Local initiatives for the entrepreneurial development of tourism and stone sector
Dr.Lino Colombani
Good morning , as doctor Molinari has just mentioned,I have been a trader in the stone sector for
about thirty years, I think I’m most qualified in this sector and so I’ll turn my analysis in this
direction. Anyway I always like to talk about Tourism in our area and so I’ll try to explain some of my
ideas about it.
In order to show the importance of this sector and to place its importance in our area I'll briefly
mention some statistical data:
In 2004 the stone sector provided 16,9% of the provincial GDP about 340 million euros. In 2005 there
was an increase of about 5% over the previous year.
The average production value of each firm in this sector was about 12 million euros, the gross profit
was 3.682.000, while the average net profit per firm was 131.500 euros.
The improvement trend of 2005 seems to be destined to continue in 2006 marking a small increase
both in the volumes of sales and profits even though the competitive international situation isn’t the
most desirable for our industrial district.
Remember 28% of our provincial GDP comes from these exports ; so, our economic system cannot
undervalue either the opportunities or threats from international competition.
In the past stone merchants, of which I'm one , have thought of the Apuan area in only a financial
way.
Living in this historical marble working area, in the region which controlled the monopoly of the
international trade in raw materials (not only Carrara's white marble but all stone with an aesthetic
commercial value quarried in every country in the world) makes us put on airs and graces but above
all makes us loose many opportunities through undervaluing the skills and opportunities of traders
from those countries which always gave us the principal raw materials: for example Spain, Turkey,
Brazil….
Remember our local marble production only accounts for about 20% of produced stone, whilst in
the past this percentage was lower still.
Today, the situation in the stone sector at world level is completely different from that of only 5 or 10
years ago, but unfortunately only a few traders are really aware of this and very few expressed their
intention of modifying their own companies to cope with opportunities or threats posed by the new
business climate.
The first advantage we must utilise is certainly the quality expressed by the name on our
products/services made in Italy, which gives our customers confidence in international markets .
The strategy of quality is pursued at times intentionally, sometimes because of a lack of alternatives,
for quality is, and always will be, the difference, the positive side of Italian products/services, so
only the best is really exportable.
I and other local traders like me have been convinced for a long time, that we must export the stone
Apuan district as the quarrying place. I personally believe that it will be an obligatory choice in order
to continue to compete with the leading firms in the international market place and I've gradually
realised that some firms have already been displaced , however they wouldn't have been if they'd
had suitable planning. One firm can’t do much alone, but together, companies could create or
transform a district and confront the market in a more effective way even in a very competitive
global market such as the present day one.
This doesn’t mean restrict our regional development, but implies a change of activity : in fact I
believe that in order not to be ousted by the developing countries whose production expenses are
very low, we have to take advantage of that situation by assuming control of productive locations
which are growing near the quarries, maintaining for our area the high quality production but above
all the service offered to the final consumer; by this I mean that we should always control from Italy
the high quality technical know-how, planning, and development of new technology, but above all
the ability to sell.
It should be obvious, but it isn’t: firstly ,because contact with the final consumer is essential for
success and for the survival of firms belonging to any sector, secondly because, and we shouldn’t
ever forget, marble is a luxury product! This should be made clear to the consumer, the seller has to
be the bearer of all those technical, aesthetical, essentially untouchable values, which are
fundamental in making the consumer understand the elevation of his own status by buying MARMO;
and let me say, Italian people are skilful in this art, being taught by high fashion .
I want to show you a couple of examples that might help those who don’t work in this sector to
better understand what happens in a globalized world:
- Some months ago an Italian firm contracted the working of circular columns to a Chinese firm,
which executed it for the Italian firm and then the Italian firm exported the finished columns from
China to Japan. Which were ,of course, made from Carrara's white marble.
- Some Italian companies export Italian materials to be worked in China or India and then those
materials are exported once more to the USA or other countries, so taking away work from Italy.
On the other hand there are many threats against our stone industry , which come both from the
outside ( price competition from developing countries), and from the inside: for example, from the
economic data we calculate yearly, the provincial economic system gives a medium return on capital
rate in line with the national trend, but burdened by the cost of money, higher than in the other
regions of the country. (I’m clearly talking about the north of our country)
Credit is low in order to define the local economic competitiveness in comparison to that of national
and international competition, but the undercapitalisation of our stone firms, which explains the
reticence of our traders to take risks, makes a bad situation worse.
Another facet of competition not just in the stone industry but in every sector, including the tourist
one which is very important for our local economy, is the training of our young.
The growth and training of our human resource, their jobs and personal skills are strategic factors in
the success of every initiative and it is a problem we have to consider in every aspect, in fact it is
linked not only with the in-house training of local firms, but also to the school training and that
given by specialized societies, which often complain about the lack of real work experience within
companies, therefore on one hand making the insertion of young people in the world of work
difficult, and on the other hand initiating the right formulation and targeting of the training programs.
For example in our area there isn't a school which teaches marketing techniques for the stone
industry, so firms have to create specific positions without being sure that these few employees,
once trained , will remain in the firm for a long time.
I often think about the development plans and activities in our local economical sector ,not just as a
trader, but in particular as a citizen who wishes to see growth in the level of quality of life in his
region.
I believe that in the stone sector the displacement of our district, as I've said, could be a great
opportunity for the creation of more framed work which could have a higher output for our future
generations.
As for tourism, forgive me if I’m repetitive, but I've thought how to link the historical, aesthetic,
humanistic and, why not, spectacular value of quarrying and of the transformation of marble to the
tourist attractions in the local area .
Why not organize an itinerant symposium of sculpture in the bathing establishments of our coast,
involving the local industrialists as donors of the marble needed for sculpture, with a final prizegiving on the coast of Marina di Massa or at IMM and then donating the sculptured works to those
communes which take part in the symposium?
Another incredible tourist element are the quarries!, both from the point of view of the scenery we
can admire, and from the technical quarrying point of view.
We should try to promote and publicize the events in the mountains. I can assure you that the
opening of a quarry is incredibly interesting, and it could be shown in the documentary programmes
of important TV networks at international level such as CNN or the BBC as well as our own RAI, in
order to reach and attract foreign tourists and those Italian tourists who still don’t know our area.
We ought to publicise the quarries in order to create a circuit of national school tourism, which
would assure a constant flow of visitors, it’s educational and above all informs students and their
families about the availability of a rich and attractive region such as ours.
Personally I met the teachers from the middle high school of Massa Carrara, who with their students,
after their visit to the quarry of our white marble from Carrara were astonished and said they had
never seen such marvels.
Well, now I think I’ve bored you too much, I wish you a pleasant and productive stay in Italy leading
to many tourists from Poland visiting our area.