Nicoletta Mazzetti is the perfect embodiment of the Alpha Woman: Administration Manager and CEO of Mazzetti d’Altavilla, she manages the historic, world-renowned Monferrato distillery with passion and tenacity, along with a family of a bygone era. Married with six children—a son and five daughters—she has always divided her intense work life with her equally intense family life.
Woman, manager, and mother: Nicoletta tells us about her personal experience.
You represent the sixth generation of a family of entrepreneurs: have you always wanted to pursue entrepreneurship, or does your current experience come from a different path?
Grappa has been a passion in my family for generations, and even as a child, I couldn't help but admire the entrepreneurial commitment that first my grandfather Felice and then my father Franco demonstrated daily to continually improve the quality of the product and expand the culture of distillation. In my adolescence, I felt an interest, almost a calling, towards teaching and learning, but as time passed, my tenacious desire to continue the family's precious and long-standing entrepreneurial legacy has strengthened. It's a choice I don't regret, because, even if the dedication is constant and reduces my freedom, the knowledge of projecting the legacy my ancestors painstakingly built into the future is an irreplaceable source of gratification.
How did she manage to carve out a niche for herself in the company, especially in a predominantly male-dominated industry like spirits, which until a few years ago was considered a man's business?
As in any family business, success and success are achieved through hard work. And that's what I've always aimed for with determination, working alongside my father Franco in company administration. My family was the first generation of women actively involved in management, and success has never been an end in itself, but rather the result of a commitment that cannot be defined by gender. When you work, it doesn't matter whether you're a man or a woman; the result is what counts. Certainly, in some areas, such as administration, to which I specifically dedicated myself, female management was perhaps initially viewed with surprise, but not anymore. Furthermore, women can bring a lot of added value, especially in a sector that was once dominated by men. Some examples are the attention to detail, the hospitality, the packaging, and the refined, precious touch—all details that make a difference over time and have led women distillers to significantly contribute to refining the image of Grappa and ennobling the culture of distillation, from its production to its responsible and informed consumption.
Balancing work and family life is often a pipe dream: how do you manage to be a successful entrepreneur and a fulfilled mother?
It's all about organization, essential not only in work but also in managing a home and a family. I've had to learn this principle very well over time, having raised and educated six children, without ever diverting my attention from work and vice versa. This balance has perhaps been even more complicated in my case, where work and family have often overlapped and still overlap today, with family members as my daily interlocutors in business decisions: first my father Franco, who truly taught me a great deal about organization, then my brothers, especially Cesare, with whom I've always consulted on extraordinary decisions, and today my own daughters, Chiara, Silvia , and Elisa.
Another important requirement is reasonableness, an element that helps distinguish business from family depending on the situation. And here too, I learned a great lesson from the fifth generation: my father had six children himself and carried the burden of running the business. Despite this, he managed to lead the company into the future, embracing the entrepreneurial challenges of the entire second half of the last century.
Is there anything you've had to give up?
The limited time available and the constant pace of commitments are certainly the greatest challenge of being an entrepreneur today, and certainly require choices that inevitably translate into sacrifices. I often wish I could dedicate more time to vacationing with my daughters and seeing loved ones more often. But running a family business is a mission, and when you undertake it, you must already be aware of the pace and commitment it entails, knowing that only sacrifice ennobles the achievement of the intended goal, and effort is always directly proportional to the magnitude of the goal you aspire to.
Three of your children work with you: what are the pros and cons?
's decision Silvia and Elisa to dedicate themselves to ensuring the continuity of the business with resourcefulness and commitment is, first and foremost, gratifying. I believe all the work done has been the seed for a new corporate future, and this can only strengthen their personal motivation. It's also wonderful to share a common feeling: that of serving a tradition that has endured for 170 years.
Certainly, daily contact about work-related matters can make it more difficult to separate work relationships from family ones, and especially to separate work-related and personal opinions. I always make sure to close the business file and open the personal one on the way home, trying to dedicate the evening time to private conversations only. Of course, even my husband, our master distiller, is unable to be present, especially in the fall, due to his very demanding schedule, and so he leaves much of the educational imprinting with his younger daughters to me. And I'm also very grateful to the older girls who always helped me with the youngest children, who arrived 14 and 17 years after Elisa, the fourth in the first group, whom I had at a very young age. I also consider this a great fortune, as I was able to experience and savor two very different types of motherhood: the first carefree and perhaps a little reckless, the latter with a decidedly different and aware personal maturity, with the understanding that time passes and that only the important things are worthy of attention and commitment to nurture.
The passion that drives your work shines through in the warmth and hospitality with which visitors and customers are welcomed into the company: what are your future business goals?
Hospitality has always been a core concept in our company. It takes many forms: hospitality as an image of the product, as a smile and professionalism. And we intend to continue along this path. Fortunately, new trends are bringing an ever-increasing and increasingly diverse influx of tourists to our Altavilla headquarters and the Monferrato region. Hospitality will increasingly be the tool we use to delight our guests, enhancing the image of our products, but also of Monferrato and Italy as a whole. Our company is looking to expand its opportunities for direct contact with customers: we will soon launch our third Grappa Store, a showroom of our own design (those in Altavilla and Marcallo are already open and growing), entirely dedicated to the world of Casa Mazzetti spirits. The location is important: we will be in Milan, on Via Marghera, to meet the public of a cosmopolitan city that represents the North's gateway to the world.
How important is our connection to the local area?
For our company, Monferrato represents a natural and essential bridge to our family and productive past, but also a starting point for a promising future. Tourist flows to Monferrato, and in particular visits to our historic headquarters, have increased exponentially in recent years, a sign of interest, especially from customers from the hinterlands of the major cities of the Northwest and even more so from abroad. Precisely because of the belief that we cannot ignore the surrounding area, we have sought to enhance our hospitality by curating events and offering tours in foreign languages. In recent years, we have also invested heavily in our headquarters: from the restoration of the votive chapel La Rotonda, an architectural gem of rare beauty dating back to 1808, to the creation of the Grappa Store open seven days a week for tastings. Furthermore, we have also invested in the construction of the Galleria della Grappa, the implementation of energy sustainability measures, and collaborations with other local companies.
How do you see yourself in ten years?
Good question! On the one hand, I like to imagine my family life in ten years, still a mother, especially since Gaia will be 21 and Camilla 18, and I also like to imagine myself as a grandmother with a large family of grandchildren—I hope at least ten (the first arrived three years ago)—who will come to spend weekends with their grandparents. On the other hand, I know I will always be leading the company (three steps back and on tiptoe), leaving ample room for the seventh generation, especially by cultivating each person's personal talents, but also by deploying all my skills to foster the future of Mazzetti d’Altavilla, which must continue as a united front to ensure employment for all the families who revolve around the Mazzetti satellite.
I hope, however, to be able to tell you in ten years whether I've nailed the future and to plan with you for the coming twenty years...
