Exporting the Dolce Vita: the nautical industry as an itinerant showcase of the Made in Italy

The 7th edition of “Esportare la dolce vita” (Exporting the “dolce vita”) was held in Milan at the Touring Club Italiano, with the aim to present the yearly publication by Confindustria Centre of Studies in partnership with Prometeia. The document analysis the perspectives for growth of the most relevant products of the Italian “bello e ben fatto”, literally beautiful and well done, in the markets with the greatest potential for the Italian export.
The focus of this year’s publication was on the Italian high-end hospitality system and the nautical industry as big actors in the promotion of the Made in Italy.
In particular, concerning the nautical industry, the uniqueness of a product such as a yacht was recognized as one of the most characteristic product of excellence of the Made in Italy, which works as an “itinerant showcase” of various Made in Italy goods, such as furniture, textile and design.
To give an example, Sanlorenzo shipyard has been building custom-made vessels according to the style and needs of every owner since 1958. During the last 10 years, they have been collaborating with renowned designers such as Rodolfo Dordoni, Antonio Citterio and Patricia Viel and Pietro Lissoni, some of the most representative firms of the Italian contemporary taste in furniture.
According to Massimo Perrotti from Sanlorenzo, the greatness in the Italian entrepreneurship is that it manages to involve international customers from China, Russia, Brazil, Arabian Countries, and, in every new market, it is in the ability to think of the unusual and make it possible, thanks also to the highest level of customization.  This is what impresses the most the international designers coming to the Italian companies: they are aware that only here one can find that economic return and that creativity which have made the Made in Italy so mythic.