In the northern outskirts of Turin, not far from the ruins of the former Fiat Grandi Motori, there is a large gray parallelepiped in reinforced concrete, a typical industrial construction of the seventies, with red inserts faded by time. This is the Quercetti factory, a historic toy factory founded after the war thanks to the initiative of Alessandro Quercetti, a former airplane pilot who moved to the Piedmontese capital from Recanati at the end of the Second World War.
More than half a century has passed since then and in the meantime the famous “nails” and hundreds of other educational toys have made the company a famous and recognizable made in Italy brand all over the world, which makes creativity and sustainability its points. of strength. A market niche that not even the Covid-19 pandemic has managed to scratch, also thanks to the insights of an enlightened management that does not limit itself to resisting changes, but relaunches with innovative choices. “The lockdowns – explains Stefano Quercetti, CEO of the company – caused a loss in the sector equal to 7%, we did better with a decline of 4% but the data must not deceive, it was a very difficult year”. In fact, at the beginning of the pandemic, the plant was forced to stop and then reopen in May 2020. «The situation has stabilized, but the troubles came with the second wave. There have been cases of contagion outside, some relatives of employees, and between tampons, absences and waiting times it was not easy to guarantee production, also because between October and November is the time of greatest effort and we could only count on one shift. working for eight hours, instead of three canons ».
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Quercetti’s history is surrounded by an aura of romanticism. A bit like in the chocolate factory narrated by Roald Dahl, in Corso Vigevano, timeless toys are made from top to bottom, destined for children all over the world. The mechanisms – some of them complex as in the award-winning Skyrail, a suspended marble track – do not require batteries. There is even a Montessori line and, for about a year, PlayBio products have been launched, which use eco-sustainable plastic that smells of wood from Northern Europe, recognizable by the pastel color and no longer shiny. «We are among the first companies to produce a plastic with a vegetable content equal to 40% – explains Quercetti – the bio material has different characteristics compared to traditional plastic and involves the use of new molds, with a significant increase in costs. The choice, however, proved to be a winning one, because the new line has helped to increase our appeal. There is also a strong ethical motivation, the planet must be saved and it is right to make it understood by the little ones ».
To certify the quality of the project, the victory at the fourth edition of the Toys Awards, where Quercetti won first place in the “Early Childhood Toys” category with PlayBio FantaColor Baby, a game of buttons with a low environmental impact.
Meanwhile, the ecological turning point was accompanied by a courageous expansion policy, which led to the foundation – three months before the pandemic broke out – of a branch in Maryland, United States. The most flourishing market, however, remains the Chinese one, which in 2020 recorded an increase in revenues of 250%, more than double compared to the previous year. The transfer of production to China, or to other countries where the cost of labor is lower, is however an idea that has never been taken into consideration in the company. «We deliver our toys within 2-3 weeks of receiving the order – observes Quercetti – while producing in Asia means lengthening times and having less flexibility. We will continue to work in Italy, despite the very high costs and tax burden for entrepreneurs, almost unrivaled in the world. We are convinced that it is necessary to protect the know-how that we have built with difficulty, that is our real added value and we do not want to give it up ».