06: Exploring the Indo-Italian Business Landscape through Piero Guizzetti's eyes
From a small town in Italy to funding a boutique consulting firm in India. Unfolding the story of Piero Guizzetti
Hi Kula Readers👋
This week Kula Connect brings you Piero Guizzetti's story, an Italian 🇮🇹 Entrepreneur who made India his second home and established his Consulting Firm to help Italian but also European companies to expand to India.
We at Kula had the pleasure of sitting down with Piero and chatting about life as an expat in India, why he chose India as his new home in 2006, and how foreign companies can approach the Indian market.
Finally, we are going to analyze the trade relationship between India and Italy and what the future will look like for India under this growth trajectory
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Key Takeaways 🔎
Italy-India Relationships: Italy is the 17th largest foreign investor in India, with strong bilateral trade and diplomatic ties dating back more than 70 years. Over 600 Italian companies are currently operating in India.
Future of India: Piero highlights India's consumer-driven economy, with 60% of GDP coming from local private consumption. India's young population and improved execution capabilities make it an attractive destination for investment and growth.
Shift in Italian Companies' Investment Strategy: Italian companies increasingly view India as a foreign direct investment market rather than just an arbitrage for cheap labor. The decoupling from China and India's rising GDP rank further contributes to this shift.
Navigating the Indian Market: Value Prism Consulting, Piero’s company, advises companies to approach the Indian market with careful research and a measured approach, considering the diverse regional nuances and adopting a gradual, mistake-and-learn approach. As India continues to evolve economically, Italian companies, with support from consulting firms like VPC Emerging Markets, can find success in this dynamic market.
Who is Piero Guizzetti?
Piero is originally from Bergamo, Italy, a town close to Milan
After completing his Bachelor's Degree from Temple University in 2003, and gaining some professional experience in Italy working in Marketing and Business Development for various companies, he wanted to do an MBA and move to an emerging country
He started analyzing in a visionary way, which international markets were more promising and had the biggest opportunities to grow in the future
That’s how he decided to move to India
🏦 A growing economy (9,6% GDP growth in India from 2006 to 2007)
👧🏻 A Young Population (median age lower than 29 years old)
👨🏾🏫 High-level of executive education (India has the second largest pool of MBAs in the world)
Piero’s background, both academic and professional, brags extensive international exposure. He holds a BBA from the Fox School of Business, Temple University, Philadelphia, and an MBA from the Indian School of Business, Hyderabad (here is a list of the top MBA schools in India)
During his studies, he was fascinated by the Indian culture, and the way of doing business and was positive about the future scenarios of India's development
In 2013, strong on his professional experience and knowledge of the Indian market, he created a consulting boutique called VPC Emerging Markets
Value Prism Consulting is a strategic marketing and management consulting firm that delivers market entry, business growth, and temporary management solutions. VPC's goal is to help companies evaluate, enhance, and manage their activities in international markets, specifically India and Europe.
VPC focuses on consumer goods, with a high degree of competence in the F&B and Fashion sectors.
"Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication" is the guiding principle of VPC. Our unwavering commitment is to provide relevant, actionable, and utility-driven deliverables that provide tangible value” - Piero Guizzetti
If you are curious to discover more about VPC we’ll leave you the link
And an email address to contact them: vpc@valueprismconsulting.com
Piero’s LinkedIn profile
How did we meet Piero?
As previously discussed, I
, had the pleasure of spending one semester at IIMB and It was one of the best experiences in my life (you can read all my India’s related stories on my LinkedIn profile)During this semester I have been fortunate enough to meet Professor Ramesh Venkateswaran and attend his Business Strategy course at IIMB. Professor Venkateswaran is the Chairman Board of Governors, at the Indian Institute of Technology, Palakkad Adjunct Faculty in Marketing at the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, and the author of the book “The Happiness Trail”
An amazing professional full of wisdom and business knowledge, but most importantly someone who believes in young generations’ potential to change things.
Long story short, Professor Venkateswaran was in contact with Piero and was kind enough to introduce me to him, after reading one of my LinkedIn posts about Kula
Professor also has a YouTube channel that you can check out here
Piero’s Interview 🎤
The Indian market started showing promise in the early 1990s, following the economic liberalization, and by the early 2000s, the Indian economy was on an upward trajectory.
Upon joining the BRIC in 2009, India has undergone a transformative economic journey. Especially, India has experienced a reverse in the “Brain Drain phenomenon” of people leaving for the US and Europe in search of better opportunities with many talented individuals who decided to stay in India to establish their companies and build their future
Unleashing the Potential: The Future of India in the Next 10-15 Years
According to Piero India’s main strength lies in its consumer-driven economy, where 60% of the GDP comes from local private consumption. This level of internal consumption is only comparable to the US and Europe, making the country the perfect place for many businesses to operate as it is less affected by external economic disruptions.
The future of India appears promising, with the potential for substantial growth. The shift in focus from exports to a more sustainable business model and increased execution capabilities since 2014 have further fueled optimism.
According to Piero, India has recently improved its execution capabilities when it comes to investment. This can be attributed to learning from past mistakes, setting more future-oriented goals, fostering participatory strategies, and adopting open communication.
With a young population, India boasts a median age of 29 compared to 43 in Italy
This demographic advantage, with 750 million people below the age of 29, positions India as a powerhouse of human capital.
India is the place where you want to be to grow exponentially
Shift in Interest: Italian Companies’s investment strategy in India 🇮🇹
Piero has recently noticed a shift in Italian companies’ investing strategy in India. Italian companies used to see India as a market to arbitrage cheap labor costs and production costs, whereas now they are seeing the potential of the market for foreign direct investment.
That’s a true turning point as it signifies the start of a new era for India in the international economy - Piero Guizzetti
The decoupling from China has also made India a more attractive destination, especially for manufacturing capabilities. The democratic setup, friendly relations, and India's rising GDP rank (surpassing the UK) further contribute to this newfound interest. Italian companies are increasingly looking to India as an alternative to China to fill the gap created by the slowdown in the Chinese market and the supply chain disruptions.
This can be seen from companies like Apple and Tesla planning to shift as much as 30% of their manufacturing to India in the following years.
However, India is not an easy market to navigate as a foreign company as it requires careful research and a measured approach, especially in dealing with regulations and compliance.
VPC advises against a hasty entrance, emphasizing the importance of understanding regional nuances, considering that India has 29 states of which 13 are bigger than Italy.
With a small business community, companies are urged to focus on one city and region at a time, adopting a mistake-and-learn approach. India's gradual business environment allows companies to correct errors and adapt strategies accordingly.
We often see Italian companies wanting to expand in India taking a generalist approach instead of considering India as an agglomeration of extremely diverse states, each with its own peculiarities - Piero Guizzetti
VPC strongly advocates for a gradual approach for foreign companies entering the Indian market, emphasizing the importance of meticulous planning and strategic implementation to ensure long-term success. Given the intricacies and diversity of the Indian market, a step-by-step approach allows companies to gain valuable insights, adapt their strategies, and establish a solid foundation for sustainable growth.
Italy - India Relationships
Italy and India hold strong diplomatic relationships dating to more than 70 years ago. Here are the key things you should know about Italy and India’s story:
Italy is the 17th largest foreign investor in India reaching total trade in 2022-23 of € 14.28 billion.
Italy is India's 4th largest trading partner in the EU, after Germany, Belgium and The Netherlands. Indian investment in Italy is estimated at around USD 400 mn
More than 600 Italian companies are already present in India
The Indian community in Italy is the second largest community of Indians in Europe after the UK with more than 1, 60,000 Indian nationals residing in Italy
If you would like to know more: Trade and Economic Relationship
Fun Fact
Italian motorcycle company Piaggio is the second biggest producer of TukTuk in India with a market share of around 8%
Did you know it?
If you would like to dig deeper into Italy - India relationships we will leave you some useful links to consult:
Invest in India: Italy-India relationships
India-Italy startup bridge: The Startup India Initiative has rolled out several programs to support entrepreneurs, build a robust startup ecosystem
Access India Initiative: Promoting Make in India in Italy
AICP: Associazione Italia India
Have you enjoyed Piero’s story and outlook on the Indian economy for foreign companies? Which companies would you love to see in India?
Let us know in the comments!!
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