The Art of Excellent Products

‘In The Art of Excellent Products, Riccardo Illy’s vision of Incanto is a 21st century concept for age-old product excellence and will inspire both business owners and employees across a multitude of endeavors. Land and water and air are inextricable; so too are beauty, perfection and sustainability. Bravissimo to the author of this inspiring philosophy, who is also the steward of Gruppo illy brands, for his intelligence and insights.’ * Susan Ennis, former executive vice president of HBO, and founder, Susan Ennis & Associates *‘While reading The Art of Excellent Products, my first reaction was surprise. I expected a story of Riccardo Illy’s family businesses but instead, he writes with great verve and certainty about better goals–vision, surprise, delight, planning that survives for generations, and sopratutto, quality. This is not only the Illy way but the way of the many world-renowned Italian businesses. By revealing the practices of these firms, Illy finds patterns of core values. And where did their values originate, these makers of cars, clothing, wine, furniture, even pastries and pianos? This is the best message of all. Not from soaring profits and world recognition but from the artistic heritage and the generous beauty of the land, which inspire artisans and entrepreneurs toward their own commitment to beauty. Hard-hitting advice, humor, life lessons, originality–all these surprise every page.’ * Frances Mayes, poet, essayist, and New York Times bestselling author of Under the Tuscan Sun *‘One can learn quite a lot from Riccardo Illy’s new book, The Art of Excellent Products, a survey of business practices and conclusions in modern Italy and actually, the world. He discusses and outlines what he terms an ‘Incanto’ business, one that continues along amid history lessons and the intimacies of all family businesses, which is interesting and most rewarding. I’d recommend reading this book as well as the enjoyment of all the illy products.’ * Francis Ford Coppola, film director, screenwriter, and producer *

Riccardo Illy is the Chairman of Polo del Gusto, the holding company for Groupo Illy’s non-coffee businesses, with controlling interests in a number of world-class producers of chocolate, tea, wine, and confections. The Illy brand has a passion for quality and for growth pursued the right way: this has led to rewarding investments in everything from Domori’s legendary chocolates to Mastrojanni’s magnificent wines.

He lectures regularly at business schools around the world, from Stanford in the United States to HEC in Paris to MIB in Trieste. He is the Academic Director at Italia Innovation, an organization which fosters research, education, and new ventures in the manufacturing economy with a humanistic approach.