Innovarea: Loison explains how to ride the wave and overcome the economic crisis

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On October 23, Italian design company Lago S.p.A. in Villa del Conte (PD) hosted Innovarea, an exclusive event moderated by journalist Alessandro Milan who works for Italian newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore. The event’s aim was to tell about and analyze the Venetian firms that have been reinventing themselves in this age of global economy.

What was the outcome of the business analysis? Of the 5,686 companies that had been included in the project, the team of researchers focused on only 410, namely those with revenues over 5 million euros. The team of researchers hailed from Ca’ Foscari University of Venice and was led by Carlo Bagnoli, Associate Professor in Strategic Innovation at the same University and Scientific Director of Innovarea. The selected firms were called "anti-fragile companies" or “significant” companies, having been able to "create value for their customers and society, distributing a significant part of it, because the solution is to multiply it," as is stated in the project’s Manifesto. In addition to Carlo Bagnoli, there were also Maria Luisa Coppola, Regional Councilor for Economy, Giampaolo Pedron, Director of Confindustria Veneto (branch of the Italian Employers’ Federation) and Roberto Zuccato, Chairman of Confindustria Veneto.

This was the perfect opportunity to introduce five selected entrepreneurs who told their story, each with its own recipe for success: Daniele Lago, Managing Director at Lago S.p.A., Alberto Baban, CEO at Tapì S.p.A., Enrico Berto, Managing Director at Berto's S.p.A., Barbara Donadon, CEO at Altana S.p.A. and Dario Loison, owner of Loison S.r.l. According to Prof. Carlo Bagnoli, these are people and businesses who “propose”, not “respond”, to the market. These are companies that haven’t suffered from the years of crisis. On the contrary, they have been able to ride the wave.

During the discussions moderated by Alessandro Milan, Dario Loison told how, towards the late 90s, he began selling abroad – to Sweden and Japan - using the Internet, a tool that back then was still new due to its high potential for disintermediation. Even in times of difficulties, with the advancement and expansion of the first discount stores, Dario Loison did not lose his nerve and was able to capture, since the early 2000s, the value of what makes a product different, using exclusive ingredients, such as those included in Slow Food’s Ark of Taste. Last but not least, he understood the value of Beauty and Culture: through intense and continuous research and development, every year Loison’s product packaging is renovated, fully embracing the B2B2C business model. What does that stand for? Beauty to Business to Consumer.

At the end of the discussions, the Impresa Significante 2014 (Significant Business) Awards were handed out to the entrepreneurs who attended the event: 5 synchronized companies whose shared goal is to lead a new renaissance, relying on Italy’s artisanal, civic, cultural and natural heritage.

Here's the intervew to Dario Loison (in Italian)