There are slogans that, more than others, stick in the memory and are immediately associated with their brand. This is undoubtedly the case with the legendary Confetto Falqui, for which, of course, ‘just the word is enough’! But let’s take a step back. Pasquale Falqui was born in 1902 in Sardinia, in Samassi (CA); in 1925, he graduated in Pharmacy and Chemistry and shortly afterwards opened a pharmacy in Iglesias. Soon, however, he and his family moved to Milan. Here, in Viale Zara, he opened a new pharmacy, where he focused on studying and launching his first revolutionary product, the laxative Prunol, a chewable plum-based pill that required no water to be swallowed. Prunol – which later became simply Confetto Falqui – was an immediate success and was soon sold in all pharmacies in Milan and Lombardy. It is 1938, and one year after the debut, he had sold a hundred thousand pills.
From artisan to industrial production
Naturally, the war affected the business, but after the war, the desire to recover meant that Pasquale Falqui opened his factory in Affori in 1951, thus moving definitively from artisan to industrial production. During this period, production increased to twenty-two million pills in 1958.
Pasquale Falqui, with his innate entrepreneurial talent, immediately grasped the potential of television advertising, and the pills thus became one of the classics of the legendary ‘Carosello’. Marcello Marchesi invented the slogan ‘just the word is enough’, entrusted to Tino Scotti‘s acting.
Zigulì candies: in every child’s childhood
The success prompted Falqui to develop new products, and in 1969, Falqui launched the legendary ‘Zigulì’ candy. With an anti-smothering format, this candy, based on real fruit juice with added vitamin C, no colouring agents, and no preservatives, was intended for children. A curiosity about the name: Pasquale Falqui was a great fan of cars, and the name Zigulì comes from the Lada-Vaz Zhiguli, a car model based on the Fiat 124 produced by Lada, which he had admired in its bright colours during a trip to Russia. However, the car’s name comes from the Ziguli Mountains, a hilly area located on the right bank of the Volga near Samra.
An unswerving success
The candy – which Falqui decided to sell only in pharmacies – was an instant success and, like the pill, became a classic in Italians’ homes. Meanwhile, Falqui grew with new product lines and new business divisions. Today, Falqui has a pharmaceutical division, a confectionery division, a health and wellness division and a medical device division. With a turnover of 1.5 million euros in 2022, the company continues to be competitive despite international players entering the market. It sells its products throughout Europe and online. Since 2023, it has been part of the Monetti Group, which intends to strengthen and relaunch the brand.
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