Business cases

Prealpi, over a century of dairy tradition preserving family values

Since its birth in 1922, Prealpi has evolved amid challenges and innovations, while remaining an established family business

by Luca Brambilla*

17 December 2025

4' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

4' min read

Translated by AI

Versione italiana

Prealpi, with its characteristic four-leaf clover, is an icon of the dairy industry whose products have found a place in the fridges of every Italian household. Although it rose to prominence in the 1980s thanks to historic television commercials, its history began in the early post-war period. After more than a hundred years, Prealpi retains the values and philosophy with which it was founded. Recounting its history are Luigi Prevosti, president and managing director, and his son Giovanni, commercial director as well as vice-president of the Young Entrepreneurs Group of Confindustria Varese.

A story that began over a hundred years ago

The beginning is dated 1922, in an Italy recovering after the First World War. It was then that Luigi Prevosti decided to start again from what he knew best: milk and his land.

His family had moved from the Lodi countryside to Varese, and it was here, in the heart of the city, at Via Robbioni 19, that he opened his first butter factory. A small workshop a stone's throw from the Town Hall, simple but animated by a clear idea: to make good products at honest prices for the people of the surrounding area.

For almost thirty years, production remained tied to butter, with distribution mainly in Lombardy. Then came the war, and with it a new trail of difficulties and renunciations. But at the end of the conflict, it started up again, with Luigi's grief in 1951 at losing his wife, Angela Mangano, a pillar of the administration. Post-war success made it clear that the factory in Via Robbioni was too small to sustain development. And so, in 1955, the family inaugurated the new premises in Viale Luigi Borri, larger and more modern. It was a special moment: the whole city participated and the company began to look ahead.

The economic boom brought an expansion of production: butters were joined by cheeses, Fontal and, later, cream, yoghurt, desserts and fresh cheeses. Formaggini, in particular, immediately became the company's second most popular product after butter.

In homes throughout Italy

In 1980, the third generation entered the scene with Luigi, Gianni's son, when the Commendatore, the company's founder, was already eighty years old. Luigi took the reins, becoming the company's commercial and creative driving force: he took care of advertising, communication, building a strong identity capable of standing out even against the big foreign brands. These were the years of the commercials with Milly Carlucci, Gerry Scotti and many others, which brought the Prealpi brand into homes all over Italy.

The beginning of the 2000s saw the Viale Borri plant modernise and technologise in the wake of a tradition to which it has always remained faithful.

The last generational transition

Finally comes the fourth generation, with Giovanni Prevosti, Luigi's son, who grew up in the corridors of the company: for him, the smell of freshly made butter, the stories of his grandfather and the habits of the employees represent home. Although his studies abroad at the prestigious French ESCP Business School open the doors to any path, his choice is to return and work in the family business, initially dealing with marketing, digital, social, websites and, above all, internationalisation, the new front on which Prealpi is embarking with ambition.

The generational transition is not a formal or imposed process but something that takes shape day after day without rigid schemes: observing, learning, understanding where everyone can give their best.

The moments of alignment are structured and never improvised. Unlike other family businesses, where Sunday lunches often turn into board meetings, Prealpi has always avoided intersecting company life with private life. This is the imprinting of Luigi, who has passed on to his children that 'at work we talk about work and in the family we talk about life'.

There is no shortage of heated confrontations between father and son, which are an integral part of the growth path and represent a value that strengthens rather than weakens the company. This is because, although differences emerge over individual ideas, the underlying values remain shared.

Strategy in the long term, flexibility in the short term

Today Prealpi employs around 85 people with a turnover of up to 50 million euros. More than a hundred years after its foundation, it is still a completely Italian company, in the hands of the same family, with the same philosophy as in 1922: quality and respect for people.

Its approach to the challenges generated by today's uncertain market is based on two key elements: long-term strategy and short-term flexibility. Forward-looking investments that enable sustainable growth are accompanied by continuous adaptation to the changes imposed by the environment. And this is the winning recipe for SMEs: strategic planning combined with a timely ability to react to unforeseen events.

Prealpi's other great strength is its people, valued in such a way that they can really feel part of a shared project. A bond accentuated by the daily presence of the owners in the company: every morning father and son visit the production department to check quality. A simple but meaningful habit, which allows them to have human contact with their collaborators and to perceive the commitment with which each one contributes to the value of the products. The attention to people is also reflected in the numbers, with a turnover that has remained almost zero over the years.

Prealpi's history is long but always faithful to its origins, with generations never losing sight of what really matters to the family.

*Director of the Academy of Strategic Communication