Morassutti
Patriarchal family
Current regionVeneto, Friuli Venezia Giulia
Place of originSan Vito al Tagliamento
FounderAngelo Paolo, b.1718

The Morassutti family[1][2] is an Italian family, originally from Friuli Venezia Giula, that has been active in the wholesaler and retail hardware trade since the early nineteenth century.[3] They are mostly known for having started one of the few distribution chain of hardware and household articles during the thirties of the twentieth century.[4]

Overview

The Morassutti family,[5] active first in the trade of hardware[6] and wood,[7] then in the field of household objects[8] constituted in Italy during the 20th century an innovative sales systems: both with the use of catalogs[9] and service to the retailer as well as by proposing modern techniques of self-service and atypical franchising. The Paolo Morassutti company[10] became a point of reference for the Italian hardware market and it retraced the growth hubs already experienced by the American wholesale trade. Their commercial strategy was characterized by product specialization, differentation in pricing policies according to the different geographical areas of Italy, retail stores chain and by transferring know-how of sales and management to retail customers, such as the use of stock management as well as a propensity for innovative[11] marketing.

Print for the 70th birthday of Federico Morassutti

Federico Morassutti

Federico Morassutti[12] (22 October 1876 - 17 April 1954) was an Italian entrepreneur and philanthropist,[13] a prominent member of the Morassutti[14] family mostly known for his farsighted entrepreneurial choice of creating a network of shops, a veritable supply chain of long-lived consumer goods. In 1886, at the age of ten, Federico was sent to a boarding school in Cremona, and from there abroad, to Grenoble and Ljubljana, to perfect his education and gain experience in trade-related matters. During that time the family company was experiencing a period of uncertainty. In 1898, at the death of his father, the management of the company passed to Federico, twenty-two years old at that time, who initially devoted himself to consolidating the financial situation in order to grow by expanding from regional borders and by launching the company into the national market. The "Great War" considerably reduce the company's commercial activity,[15] particularly in the retail sector[16] but during the post-war years it was relaunched. New deposits[17] were opened, first in Bologna[18] and later in Naples placing the company at the forefront of the national panorama of the distribution sector. In 1922 The Paolo Morassutti was transformed into a collective company formed by Federico as the managing director and by his brothers Giovanni Paolo, Domenico and Antonio. From there to a few years, however, in conjunction with the general crisis of the thirties, different views emerge between the brothers. In the late thirties the company was booming and at the beginning of the fifties the company employed more than 500 employees, located in 21 stores. In 1952 the company itself changed its structure becoming a modern joint-stock company. During The Fifties, The Paolo Morassutti company, with a capital of 210 million lire, employed about 570 employees[19] located in 24 settlements (20 stores and 4 depots) spread throughout the country: from Veneto to Lazio, from Liguria to Emilia, from Lombardy to Campania. Federico Morassutti died in Padua in the spring of 1954 after establishing his family business among the leading companies[20] in the wholesaler distribution sector[21] of Italy during the second half of the 20th century.

Paolo Morassutti

Paolo Morassutti with his wife

Paolo Morassutti was the youngest son of Federico Morassutti. Paolo was named by his mother Gianna Luchetti and his father Federico after his grandfather Paolo Morassutti. After managing several stores in Padua and working for his family business Paolo signed a commercial agreement in 1963 with Artur Fischer,[22] owner of Fischerwerke and founded Fischer Italia[23] to distribute throughout the country of Italy the plastic S-Plug which enables screws to be fastened into masonry substrate. The agreement was maintained until 2000.

He was known also for sponsoring several cultural and sport initiatives.[24]

Paolo Morassutti died in Belluno[25] on August 9, 2013. He was 86 years old.

Archive

P. Morassutti Company logo
The Paolo Morassutti company logo

The Paolo Morassutti company archive has been missing after its absorption by La Rinascente group in the seventies of the twentieth century.

Notable family members

  • Bruno Morassutti (8 December 1920 – 4 September 2008), Italian architect. In 1949 Bruno Morassutti, son of Federico, attended the Taliesin Fellowship studying with[26] American architect Frank Lloyd Wright, then moved to Milan to begin a partnership with Italian architect Angelo Mangiarotti realizing notable work like Casa a tre cilindri(1959-1962) among others.

References

  1. Lombardi, Anna (2013-03-01). Distretto della sedia: design tra passato e futuro (in Italian). FrancoAngeli. ISBN 9788856863963.
  2. "G. ROVERATO - Una famiglia e un caso imprenditoriale: i Morassutti - Sommario". www.giorgioroverato.eu. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  3. Giorgio, Roverato (1993). "UNA FAMIGLIA E UN CASO IMPRENDITORIALE. I MORASSUTTI": 271. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  4. "MORASSUTTI, Federico in "Dizionario Biografico"". www.treccani.it (in Italian). Retrieved 2018-11-22.
  5. "G. ROVERATO - Una famiglia e un caso imprenditoriale: i Morassutti - Sommario". www.giorgioroverato.eu. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  6. "1938 PORTOGRUARO (VE) Antonio MORASSUTTI Ferramenta casalinghi *Fattura". www.icharta.com (in Italian). Retrieved 2018-11-22.
  7. "Scheda Protagonista - Imprese". imprese.san.beniculturali.it. Retrieved 2018-11-21.
  8. "MORASSUTTI, Federico in "Dizionario Biografico"". www.treccani.it (in Italian). Retrieved 2018-11-21.
  9. "Capitolo 11. La distribuzione di prodotti per il bricolage e fai-da-te". Bricoliamo (in Italian). 2007-04-16. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  10. "Contratto: Morassutti, Accordo, 12/03/82". www.filcams.it. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  11. "Ditta Paolo Morassutti Padova - Libreria antiquaria Re Baldoria". Libreria antiquaria Re Baldoria (in Italian). Retrieved 2018-11-22.
  12. "LA VECCHIA PADOVA". www.lavecchiapadova.it. Retrieved 2018-11-22.
  13. "SCUOLA MORASSUTTI". FONDAZIONE FALCON VIAL - FABRICI - MORASSUTTI (in Italian). 2017-12-20. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  14. Roverato, G. (1993). Una famiglia e un caso imprenditoriale. I Morassutti (in Italian). Vicenza: Neri Pozza. ISBN 9788873054191.
  15. "Paolo Morassutti, Bologna - Collezioni - opere d'arte, quadri, dipinti, sculture, collezioni pubbliche e private a Bologna - GENUS BONONIAE". collezioni.genusbononiae.it. Retrieved 2018-11-22.
  16. Office, Library of Congress Copyright (1962). Catalog of Copyright Entries. Third Series: 1961: January-June. Copyright Office, Library of Congress.
  17. "Stabilimento Morassutti | Fondazione Aldo Favini". www.fondazionefavini.it (in Italian). Retrieved 2018-11-22.
  18. "PAOLO MORASSUTTI (PADOVA) FERRO METALLI UTENSILI CASALINGHI FERRAMENTA - PER DITTA DI MIGLIARINO (FERRARA) ANNO 1959 " | In vendita su Delcampe". Delcampe - Il Marketplace dei collezionisti (in Italian). Retrieved 2018-11-22.
  19. "Dal 1960 la compagnia Arlecchino non smette di mettersi alla prova sul palco". La Difesa del Popolo (in Italian). Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  20. "Gazzetta Ufficiale". www.gazzettaufficiale.it. Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  21. "Scomparso l'imprenditore Paolo Morassutti Portò in Italia i tasselli della Fischer". Libero 24x7 (in Italian). Retrieved 2018-11-23.
  22. "Paolo Morassutti, Bologna - Collezioni - opere d'arte, quadri, dipinti, sculture, collezioni pubbliche e private a Bologna - GENUS BONONIAE". collezioni.genusbononiae.it. Retrieved 2019-12-03.
  23. Official Gazette of the United States Patent and Trademark Office: Patents. U.S. Department of Commerce, Patent and Trademark Office. 1994.
  24. "Fisher festeggia i 40 anni a Padova Il fatturato Italia tocca gli 80 milioni - il mattino di Padova". Archivio - il mattino di Padova (in Italian). Retrieved 2019-03-21.
  25. "SCOMPARSO L'IMPRENDITORE PAOLO MORASSUTTI". BricoMagazine (in Italian). 2013-09-11. Retrieved 2019-03-21.
  26. archiportale.com. "Università Iuav di Venezia - Tra paesaggi e storia. Wright e l'architettura organica allo IUAV". Archiportale. Retrieved 2018-12-13.

Bibliography

  • Roverato, Giorgio (1993). Una famiglia e un caso imprenditoriale : I Morassutti (In Italian).4. Neri Pozza. ISBN 9788873054191
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