We were visited at our box at the Italian Pavilion at Summer Fancy Food 2025, Maddalena Pistillo, founder of Authentica to tell us about her experience here, not as an exhibitor but present to meet companies and partners.
How important is it for Authentica to take advantage of such important occasions for made in Italy like Fancy Food, to update you on strategies, on new market trends?
For me, Fancy Food has a special energy. Being here at the Italian Pavilion is a thrill, because then anyway for people who live in the United States it’s a way to feel at home and so it’s always good, it’s always fun. Participating is important because as a first thing it gives me the opportunity to meet the companies that I am already partnered with. It’s a good way to see each other again, talk again and also spend some time together, get a good understanding of what strategies to take and if there’s a need to adjust, how to continue, given also all the difficulties that we’re all experiencing right now.
Then, it’s also important for the opportunity to meet new companies with whom to explore opportunities for collaboration. What I like to do is to understand what personality the company has, which is essential to focus on authenticity, not only of the product, the service, but of the people. Our goal is to best communicate the personality of the company to the American consumer, in fact, the human relationship, the human connection between the company and the consumer, in my opinion is really what makes the difference.
What are the characteristics that you look for in the brands that you would like to represent in the U.S. territory, what are the values that you have in mind that you think can be part of a winning strategy?
Uniqueness is always a trump card, but we also know that there are so many excellent companies for the same product, how many good wines there are from the same region, how many cheeses… The offer is vast, in my opinion the important thing is to understand if there is that niche to focus on in order to emerge. The company that decides to invest in something that brings out real innovation, thinking out of the box, that certainly is the company for us.
What are the signs of evolving taste for change that you have perceived in going around all the booths these days-if any-and how, if at all, do these elements fit into the scouting activity you are putting in place?
In my opinion there is still a lot of work to be done, not so much on the product, but on the approach we need to have toward the potential customer, distributor. We have to try to build strong relationships. Synergies-even with industries that are not primarily food-related, but maybe collaborate with us-allow us to get more directly and concisely to the customer.
You need to build strong relationships and invest in those relationships. Yes, you can find a distributor during the trade show, however, you have to start with the concept that you will have to come back more often. It is important that when you decide to go abroad and try to expand, especially in the United States, you have to have patience, budget and presence, so be there and invest in relationships.
Authentic was born specifically for this…
Yes, to be the face of some companies and then tell their story. To do it well, the first ones to believe in it are us who then do everything to enhance brand positioning, storytelling, and just to best represent the company in the U.S. market, also create synergies, look for collaborations that allow the brand to position itself more and more strongly.
The article Summer Fancy Food Show, Authentica’s Maddalena Pistillo: “What makes the difference is the human connection between the business and the consumer” comes from TheNewyorkese.