Curious about the entrepreneurial adventure behind inspiring brands, Brand and Strategic Professional Martijn Arets decided to quit his job, hand in his lease car, ignore all uncertainties and follow his dream. For five months, he travelled more than 15,000 kilometres across Europe in a one-of-a-kind 1971 Volkswagen T2 camper van, meeting with the founders, CEOs and brand managers of 20 authentic European brands in what was to prove a unique trip: Brand Expedition. On popular demand, he has bundled the lessons and stories behind 20 appealing European brands such as Lego, Mini, Skype, The Body Shop and Adidas to create Brand Expedition, the book. More information? Check www.brand-expedition.com or send Martijn a Tweet: @martijnarets.

1. READ OUT LOUD
THE STORY BEHIND
- ALESSI -
LINK BETWEEN DESIGNER AND CONSUMER

2. BEFORE YOU START….
please look into your camera and tell
us slowly your name, city and
country… Then you can start reading
this paragraph out loud… Have fun!

3. Once a new design is finished, it is up
to the production department to
make sure that it can be produced at
a reasonable price. This can lead to
heated discussions.” With a collection
that comprises more than 3,000

4. objects, the company does not exactly
make life easy for itself. “I admit that
we have an enormous collection.
Particularly if you realize that some
of our production processes are very
complicated and that the only

5. material we produce ourselves is
metal. The production processes of
some of our objects entail 150 actions,
while others are done in five steps.
But, by keeping a strict eye on our
products and the warehouse, we can

6. deliver 97% of our collection with two
days.” Sitting still is not a concept that
Alessi’s 500 employees are familiar
with. “When Alberto implemented our
design formula, we were far
ahead of the competition and could

7. therefore focus solely on design. As a
consequence, other matters – such as
marketing, distribution and packaging
– occasionally fell by the wayside.

8. - END OF RECORDING-