Alessandro Fenzi

Education: 1995, Degree in Economic Sciences, Università Commerciale Luigi Bocconi, Milan
Career:  early 2007-present, CEO, Fenzi Group, Italy; 1994, started working at Fenzi
Personal: Born in Milan; age 37; married, three children 
Diversions: Golf, skiing, skeleton, motorboats
Connections: Fenzi S.p.A., Via Trieste 13-15, 20067 Tribiano (Milan) Italy, ale@fenzigroup.com, www.fenzigroup.com.

What are the differences between the North American, European and other world area glass markets?
In the three main geographical regions Europe, the Americas and Asia, the market structures have many things in common. [However] often the market trends are different: at the moment we have strong growth in Asia and in some parts of Europe, while North America is not in the same good shape. This is mostly because of the great reduction of the new residential constructions due to recession in the housing market.

What countries or regions do you see as emerging glass markets?
I do not want to mention China or Russia as everybody is aware of this. My bet is on the Central Asia oil and gas rich countries: Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, etc. We will see a lot of developments there in the next five years.
 
Which is the highest growth market in the world for Italian glass companies today and why?
Italians have a very strong attitude to export. Due to the Euro/USD rate of exchange at this moment, it is easier for us to grow in the countries where Euro is the reference currency than elsewhere.
 
What is the state of the mirror industry in Europe?
Overall, the European mirror industry is slightly growing, but there are differences between Western and Central Europe, where the situation is stable, and Eastern Europe, where the market is expanding due to the increasing purchasing power of the consumers. People there now have more money to spend compared to a few years ago. 
 
What is the effect of the higher Euro on exports?
This is pushing the European industry toward better and better performances of products and machinery. The strong currency makes Euro products more expensive, and we have to prove to customers that they are not wasting their money. This process is going well and the European companies who are technological leaders are growing strongly inside and outside the Euro zone. 
 
Name three glass trends for the future.
Painted glass, painted glass and painted glass. Glass has always been used because of its transparence, but now architects and designers like to use glass in their projects even if it is not transparent. In the most trendy projects, we see now a lot of painted glass in all colors and patterns.
 
Italians also are famous for heavy glass machinery. What is the state of that industry? What’s in the future?
The industry is in good shape, and some Italian companies are really technological leaders in their field. Probably in the future, consolidation among some of the players might happen as this will help in keeping the leadership.
 
What is Gimav and how is it different from any other manufacturer associations?
Gimav is the oldest and largest association of glass machinery companies worldwide. Its history and the strength of its members make it different from any other association in the glass world.

What makes Vitrum unique?
Italians are leaders in glass processing machines, and no show in the world is better than Vitrum to see this kind of machines.

What are your thoughts on the Chinese glass professionals and their move into the industry?
The world has become a single open market and all of us have to get used to this. Imports and exports will grow further in the future. Here in Europe, the penetration of Chinese glass and glass machinery has not been so strong. Our markets are very quality minded, and people are reluctant to take any risks. We do not have custom tariffs in Europe against China in glass.

What are the trends in Europe in using sustainable and energy saving glass?
Energy saving is something we [hear about] from the media every day. Unfortunately, there is still a gap between what people would like to do for the environment and what they really do. My feeling is that the consumer still does not have enough understanding of how important performing glass can be for energy savings. Of course, we see in Europe a good growth of high performance glasses, but it is not as fast as our planet probably needs.
 
In which areas are Fenzi S.p.A. focusing its research and development?
Our company is dedicated to glass and therefore our R&D is totally devoted to developing new and better products for glass companies. We have three main lines of products: mirror paints, sealants and spacers for insulating glass, and glass paints. In all the three fields, we will bring to the market major developments in the next 24 months.