Our last Salone del Mobile blog wrapped up with us “already itching for our return” the following year, so you can only imagine how we felt when this finally came to fruition four years later. Cheers Covid. Swerving flight cancellations and jumping over airline hurdles, last week saw our first post-pandemic overseas press trip, heading to Milan with Italy’s finest, Smeg.
These extended face-to-face periods offer an invaluable opportunity to get media under a brand’s skin and take relationships from strength to strength. At Little Red Rooster, we’re lucky enough to work with brands who recognise the benefits of this, allowing us to host press and influencers on these instrumental trips.
With Smeg returning to Eurocucina on a monumental scale, showcasing its largest stand ever, we were delighted to jet off with journalists from WIRED and Kitchens, Bedrooms & Bathrooms/KBBReview, plus Chris Haslam, freelance extraordinaire for the likes of the Financial Times, GQ, Ideal Home and Homes & Gardens, to name a few.
Exploring the vast show, media learnt of Smeg’s latest and up-and-coming launches, being educated by the brand’s senior product manager. We can confirm anything Smeg-related that Federica doesn’t know isn’t worth knowing (and probably doesn’t exist).
The momentous design show saw Smeg unveil an array of products set to join the brand’s collection between now and early 2023. Chief among the new arrivals are the highly innovative Galileo built-in ovens, which combine traditional, steam, and microwave functions, thanks to years of research and development equating to the biggest single investment in the company’s 74-year history – not something to be underestimated. The Area hob also displayed its genius ability to freely move pots and pans around its induction surface.
An array of exclusives were unveiled too. All-new wine coolers allowing users to store up to 29 bottles (a challenge we’d be willing to accept at the coop), in addition to restyled models of Smeg’s colourful Portofino range cookers. While we may not be able to spill the beans just yet on an epic collaboration that will be ‘popping’ up very shortly, or an all-new collection of contemporary cookery must-haves, our VIP journalists were among those to get a first look.
Guests were then treated to rare interview time with the brand’s CEO, Vittorio Bertazzoni. Having only partaken in a handful of in-person conversations with British journalists before, the opportunity reiterated how impactful press trips like this are.
Smeg is still a family-owned business, so Vittorio was able to reel off stories of how the iconic FAB fridge came to be and where he sees the brand heading in the future. The day was wrapped up by whisking press off to Smeg’s impressive store in the heart of Milan for a celebratory party in collaboration with Veuve Clicquot. Surrounded by Smeg products, the full collection was on show for all to enjoy. Of course, the trip was peppered with a large helping of mouth-watering Italian produce (namely Prosecco, pizza, and Parma ham) and a helping of rooftop bars at sunset for good measure.
While Italy’s cuisine is an added bonus, of course the aim of any press trip is to build and strengthen the relationship between a brand and our guests, resulting in coverage, which we’re delighted to have seen already. With a summer of press trips lined up, keep your eyes peeled for where the roosters jet off to next – provided we can find someone to fly us!
