From Italy to India, a long journey of both distance and time has been covered in the history of Arioli SpA, making it an enviable feat to many. In this interview, Ramy Kassem, Area Manager at Arioli SpA interacts with Ganesh Kalidas to elaborate upon how the company has established a strong footprint in many countries and the reasons why its products are so much in demand
In the wake of liberalisation and entrepreneurial action across the globe, fresh start-ups beginning to establish their names is not a phenomenon unheard of but one rarely ever comes across an establishment that has not only turned its name into a label but has also ensured, through decades, that their label is loyally sought after. The poster company of such standouts is an Italian fabric finishing machinery firm that goes by the name of Arioli SpA. In 1953, Arioli SpA was founded as an engineering company which specialised in the production of textile finishing automations. The humble beginnings of the firm and its offerings lie in the cities of Milan and Como. However, by the dawn of the 1990s, Arioli SpA had crossed borders and entrenched itself even overseas as an international tycoon in the textile industry.
The Indian vertical of Arioli SpA has also flourished in the past decades owing to the diligence of the company in constantly providing the best services at minimal cost with maximum regard for the environment. These attributes have successfully charmed many big players of the Indian textile market like Titan Textile International and Vardhaman Textiles. No pedestal has ever been reached using shortcuts, which means Arioli’s journey has also been a rather lengthy affair. Intensive research and development through the years along with demand surveys and market analyses have given Arioli SpA products like steamers that hold the capacity to work continuously, washers with loop and conveyor dryers along with continuous open width washing lines, and textile digital printers that utilise various inks on fabrics like silk wool, polyester and cotton.
Machinery for fabric plasma treatment has also been made available since 2002 to make the textile world a utopian one. The digital printing domain of the company has been especially renowned across its clients taking into consideration their usage of valued heads in their printers that can work up to 400 metres per hour with only 16 heads. Arioli SpA also has a minimum value of 300 x 300 yards printing which equips you with varied heads to carry out lower resolution printing when higher resolutions are not required.
Using an integrated approach
While concepts like globalisation and liberalisation have eased the market for consumers by furnishing several options for one commodity or service, they have also created extreme competition amongst the sellers. The customers now get to choose what they buy and the sellers give them reasons to choose their brand. However, there still exist brands that no more have to practice such biddings because their services speak for themselves. Similarly, with Arioli SpA it is established that they are the ‘service of choice’ owing to their integrated approach with their range of machinery.
Gone are the days when a problem in one phase of processing rippled problems in all the following phases. The inter-phase integration mechanism ensures that the problem arising in any phase is fixed in the next phase to avoid wastage. Their machinery keeps getting updated with technology but this does not make the process of operation complex. Even minimally skilled operators can optimally manoeuvre their machinery. All this is conjured up and maintained across time with utmost focus on not exceeding the budget of the consumer, thus maintaining affordability.
Customer is King
According to Ramy Kassem, Area Manager at Arioli SpA, their customers have always been their priority and they take each customer interaction seriously which converts into a long-term customer relationship. There have been consumers in the clientele history of the company that have purchased new machinery solely on the basis of their experience with the previous one. Arioli’s strong ties with India are often realised by Kassem when machines sold in the country two or three decades ago surface from time to time for after-sales services. In fact, machines sold by the company have been serviced with the same kind of enthusiasm as is displayed in other operations. Technicians are stationed in India and other consumer countries even when business is not at its best performance. This ensures that even when new clientele takes time to convert, the old one never suffers.
New products
ITMA Barcelona of 2019 witnessed the launch of two products by Arioli SpA, namely, the Echo Hybrid Machine and the Digital Printing Machine. The former is, as the name suggests, a hybrid or dual function machinery which can steam and print while consuming 25% lesser energy than its predecessor owing to its shortened size and increased ventilation. The latter is an upgrade in the printing domain with 32 heads to manufacture at high speed and higher quality.
S.K. Ganguly, head of sales and new business at Eastern Engineering Company, swears by the fact that Arioli SpA is synonymous to excellent consumer relations. He says: “Their product awareness makes them the best in the market, also making them a household name.”
He also goes on to add that within just six months of the product’s launch in India, it has been taken up by several Indian players, thus making it a success. From Italy to India, a long journey of both distance and time has been covered in the history of Arioli SpA, making it an enviable feat to many. Several products are modified or innovated to keep up with the constantly changing portfolio in the market while the pricing remains the same, if not less. Their after-sales commitment continues along with their clientele legacy, leading to familial relationships with decades-old customers. The aim of Arioli SpA is to remain consistent in their efforts and post further progress to achieve a turnover of $4-6 million in the Indian market by 2024.