From the metalworking laboratory founded in Ancona in 1963 thanks to the intuition of the brothers Alessandro and Giancarlo Bontempi, to the shop windows of Miami, Tokyo and Dubai, Bontempi is one of the most dynamic, solid and recognizable realities of Made in Italy furniture. A story that preserves the artisanal wisdom of those who work the raw material, but which over time has chosen to speak to the world, with a refined, coherent, emotional living proposal.
Today the brand is synonymous with contemporary aesthetics combined with a structured industrial vision, capable of combining creativity, formal balance, engineering and ethical responsibility. We talk about it with Gianni Roveda , Chief Commercial Officer of Bontempi, who takes us behind the scenes of a brand that has managed to remain faithful to its essence – that of metal transformed into shape – but also look far ahead, among international flagships, design awards, collaborations with creative studios and a renewed dialogue with architects and designers from all over the world.
From the Delfina chair awarded with the Compasso d’Oro to the new sculptural tables such as Bach and Artistico, passing through the 2025 collection “La Forma dell’Emozione”, Bontempi does not limit itself to putting products on the market, but to building a story of form, harmony and continuity. In an uncertain global context, the brand chooses a clear direction: bringing beauty to the world, responsibly.
Bontempi: interview with Gianni Roveda, CCO who leads the brand towards the future of international design
Bontempi was born in 1963 from the intuition of Alessandro and Giancarlo Bontempi. What were the fundamental steps that transformed an artisan reality into the large international company we know today?
The intuition of the two founders was immediately to propose the excellence of Made in Italy to international markets by opening, for example, 20 years ago, a branch with a warehouse in the United States which today represents one of the main foreign markets for us together with Canada and Central America. Just this year, thanks also to the integration with the Colombini Group, we opened a flagship store in Miami. Strengthened by this experience, the company has expanded into Europe, Asia and the Middle East, where, through local partnerships, it has rooted its presence in strategic markets such as the United Arab Emirates, Russia, Japan, South East Asia and the United Kingdom.
Your roots are in metalworking and the ability to transform raw materials into design objects. How do you preserve this artisanal heritage and at the same time reinterpret it in a contemporary key?
Craftsmanship evolves together with design . Our workers preserve years of experience in metalworking, making it possible to create designer furnishing elements that follow the trends identified by the artistic direction, still guided by Michele Bontempi , in a continuous dialogue between aesthetics and manufacturing technique.
Today Bontempi is synonymous with complete collections for the living room, with a strong brand identity. How do you manage to maintain stylistic coherence and, at the same time, constant innovation?
The stylistic coherence is thanks to an artistic direction that maintains a constant dialogue with the market, and thathas led to a vision that transcends the single product as an end in itself to create a harmonious vision of interior design : this thanks to the common thread represented by metal as a distinctive element combined with a coherence of shapes and colors that makes the piece of furniture not only functional to the aesthetics in itself but in constant dialogue with the other characteristic elements of the living room. Tables, chairs, cupboards, mirrors and accessories are spoken in the language of shapes and spaces and never appear as extemporaneous elements in an overall context.
In 2025 you presented the new collection with the claim The Form of Emotion . What are the guidelines that inspired you for this collection and how did you want to translate the concept of emotion into shapes and materials?
It is nothing other than the expression of the passion that Bontempi puts into the creation of its collections: companies are made up of people, and therefore of emotions. Translating them into a collection of furniture pieces was our desire in order to make our interior decoration proposal truly “alive”.
2025 also brought you important recognitions, such as the German Design Award 2025 for the Madia Musa by the E-GGS studio. How important are international awards to you and how do they contribute to the positioning of the brand?
International awards are recognition that the path undertaken is correct. They represent “milestones” in our identity journey in the world of design.
Bontempi collaborates with internationally renowned designers such as Andrea Lucatello, Pocci & Dondoli, the E-GGS studio. How does the creative dialogue between your company and designers arise, and which collaborations have left their mark on your history?
Bontempi’s desire was to surround himself with designers who could experience the company and grow with it. Precisely due to the family nature of the business, Bontempi has always seen its designers as part of a family that grew together with the company itself. Dialogue and sharing , first and foremost. I don’t mention particular collaborations because I feel like saying that each designer who has collaborated with us has placed an important piece in the mosaic of growth.
Innovation and sustainability are two pillars of your strategy: from non-toxic paints to certified woods, up to crystals and recyclable plastics. How does this commitment translate into daily production and how do you think it will evolve in the near future?
It is not a choice, but a duty. The culture of beauty passes through sensitivity to a world that has been given to us for safekeeping . We feel this responsibility which leads us to improve ourselves day after day: the quality certifications we are obtaining bear witness to this path of ours.
The dimension of “made to measure” and customization is now central in the world of interior design. How do you support architects and designers, also thanks to tools such as Bontempi Space and virtual tours?
We offer stylistic coherence and a strong identity based on our history of metalworking: each of our products has metal details that recall the core business and the soul of the Company. We make this kn available to youow-how to give inspiration and suggestions to the world of architects and interior designers: the Bontempi Space and our virtual configurator are tools of continuous inspiration.
Bontempi is a highly international brand, present in over 60 countries and growing in markets such as Asia and the Middle East. Which markets are proving to be the most strategic and what initiatives are you implementing to strengthen your global presence?
The Middle East is certainly responding very well, as are Russia, Great Britain and even the USA, despite the headwinds on tariffs. What we notice is that the distinctive character of Bontempi is highly appreciated, the stylistic and manufacturing coherence which, added to the intrinsic value of Made in Italy, turns out to be a winning card
As CCO, what vision guides your commercial and brand development choices today? And what are the most important challenges for Bontempi’s positioning in the coming years?
We live in a geopolitical context that is perhaps among the most complex in recent years. The big challenge is to keep the bar straight and not panic. We believe that consistency and perseverance pay off efforts. We are part of a large group and challenges do not scare us, which is why we believe we can be a point of reference for the market in terms not only of beauty and design, but also of safety, stability and continuity, which are reference values ??that guarantee a solid contribution to the growth of our partners’ business.
Looking at your catalogue, which are the most representative products of Bontempi and why do they best convey the identity of the brand?
I will certainly mention the Bach and Artistico tables, because they represent the perfect synthesis between metal processing and the search for innovative and harmonious shapes: making the design of a product “light” despite the preponderance of a “heavy” element such as metal is a notable aesthetic achievement.
What is Bontempi’s most iconic product? Tell us its story: from the first sketch, to the hands and minds that designed it, up to the anecdotes or challenges that marked its path. When did you understand that it would become a symbolic piece of the brand?
I mention the Delfina chair , awarded the Compasso d’Oro . There is a nice anecdote in this regard: the Bontempi brothers were unaware until the end that their product had been awarded, it was a company in its infancy and neither of them thought of such a prestigious recognition: one morning while reading the newspaper they learned the news from the press. It was a surprise for both of them.
If you had to describe Bontempi in just three words, which ones would you choose and why?
Love , for what we do. Beauty , of what we do. Harmony , between what we do
Let’s close our eyes: it’s 2035. How do you imagine the company, the products and the people who will live with your creations?
I prefer to daydream. I see Bontempi as a point of reference for style and design, established and recognized throughout the world as the creator of beauty for what it does and of goodness for those who collaborate with us. My greatest satisfaction will be to see a world leading company and take over its number one prideand the faces of the people who contribute to this journey every day.
Bontempi: love for what you do, beauty in what you create, harmony in what you leave
Speaking with Gianni Roveda, one thing is understood very clearly: design is a cultural act, even before a productive one. Behind every Bontempi object there is not just a shape, but a meaning. There is not only aesthetics, but continuity. There is not only innovation, but identity.
Bontempi does not chase the speed of the market, but the profound rhythm of a well-made project. It is a company that grows without denying itself, that opens flagships all over the world without forgetting its origins in the Marche, and that transforms metal into language, without compromise.
And while everything accelerates, the essence of Bontempi remains firm, legible, clear:
love for what is done, beauty in what is created, harmony in what is left.
Discover the Bontempi collections, catalogs and products on ArchieInteriors.com
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