Insights that lead to success can happen at any time. For Angelo Pelliconi, for example, it was enough to linger on the crown cap of an American soft drink to think that reproducing it in his small smallware company might be a good idea to expand the business. And so it was, but ‘expanding the business’ can be considered an understatement if you think of the figures Pelliconi Spa records today: 32 billion fasteners a year, equal to 61 thousand a minute and a thousand a second, 16 world markets, 8 locations with over 700 employees.
From an intuition comes success
It all began in 1939 when Angelo Pelliconi opened his ‘Ditta Angelo Pelliconi (DAP)’ and soon became a leader in bottle fasteners worldwide. In the early 1950s, two big clients arrived: Pelliconi signed a contract with Sanpellegrino – which would remain a client of the Emilian company from then on, commissioning millions and millions of caps over the years – and with Coca-Cola of Atlanta.
In the 1970s, all production was carried out in the factory in Ozzano dell’Emilia (BO), and 4 billion caps were produced each year for the European and African markets. The 1990s saw the opening of the Atessa (Chieti) plant, which doubled production, and the beginning of expansion abroad with branches in Germany and France opened in 1997 and 1998, respectively. In 2008, Pelliconi Egypt was founded. The company launched the production of tear-off caps in 2009, and in 2016, a new production line dedicated to this type of cap was opened in China.
Research, development and innovation
Pelliconi continues to invest in research and development with an almost maniacal focus on quality, undoubtedly the reason for its success. The opening of an entire department dedicated precisely to research and development dates back to 2016. If we consider that the crown cap is a simple and low-tech object, born as far back as the end of the nineteenth century, it is clear that being able to bring innovation is a real challenge. A challenge met, both on the production side – producing more than 60,000 caps per minute requires a certain degree of operational complexity – and from the point of view of sustainability, with the study of materials and business management attentive to environmental impact.
However, this does not exclude product innovation, which has been and continues to be present. Among the most innovative results – and there are many – are the ‘Flower Cap’ seal, an innovative 26 mm cap for bottles with a pry-off and twist opening, and SOPURE®, a 51 mm PVC-free fastener ideal for baby food.
A multinational family business
Over the years, the company remained family-owned. Immediately after Angelo Pelliconi, his wife held the reins of the company, followed by son-in-law Franco Gnudi, husband of their only daughter. In the 1990s, Marco Checchi, husband of Claudia Gnudi, Angelo’s niece, took over the helm. His leadership strongly accelerated production, which went from 4 to 32 billion caps.
Corporate responsibility and sustainability
Pelliconi’s business model also contemplates a privileged relationship with its stakeholders, employees and others. Every year, the company donates part of its revenues to social, artistic, and cultural activities, focusing on wealth redistribution and paying particular attention to social responsibility. ‘We are convinced that our approach to business sustainability has been a critical ethical choice to become the company we are today, with total respect for people and the environment,’ said Pelliconi’s CEO in an interview with Forbes Italia.
Congratulations to those who bring innovation to even the seemingly most straightforward products!
Learn about other outstanding companies from Emilia Romagna.