Cinelli Piume e Piumini, a leading company in the production and processing of feather and down products, is a dynamic reality that has always invested in technology and research to offer competitive products with high quality standards.
Riccardo Leporini, commercial director of Cinelli Piume e Piumini, explains how the company is proud to have the total production chain inside its plant in Buggiano, in the province of Pistoia, and to want to focus with greater determination on environmental sustainability and animal welfare, values that have always distinguished it.
New opportunities can arise from a crisis situation. Will there be changes in your business reality and if so, which ones?
“At the moment we are not thinking about significant changes. The economic situation is constantly evolving, or involution, and we believe it is essential to have extreme attention to change so that we can promptly modify our choices as the situation evolves. The current situation shows us a still foggy future where the best strategy is sight navigation, using a seafaring term“.
In this period the importance of the web has emerged more strongly. Do you think to use these means more even after the emergency?
“I know I'm going against the trend, but I think that the sale via the web, in addition to demonstrating its importance, has also demonstrated its fragility. Who among us hasn't had difficulty in finding availability of goods or extremely extended time to receive goods from online sellers? This is not only understandable, from my point of view, but also shows how this type of sale is complementary and not an alternative to traditional sales. Referring to the linen sector, I can say that we “biancheristi“ specialized in online sales have certainly had the advantage of being the only ones to invoice in the sector, but at the end of the year they all registered a decrease compared to the same period in the previous year. For the moment, our policy is to continue to privilege the traditional or so called “physical“ sales at the points of sale in the territory“.
In addition to product quality and technological innovation, what other elements do you plan to focus on to strengthen your image on domestic and foreign markets
(quality of work, sustainability, environment, solidarity)?
“We are evaluating how much this situation will change our communication. Certainly environmental sustainability, animal welfare and the benefits for the person when using a natural down jacket will be at the centre of our message to the final consumer. We believe that our product has so many stories to tell that not enough emphasis has been placed on them in the past, where mainly the price or notoriety of the “Brand“ was rewarded at the expense of real quality or sustainability.
Another important and too often abused or taken for granted subject is Made in Italy. The company is proud to have the total production chain inside its factory in Buggiano, and not only for the Letto product, but also for the production of cushions for the living room industry, such as the production of clothing for the most important Italian and foreign Fashion Brands.