December 1, 2010
The Next Wave Roberto Gavazzi | Boffi
“Even though there isn’t strong competition from U.S. producers, it remains a tricky market for us.”
We take great pleasure in seeing our kitchens still in use after 20 or 30 years. Our Xila kitchen, which first appeared in 1967, has sold consistently through the decades and is our most successful line. I think the kitchen is the only design product that can offer this long a useful life. It’s more difficult than ever to sell high-end products today. The market is far more complex, with falling sales and clients who are ever more demanding about quality and style. We need to be near perfect in everything we do, from the design charrette to the factory to the stores to the people who represent us in the stores.
Even though there isn’t strong competition from U.S. producers, it remains a tricky market for us. There are different regulations. Objects are measured in inches and not in centimeters. Still, clients in New York respond to quality the same way clients do in Milan or Seoul or Moscow. And this gives us confidence as we broaden our scope in the world. We’d like to have a presence in every corner of the globe. And we think we’re one of the few companies with the capacity for succeeding.