Leading Italian wine house Santa Margherita Gruppo Vinicolo has appointed Beniamino Garofalo as CEO.
Garofalo has spent many years working for large consumer good multinationals, including Pepsico, Heinz and Danone, before moving into the luxury market at LVMH and most recently at Gruppo Lunelli. The 50-year-old hails from Milan.
Santa Margherita’s wine is sold in 94 countries worldwide. It owns ten estates in some of Italy’s most renowned wine-producing areas – Santa Margherita, Torresella, Kettmeir, Ca’ del Bosco, Cà Maiol, Lamole di Lamole, Vistarenni, Sassoregale, Terrelíade and Cantina Mesa.
Company turnover exceeded €189 million last year.
“I am extremely proud to be joining Santa Margherita Gruppo Vinicolo,” said Garofalo. “This is one of the Italian companies which has changed the fortunes of Italian wine in the global market. For some time now the Group has focused on investing in long-term projects and this has produced extraordinary results.
“Now the time has come to consolidate this phase of expansion; to capitalise on the newest entries to the Group (Cà Maiol in Lugana and Cantina Mesa in Sardinia); to push forward with the strategy of increasing our portfolio of vineyards within Italy; and to plan the next phase of growth for all of our brands while taking into account the changing consumption habits of our end customers.”
Santa Margherita Gruppo Vinicolo President Gaetano Marzotto said: “The arrival of Beniamino Garofalo signals a new era for our Group. That is because the company, which over the last 15 years has focused on investing (over €200 million) in the most suitable terroirs, cutting-edge modern wineries, innovative, high-quality wines and enthusiastic, wine professionals, is now able to better face the challenges posed by climate change, with increasingly sustainable production methods which reflect both our values and the desires and tastes of younger generations.
“The mission of our wine group is to bring the very best of Italian wine to the world. As a product it is increasingly interlinked with other premium ‘Made in Italy’ goods. In entrusting our Group to a manager with a proven track record in other sectors, we want to make Santa Margherita Gruppo Vinicolo even more global, pursue greater vertical integration and align ourselves more closely with our end-consumers.”
