Made in Italy is an important concept for companies. It contains the narrative of an entrepreneurial history in addition to steering the majority of choices related to the production chain and the relationship with the region.
At times, however, Made in Italy can also seem like a cloak that businesses can don to gain more “appeal” abroad.
The history, the values and production at Santamargherita are closely connected to the area it is located in, Valpolicella, hence Italy. Both the majority of the raw materials and the components required for making marble agglomerates come from the so-called marble district, located exactly in this area.
To provide relevant food for thought to professionals, customers, or even simply anyone with a particular interest in the Made in Italy concept, I asked a few questions to the people directly involved, exploring the different points of view: those of the manufacturer and buyer.
Q. What exactly does it mean for you to have “Made in Italy” production?
A. We believe that Made in Italy stands for quality, care to detail, and skilled processing. As much as one might think that the expression has been hyped-up of late, it is a fact that no one outside of Italy is able to produce materials offering equal quality.
Q. Does producing in a given region also mean having professional relationships with the local craftsmen?
A. Without a doubt, especially for us since we work in an industrial district. Our company also partly depends on the surrounding craftsmanship: Santamargherita collaborates on a daily basis with subcontractors, who make it possible to offer our customers services that would otherwise be impossible to guarantee.
Q. From the point of view of the buyer, when making their choices, how important is it for them to have a product for their home or business that is Made in Italy?
A. Responsible buyers know that Made in Italy does not only mean it was manufactured here, but it is a concept that implicitly defines a product as refined, classy and high quality.
Q. Again, from the customer’s point of view: might the suspicion arise that the Made in Italy origin is over-emphasized to sell a product at a higher price?
A. That is sometimes the case. There are companies that take advantage of the term to charge a premium price. Most of the time, however, we are truly looking at a higher quality product, made with the unique and typical skills of a given region and I believe it is fair to recognise this added value, even in economic terms.
Q. What is the outlook for Made in Italy products, in particular, for surface materials such as those offered by Santamargherita?
A. Unfortunately, foreign competition is always very high. The desire and hope is to always deal with educated customers, who know how to distinguish differences in quality and are not only concerned with the price tag.
Q. How does Santamargherita stand apart from its competitors?
A. SM is the only 100% Italian company that produces agglomerates: in terms of Made in Italy, we can imagine what all of that means.
Elena Cattaneo