Luce, iGuzzini strengthens in the Middle East

"My philosophy is that in times of difficulty we have to invest and, fortunately, the ownership supports us in this line". Cristiano Venturini, managing director of the lighting company iGuzzini (controlled by the Swedish group Fagerhult), rattles off the list of investments that, by the end of the year, will lead the Recanati-based company to open four new spaces abroad destined to function not so much (or not only) as offices, but above all as places of innovation and relations in which the company's professional clientele can gain direct experience of iGuzzini lights and lighting systems, their applications and potential.

It starts in Dubai, explains Venturini, where the Italian group has already been present since 2008 and where, next October, it will open a multifunctional space in which to introduce customers to the company's new brand identity and the performance of its lights. Also in the Middle East, in December iGuzzini will inaugurate a new 250 m2 "lighting experience" showroom in Riyadh, through which it will reinforce its presence there through offices since 2010. November will also see the arrival of the new space in London, another key international hub for the world of project and design, and early next year there will also be the official opening of a space of over 300 m2 in Los Angeles.

The icing on the cake of this investment package (worth a total of around EUR 5 million) will be the new showroom in the Recanati head quarter. "Calling it a showroom is perhaps a bit reductive," admits Venturini, "because it is a very innovative project, I would go so far as to say that it is something never seen before, in which the interlocutor will be at the centre of an experience weighted on the individual, according to a tailor-made approach. Next year there will be more news: 'Sydney, New Zealand... but we will talk about that in due course,' adds the CEO, who explains this acceleration abroad as a strategy 'consistent with the business plan: consolidate where we already are and invest more and more in three main areas: German-speaking countries, North America and the Middle East'.

As far as the market is concerned, Venturini explains that, despite the difficult global environment, order intake is currently about 3% higher than in the same period last year, and expectations for the end of 2025 are for stability in terms of revenues, profitability and margins, thanks mainly to the pull of foreign markets.