15
I
n times of crisis, there are regions,
businessmen and institutions that unite
their forces in order to strengthen
relationships, create synergies and show the
market that they are even stronger than
before.
This is the spirit behind the Expo Taro Ceno,
which took place on 25 and 26 August in
Compiano, a charming village in the Province of
Parma, with a fairytale castle that dominates
one of two river valleys: the Val Taro. The other
valley, the Val Ceno also takes its name from
the river that runs through it, and together they
give their names to the Expo.
In times of war the medieval corporations
would take refuge in the castle in order to
protect the local skills and crafts.
In the same way today, in the face of an
economic-financial storm, businessmen and
craftsmen retired to this medieval stronghold
in Compiano to pool their resources,
demonstrate their products but above all to
highlight an increasingly rare quality that
forms a fundamental part of Italian culture:
that “know-how” which comes from manual
and material skills, and from a knowledge
rooted in the desire to keep improving the
products and services they provide, thanks to a
spirit of perseverance and tenacity.
The Expo was organised by the “Andrea Borri
Foundation”, “Compiano Art and History”
association, and the “Valceno Study Centre” in
collaboration with the “Agostino Casaroli Study
Centre”, with the support of the local,
provincial and regional authorities, and was
attended by a wide variety of companies and
craftsmen, covering such areas as forestry
resource management to skilled woodworking
(
doors and windows, furniture, chairs), from
sandstone (processing and geological
formation) to the green-fingered (plants and
flowers, landscape gardening), from high-tech
to gastronomy, from tourism (farm holidays,
bed & breakfast) to metal (from pre-history to
modern art).
Over fifty companies and craftsmen
participated at Compiano, including Dallara,
who were present in the high-tech area:
carpenters, stonemasons, builders,
greengrocers, artists, cutlers, lute makers,
agricultural producers, companies with
expertise in coating, coal and mechanical
processes etc.
During two days of round table discussions,
important contributions and presentations by
the presidents of various associations (Small
Traders Confederation, Parma Chamber of
Commerce) and university professors, there
was also time to present the “Compiano Sport”
award to the member of the 1982 Italian World
Cup winning team, Paolo Rossi, who was
attracted to Dallara’s stand and insisted on
having his photograph taken in the KTM X-Bow
designed in Varano.
The closing debate was chaired by the
President of the Val Ceno Study Centre and
M.D. of Dallara, Andrea Pontremoli, who
summed up the event as follows: “The main
purpose of the initiative was to get to know
each other better. Only by reaching a collective
understanding of our region will we be able to
develop a common dream; despite sleeping in
different beds. In an increasingly globalised
market, companies will only be able to
compete if the region where they are situated
is competitive too”.
Together with the director of the Val Ceno
Study Centre, Engineer Potremoli also
organised a survey of all the exhibitors, from
which it emerged that all the participants at
the Expo had certain characteristics in
common: a passion for their work, the desire
to make or produce something unique, and a
strong sense of local identity, which generates
feelings of pride and loyalty in their
collaborators.
The problems that emerged were: excessive
bureaucracy, lack of support from the
authorities and associations, a credit market
that favours tangibles over ideas and
initiatives, and a failure to promote the local
region sufficiently.
The event concluded with a series of proposals.
In response to the need for more high level
training in the high-tech sector, a training
centre is to be set-up at the confluence of the
two valleys, in Fornovo Taro.
It was suggested that the agricultural sector
would benefit from improved co-ordination
regarding the different types of products
produced in the area, while moves towards the
centralisation of resources, such as a call centre
and/or website, could benefit both transport
and promotional services. The discussion also
stressed the fundamental importance of a
marketing strategy designed to bring the
unique qualities of the local area to the
attention of the world.
An event designed to draw attention to the
mountain community, to widen the scope for
development in the two valleys, to create a
“
doc” mark that is not limited to a specific
product, to create a message of hope in the
future, determination, business leadership and
courage: and to provide an example for other
regions.
Alessandro Santini
