Made in Italy: more SMEs on foreign markets – the plan
A programme to protect and promote the Italian brand abroad has been launched in Rome. The initiative, organised by Tesori d’Italia and Tesori d’Europa, is sponsored by the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital
Key points
Events abroad are useful. But on their own, they are not enough to boost the presence of small and medium-sized enterprises on international markets. We need to follow up on these meetings, build relationships with local communities and turn the exchange of ideas into joint projects. This is the approach outlined by Riccardo D’Urso, president of Tesori d’Italia and Tesori d’Europa, who is presenting a national plan for the protection and promotion of ‘Made in Italy’ at a conference in Rome today, under the patronage of the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital. The aim is to broaden opportunities for internationalisation, so that it is not always the same large companies that benefit.
The ‘Made in Italy’ plan starts with the regions
The programme’s key word is ‘regeneration’: social, cultural and economic. As D’Urso explains, this approach aims to bring added value to businesses, both in terms of opening up to foreign markets and in their relationship with the local community.
At the heart of this vision are people and local areas: this is where craftsmanship and small and medium-sized enterprises thrive, and it is from this perspective that the plan aims to develop international relations. The first step is to put companies in direct contact with communities in partner countries. ‘So, first and foremost, what we are doing is facilitating direct dialogue between businesses and local communities in Japan, in our case,’ says D’Urso.
The link with Japan, from Expo Osaka to the World Longevity Summit
Japan is the setting in which this approach is put into practice in the activities outlined by the manager. D’Urso maintains strong ties with the country: he has overseen projects linked to Expo Osaka 2025, the opening of operational offices in Osaka and international initiatives such as the run-up to the World Longevity Summit 2027.
Dialogue between regions, by its very nature, must involve local communities from different countries, including through twinning schemes. These are not merely opportunities to meet, but tools for generating ideas and exchanging projects: ‘Local communities in different countries must engage in dialogue, for example through twinning schemes, because this sets extraordinary processes in motion.’
