Italian design across the world: the Furniture Fair in Milan has been in the spot light of the international press this week. Les Echos wrote about the sector, announcing that the bad times were over and that there had been a 6% increase in exports in 2015 (April 12 – Le meuble italien tire un trait sur les années de crise*).Undoubtedly it is the sector’s major brands that are leading the way and in an article the Financial Times singled out Kartell, highlighting the company’s expansion in Africa, America and Asia and the fact that these days, with shops in 140 countries, some 75% of the group’s sales come from exports (April 11 – Kartell steps up expansion drive with new stores and products*).
Another piece in the Financial Times earlier in the week, was also design oriented, but featuring spectacles, not furniture, providing an overview of a sector in which Italian brands still lead the way despite increased competition from elsewhere (April 8 – Luxury eyewear in the spotlight as brands focus in on sector. Bloomberg also ran an article that was all about style and luxury, featuring Benetti’s latest – super expensive – super yacht (April 8 – See the $37 Million Benetti Superyacht Designed by Henrik Fisker).
Investments and export – Design was not the only sector to attract the attention of the world’s press as it also found something to say about Italy’s international commercial relationships and how some sectors are going from strength to strength. Following Matteo Renzi’s visit to the Iranian capital, the New York Times wrote about the latest agreements between Rome and Tehran (April 12 – Iran and Italy Sign Several Deals During Visit by PM Renzi*, and in a follow up piece, it focused in particular on Italian fashion – the first to establish a strong foothold in the country (April 13 – Italy’s Fashion Industry Signs Deal to Build Ties With Iran). The same paper also wrote about the opportunities available to Italian wine producers thanks to inroads made through e-commerce with China (April 11 – Italy Aims to Boost Wine Sales on Alibaba Network Ten-Fold*). Les Echos chose instead to write about the new investments Sweden’s Ikea has decided to make in Italy, with plans to open smaller than usual shops in the centre of various cities (April 12- Ikea va tester des « petits » magasins de ville en Italie).
Culture – This week the cultural pages of the New York Times featured a piece about the success of the Children’s Book Fair in Bologna (April 8- Continued Growth at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair, but France’s Le Monde was more interested in Naples with an interview to one of its nationals, Sylvain Bellenger, the current director of the city’s Capodimonte museum (April 13 – Heureux comme un Français à Naples) and publishing a review of the latest film to be set in the Parthenopean city (April 12 – « Par amour »: mélo et chromos sur la baie de Naples).
The Sueddeutsche Zeitung, on the other hand, wrote about Massimo Carlotto, known for his hardboiled novels (April 11 – Unentdeckte Sünden) and then, just two days later, it turned the spotlight onto another Italian, Cremona born artist Giorgio Pastorelli and the exhibition of his works in Icking, Germany (April 13 – Italienische Impressionen).
Food and Wine – This week, the New York Times ran two pieces on this topic. The first featured a recipe for stuffed squid (April 7 – Casa Calamari*), whilst the second explained what the rules are to producing traditional Tuscan cuisine, followed to the letter by “I Sodi”, a restaurant in the city’s West Village (April 12 – The Laws of Tuscan Eating at I Sodi in the West Village*).
*Article available for pay / at registration