreams to come true you need patience, perseverance and opportunity. For them, the right moment came one sunny day in May. Marino, a foreman at Balzaretti Modigliani, well respected by his bosses, was given a particular task. The Swiss ambassador’s yacht was moored in Livorno and Balzaretti Modigliani were asked to make a mooring buoy of fiberglass. What they produced was only a prototype, but it was to be the start of something much bigger: the birth of fiberglass production, entirely made in Livorno, but which would be used in most shipyards in Italy and launch the firm of RETOS. The product made by Balzaretti Modigliani received much acclaim. The unexpected success of the first mooring buoy was like a light bulb going on in Marino’s head. He shared his idea immediately with his brother: to start business on their own, making fittings in fiberglass. The idea seemed hopelessly difficult, but the two brothers had the ambition to try. The decision was soon made. Let’s go for it! It was a challenge typical of the new Italy, two men with nothing but their bare hands, facing a new era: the era of technology and mass consumption. So it was that out of enthusiasm, a sense of challenge and especially with the support of their father Alfredo, the first to believe in the project (and also employed by Balzaretti Modigliani), Piero and Marino built a small corrugated iron structure in their father’s back 7
Retos
garden and in this “miniature factory”, with little time and whatever they could lay their hands on, made more mooring buoys, signalling buoys, lights for use in parks and public roads, along with other simple products which would become the workhorses of the new company. The first products were small and simple things, but they taught the brothers the art of fiberglass production. They may have only been accessories, but each was created by hand by a craftsman, and craft has remained a source of pride to RETOS. Both brothers keep their day jobs and devote all their spare time to the new enterprise, for this reason the firm is registered in their father’s name, Alfredo Poggianti. The first profits were used to acquire materials and tools for processing of fiberglass: the business has not yet made any economic returns for the families, but is growing, and its greatest asset is its investment in the future. A name is chosen: RETOS - Rappresentanze Elettrotecniche TOScane. The name seems to have nothing to do with production of fiberglass, but is connected with Piero’s work, it is his job as representative to publicize the company and sell its products. The name also hedges the brothers’ bet – if the worst comes to the worst, if the fiberglass venture comes to nothing, they can still use the name to sell electro-technical products. However, history has been kind and rewarded the brothers’ intuition – the name RETOS has remained throughout the company’s success. 8
fifty years of collaboration, fifty years of growth
It took only a few years for the products of the small company to multiply beyond the brothers’ dreams and the name, chosen for practical reasons and to ward off bad luck became a brand to be reckoned with, respected within the trade as a serious team producing quality products.
9
II
The 1960s: the fiberglass market is still in its infancy, but RETOS Livorno is one of the pioneers and the name is known throughout Italy. The corrugated iron factory is now too small and the two apprentices working with Marino and Piero are overworked. The company needs space to grow and they decide to move to premises in Piazza S. Marco, connected to another garden, this time Marino’s, but bigger, and the workforce expands too: five workers, along with the two Poggianti brothers. Now the company also acquires a symbol: a small, smiling frog which sits on top of the company name, but ready to leap at a moment’s notice. It was chosen because of its link to the family roots. The Poggianti family was originally from Siena, or more precisely from Monteriggioni, a garrison town under Siena. After a war between Florence and Siena, 10
fifty years of collaboration, fifty years of growth
the family was deported by the victorious Florentines to a swampy, unhealthy place in the province of Pisa. The frog is the symbol of this past life in the marshes, but also a good luck mascot, hopefully influencing the future of the name it sits on as it pioneers its fiberglass products. As company turnover grew so did the brothers’ families. First to arrive was Andrea, son of Piero and his wife Marisa, followed by Marino and Franca’s children: Alessandra and Erica, followed again by Piero’s second son, Pierluca. Taking care of a family and a fast growing firm is no easy task, day passes day and it seems that time does not exist, but although many sacrifices are made, the brothers’ wives and children are understanding and stand by them: for them RETOS represents the future, represents everything they did not have themselves as children and everything they hope for their own children, for them it is a bet on which all of their energy must be invested. By the end of the sixties the premises and garden rented in Piazza San Marco can no longer contain the overflowing RETOS and in 1968 Piero and Marino acquire land in Via Salvatore Orlando and construct two warehouses and an office building. The expansion is a huge economic sacrifice for the young entrepreneurs, but production follows the economic boom, work is constantly increasing and for the first time the two brothers enjoy a return on investment rather than ploughing it back into the company. 11
Retos
In little more than ten years production has tripled to meet demand: there seems to be no limit to the uses for fiberglass. The RETOS factory also makes products for external uses, linings for hulls, for cooling units and continues making marker buoys separating swimming from navigation areas, often in the shape of large bottles of Campari, commissioned by an advertising agency in Rimini: all Italian ports, from Castellammare di Stabia to Genova, from Molfetta to Trieste, commission RETOS products. The firm begins to participate in the first trade fairs, such as Milan, including international events, like the technical fair at Turin. Alfa Romeo chose RETOS as the company to present its fiberglass lined products at international level, as did Bombrini Parodi-Delfino S.p.a.. RETOS had finally been given its chance and Piero now has every confidence in its future: orders are growing exponentially, but he also feels the need to spend more time with his family. So, in 1968, he makes an important decision: to leave his job as a representative, where he is constantly on the road, and work full time for RETOS. Marino, however, decides to stay with Vetreria Italiana for the moment. So it was, that in the year of the barricades and paving stones, rejection of conventions and responsibilities, “Piero Poggianti’s RETOS� was founded: an act of courage and faith in the future. 1968 was also a landmark year for discoveries and science, only a few months later the first man walked 12
fifty years of collaboration, fifty years of growth
on the moon! At the start of the new decade Andrea and Luca start to play a part in RETOS, hoping to soon join their father at work. During summer holidays they begin to learn about the products and how they are made. They are still teenagers when Piero sets them to work and employs them as apprentices, knowing that the sooner they start making social welfare contributions the more secure their pensions will be. Making a fiberglass product is the work of an all round artisan: a technician who designs articles, skilled in carpentry and mechanics, who can work with colourings and has the ability to assemble with a finished product in mind. At the same time it means working full days on a production line, and being a representative, anticipating the client’s requirements and taking the product all the way from order to delivery. So Andrea and Luca learnt every phase of production step by step on the shop floor, by doing each of the jobs. When they finished secondary school, with diplomas as land surveyors, both started work full time in the family firm, which had meanwhile moved yet again. After the warehouses in Via Salvatore Orlando, RETOS seemed to have found the ideal premises in Via delle Cateratte (where it is to this day) and in 1979 Erica, Marino’s daughter, began to work with her father and uncle. Seeing their children grow and find their own feet, Piero and Marino decide to split the firm into 13
Retos
two halves, with complementary functions, with the proviso that they would reunite forces in cases of large orders. At the time when the new generation would take over the reins RETOS would comprise two sections: one specialized in aviation, producing markers and other materials for air traffic and the other specializing in marine navigation with products for boats. This division finally came in 1984. With the change of ownership, part of RETOS became ERMAPLAST, run by Erica Poggianti, specializing in moulding and processing of polystyrene, plastic and fibre materials. Piero Poggianti’s RETOS became RETOS - Piero Poggianti & Sons and, to help out her husband and sons, now working alone, Marisa Poggianti joined the team and clocked in every afternoon to Via delle Cateratte. To give his sons more faith in themselves and to allow them freedom to assume responsibility on their own and develop, as well as to diversify company interests, Piero set up RETOS DUE s.r.l., run exclusively by Andrea and Luca: a new company, completely separate from RETOS, specialized in products for the construction industry. It is a service company, which receives requests and finds products, linking supply to demand in the building sector. RETOS DUE is still going strong, flourishing alongside RETOS - fiberglass and represents the start of a new venture, but also the result of much hard work and the love of a father who wants a better world for his children. 14
III
By the end of the 1980s and the early 90s the bulk of RETOS’ orders were for components for naval constructions. The surge in orders forced the family to pick and choose the type of products and processing they could cope with. After producing a line of components for Fratelli Orlando in Livorno, RETOS entered the national market with Fincantieri of Trieste as principal partner. It was not long before an agreement was signed for 35 fiberglass components and benches, furnishing all passenger vessels. Piero Poggianti, in his eagerness to share the news of the Fincantieri agreement with his wife, slips on the stairs and falls. Luckily, he is not hurt and his enthusiasm still running high, he drives from Trieste to Livorno through thick fog to share the news with his sons. 15
Retos
Products for the naval sector now make up 70% of production and articles from the Livorno factory are distributed to other of the group’s shipyards. It is a unique opportunity for a “small provincial company” and RETOS seizes the moment. On behalf of, and in collaboration with Fincantieri, it studies new types of products and how to improve quality, often producing prototypes at the company’s own expense in the hope of eventual approval. All of the shipyards that receive RETOS products contact the company for new orders and products, including some for foreign shipyards. Orders increase yet again and RETOS changes legal status becoming a partnership: RETOS - Piero Poggianti & Sons snc. But all too soon the advantages of a huge and exclusive production prove to have a down side. Due to government policies and the collapse of the IRI (Institute for Industrial Reconstruction), Fincantieri, too, fell on hard times: state support was reduced and the naval sector was considered mature enough to cope with competition from Asian countries. Fincantieri tried to handle the emergency by shifting production to the cruise ship markets, but the acquisition of job orders for more than its industrial capacity only exacerbated the problems within the sector. Artisan businesses downstream in the supply chain feel the effects and RETOS is one of them: delivery times for orders are extended and a backlog of goods builds up in warehouses; payments are delayed and the cash 16
fifty years of collaboration, fifty years of growth
flow crisis is real and irremediable. But none of the employees is laid off. No RETOS employee has ever been laid off in all its years in business.The relationship between Piero, his children, and their employees has been and still is one of respect and honesty, something which has always been part of the company, which has always stood it in good stead. Of course, in fifty years of business, there have been times of crisis and mutual misunderstanding between employers and employees, as in every company; the same goes for the relationship between RETOS management and the trades unions – some letters by Piero to his workers are still kept in the company’s archives to bear witness to the fact. But disputes have been the exception not the norm and have always been resolved by open discussion and mutual desire to work together. The Fincantieri crisis made life very difficult for several years. So as not to lay off any staff, whether breadwinners with families to support, or youngsters who have yet to start a family and hope for a secure future, Piero decides to temporarily reduce all salaries, including his own and his children’s, and to reduce working hours: everyone must work and earn a wage, but less, in order to overcome the crisis. “The crisis in the industry affects us too - Piero wrote to his employees in 1992 – we have already prepared and warehoused part of the orders for 1993. Until more orders come in we’re going to have to ask 17
Retos
you to take any holidays due for this year as soon as possible. We regret having to do this but we must stay on our feet until the sector recovers, hopefully in the near future”. In 1993 he wrote: “In view of the extended crisis, the lack of orders, the difficulties in collecting payment; the lack of holidays, by now all used up, the reduction in turnover, in a last attempt to stay afloat we ask you to suspend payment of the salary increase under the contract agreed. We are driven to this in order to avoid layoffs….” And at the end of ‘93: “We can only avoid layoffs by applying the contract of solidarity for a period of two months, reducing the working week by one day….” Months go by and the situation, far from improving, seems to worsen. All of the sacrifìces made in the past year seem wasted. Not even the institutions can help. As a question of professional ethics, the Poggianti family has never mixed work and politics, but at times this policy has been tough. Piero and his sons try every avenue. But requests for funds only elicit a long series of refusals. All, however, is not lost. The cavalry arrives in the shape of EBRET (Ente Bilaterale Regional Toscano per l’Artigianato, the Tuscan regional board for craftsworkers), founded around that time, which arranged financing so that the firm could make it through the difficult period. So while other businesses peripheral to Fincantieri close shop or go bankrupt, RETOS tightened its belt and called on the strength that saw it through the early 18
fifty years of collaboration, fifty years of growth
days, pushed by the determination of the Poggianti family. Finally, Fincantieri came through the crisis, the cruise ship sector suddenly proved to be a winning bet. With the sector recovery, new assessments of production and cost cutting strategies work in Fincantieri’s favour and its service industries can once again breathe. New job orders arrive, work is back to normal in the space of a few months. But the crisis has left its mark, the difficulties have shown up some weak points: putting 70% of your eggs in one basket is risky and counter-productive. RETOS begins to diversify production, to take an interest in the road and rail transport sectors and studies how to undertake all production activities, such as assembly and painting, at its own premises. Contacts with private clients and large businesses increase. Big shipowners like Carnival, P&O Cruises, Costa, Holland America line and Tirrenia di Navigazione begin to do business with the company, ordering materials directly. The crisis is over, the storm has passed leaving clear skies and all eyes are now on the future. But sometimes problems seem to dog our steps. In 1994 Piero suffered a stroke and spent a long time in hospital. Difficult months for Piero and his family, with both work and his health to worry about. However, with his character and grit Piero came through and slowly recovered his strength. Convalescence at home, looked after by his wife 19
Retos
Marisa, is like a luxury prison for someone who has always spent the whole day hard at work. The stroke has left Piero without the ability to speak and this makes the situation still more difficult. Unless he can learn to speak again, what is the point of going back to work? It will be impossible to deal with clients or workers, his role in the company would change completely. However, this problem is slowly resolved and with help from an unexpected quarter: his oldest grandson, Gerardo. Day after day, he visits his granddad and helps him “do gymnastics” with his voice, making him articulate the words as best he can. Gerardo is still a child, but children with their lack of self-consciousness can sometimes be the best teachers and he proves to be a maestro of patience and determination. It takes almost a year but Piero is finally able to speak again and to return to work. His sons, now in charge, have steered RETOS through the months of convalescence. On his return Piero decides to turn the company entirely over to his sons. So with the new millennium RETOS ITALIA srl comes into being, with Andrea and Pierluca as partners, although RETOS snc remains as the owner of the buildings. It is apparently only a change of name – the staff remains the same, but the time is ripe for a new shift in production of fiberglass. Firstly, there is a new emphasis on quality and in a few years internationally recognized certifications are requested and obtained, guaranteeing the company’s 20
fifty years of collaboration, fifty years of growth
system of production and management, its resources, as well as the product itself. These include the LLOYD’S REGISTER certificate; the ISR (ITALIAN SHIPPING REGISTRY) certificate; MED Certificate; UNI EN ISO 9002. These certificates of quality and reliability ensure constant improvement and enable RETOS ITALIA to compete on the international market.
21
IV
There are those who believe in premonitions and those who think that everything is coincidence; some believe that our destinies are written and some that each individual creates his own life and future. Half way between these two camps is Andrea Poggianti, who one night dreamt he was talking business in Japanese with an American client, only to receive the next day a fax from the Hotel Okura, a satellite of “Mitsubishi Heavy Industries” (MHI), asking RETOS to supply components for two ships of the “Princess Cruises” line, part of “Carnival Corporation & plc”, currently in construction at the “Nagasaki Shipyard & Machinery Works” in Nagasaki. For RETOS ITALIA it was the dawn of a new era. The collaboration with the Japanese multinational is a unique opportunity for RETOS in terms of quality management for company products and for investing in the skill and potential of its employees. 22
fifty years of collaboration, fifty years of growth
Staff are motivated to give more and more, not without rewards of course, and not just economic. New working procedures are studied to conform to the high standards required; courses are organized to learn and improve English, so that everyone can communicate directly with the clients and quality inspectors: the Mitsubishi order is an opportunity to review employees’ conditions and how to motivate staff collaboration on the large project. A good company satisfies not only its clients but also its employees, putting them in positions of trust, enabling them to develop their skills and rewarding them with an appropriate salary. Quality became the watchword in RETOS, every shipment checked and double checked, for quantity and quality, first by RETOS and then by Japanese and English inspectors. In fact, it was the inspector for “P&O Cruises”, who had already had contacts with RETOS, who recommended the firm to Japanese manufacturers for the supply of fiberglass window boxes and his confidence in the company was not to be betrayed. Nothing was left to chance. It was a source of great pride at the end of the supply contract when the inspector for the Japanese company reported that RETOS was the Italian supplier whose contribution they valued most, in terms of product quality and delivery times. The feedback was important to the Poggianti team, who took the procedures involved as their guide for future orders. Word of mouth is the best form of advertising, especially in 23
Retos
this field, where a guarantee of product quality is the producer’s most important credential. Significantly, since 2003, the year in which collaboration with Mitsubishi terminated, RETOS ITALIA has always received a Christmas greeting every year from the managers and inspectors of the Japanese multinational. The end of the 90s and the new millennium also brought other changes to RETOS. Quality is now the main objective in every production area and the company is prepared to lose job orders rather than compromise on its results, but this strategy pays off in the long term. It was in these years that identifying labels were introduced for every part leaving the factory, ensuring a rigorous quality control system. The bar code, with an identifying number, is assigned by custom software made for the company. The system allows every part to be traced, from its processing all the way back to the raw material used, including the controls made and the client for whom it was ordered. It is the DNA of the article – entering the code in the computer reveals its origins and characteristics, enabling an identical copy to be made if required, or modifications to other pieces which are similar, correcting certain properties. New space was provided for processing, with further investments in premises: a new warehouse for parts and a shed for the print and painting shops which until then had been outsourced to third party bodyshops; 24
fifty years of collaboration, fifty years of growth
the new strategy enabled better control of the finished product - entirely within the company structure. Product diversification continued: RETOS entered the road transport sector with accessories for four-wheel drive cars and fittings for caravans and began work for the Austrian and Israeli Railways, making fireproof, waterproof casings for instrument panels in train carriages. In just a few years orders for caravans triple and brand names like Laika, Rimor and Giottiline turn to RETOS ITALIA for components and fittings. By now Andrea and Pierluca are the sole managers. Piero Poggianti is the general manager of RETOS ITALIA, but he leaves his sons complete freedom of action: he has entrusted his company to them, his “creation” and – sometimes a little unwillingly – he chooses to stand aside and watch his sons make the decisions, deal with clients and employees, organize the business. The RETOS staff is made up of the “faithful”: some have been with the company for more than thirty years, like Vito Cateni and Stefania Trecci, others for at least twenty: Flavio Benedetti, Daniele Di Fraia, Dario Migliussi, Maximum Filippi and Rodero Beyar Francisco (nicknamed Paco). Then there is Stefano Fiorani and Marco Barghi, who started in the early 90s; Riccardo Possenti, started in 2001 and Alfredo Sequieros and Samuele Cateni in 2006. These full time staff are joined by others working through temporary staff agencies. 25
Retos
There are also many firms working to RETOS orders or who simply collaborate on some job orders - a total of almost 50 workers who all depend on the company. Every year Andrea and Pierluca ask all clients to complete a questionnaire on product quality and relations to identify areas for change or improvement. But employee satisfaction is also highly important for the company, especially in terms of providing a safe and controlled working environment. Like every company working with materials such as polyester resins, lathes, machinery, hoists and trucks, RETOS is highly conscious of safety regulations for employees and provides training courses, both practical and technical, to ensure staff are appropriately protected. The company can safely say that it conforms to all current regulations. Technology is also helping to improve safety. RETOS is currently studying the possibility of installing a new system of production called RTM light. This is a production technique using the Resin Transfer Moulding process, which injects the resin into a cavity between mould and matched metal die: the procedure takes place in a vacuum so that there are no atmospheric emissions. RTM light represents the future of fiberglass processing because it ensures improvements not only in product quality, but also in the quality of the work itself. In these days of the Internet and hi-tech cell phones, of short term contracts and temp workers, when young people no longer want to get their hands dirty and look only for office jobs with short days and lots of 26
fifty years of collaboration, fifty years of growth
holidays, what is left to say about a company founded with whatever was to hand, built on the sacrifice, untiring work and courage of its owners? What more can we say of Andrea and Pierluca Poggianti’s still young RETOS ITALIA, to prove its credentials of quality and reliability? The constant commitment, character, business acumen and inter-personal skills of the Poggianti brothers, both first and second generation, along with the support of their families, have defined the character of this company. In the fifty years since the mooring buoy was handmade for the Swiss ambassador’s yacht a lot of water has passed under the bridge… But the spirit behind RETOS remains today in 2007, with its taste for a challenge undiminished: every day brings a new risk to take, a new battle to be won, with something to be learnt each time and applied in future cases. If the story of RETOS is just another of a business founded by a person and carried on by brothers, children, grandchildren, like thousands others in Italy and all over the world, this is not to say it is less worthwhile and should not be told. On this anniversary, it is only right that we should honour the people who have invested their life in making a dream come true for their children’s sake- a dream that will continue in the years to come. Because the future generation is here already: Gerardo, Tommaso, Gregorio and Giulio. Perhaps one summer day, they too, the children of Andrea and Pierluca, in the not too distant future, if they so choose, will learn 27
Retos
the ropes at RETOS. It may not be to their liking and they may choose another road, following their inclinations, or perhaps they will take to the company and dedicate their lives to it, as their fathers and grandfather did, but whatever the case, they will know that what they have in this company is a precious jewel.
28
Interview to Piero Poggianti
It is difficult to write about a company without allowing its owner a word, so we have added a short interview with Piero Poggianti, the company founder, who has given 50 years of his time, energy and enthusiasm to making RETOS the pioneering business it is. RETOS is 50 years old, half a century - for you as the company founder, it’s an important anniversary. How does it make you feel? “Many mixed emotions, although I’m not the kind of person who shows it much. I feel enormously grateful for all I’ve had, for this small creation which has filled my world. I feel a debt of gratitude to everyone who supported me, my father and my brother who are no longer with us and cannot celebrate this anniversary; my wife who has stood by my side throughout, or tolerated my absences, my bad moods, my late nights; my children who were often neglected by their absent father, although everything I did was for them – they have been my pupils and my teachers, advisors and pillars of support in times of crisis; my daughters-in-law Paola and Giulia who are so patient and understanding of our business needs and who have given me what someone my age values most: my four grandchildren, our future! I feel grateful also to everyone who has worked with me: RETOS would not be what it is without its workers. 30
Not forgetting our suppliers who stood by us during our times of crisis; the many other loyal collaborators and contacts we relied on and turned to for advice. And lastly in the production chain, our clients, who believe in us and appreciate our work and our products. The fiftieth anniversary should be celebrated, but it is also an opportunity to give thanks, to reassess the past and present and the future too”. What would you change if you could turn back the clock? Do you have any regrets? “No, I wouldn’t change anything, I have no regrets. Of course I have made mistakes, alone and together with my sons, but looking at RETOS today everything has turned out for the best, what more could I want?…. it would be churlish to want more”. Was there ever a time in those difficult years of sacrifice when you felt like throwing in the towel? “Disputes with employees were hard, and the period of recession, but I have always believed in facing difficulties square on and that’s what I have tried to do in these 50 years; problems only made me want to try harder. That said, when I had the stroke and felt really ill, I did feel tempted to just give up. But I couldn’t just abandon my sons like that, at least not at that stage…. slowly I recovered, and here I am today!”. What was your happiest moment in these 50 years? “When RETOS became the legal property of my sons. It was like seeing a dream come true. I created this 31
company for them, so they could have the chances I didn’t. I have always loved my brother and appreciated our collaboration together, but when, after the company was split up, one part went to Andrea and Pierluca, for me, it was the achievement of a lifelong ambition. Now, seeing them at work every day, I consider myself a happy man”. Do you have any words of advice for your grandsons, who one day may also work for RETOS? “I’d advise them to come into the factory every now and again, even now, at their age, as their fathers did years ago….. Without pressuring them, I’d like them to see what the work is, what it involves, and maybe one day it will be something they come to love. The eldest have already started coming, they’ve put on boilersuits and done their bit, and even received a small wage. It made me happy to see them. But I wouldn’t want to advise them, it would probably be counterproductive if they thought I was trying to force them: Gerardo, Tommaso, Gregorio and Giulio are free to choose for themselves, but they should know that RETOS will greet them with open arms”.
32