Page 33 - Business Insights 2012-2013

“Cultural resources,
broadly defined,
include a variety of
concepts, symbols,
narratives and other
forms of cultural
memes that circulate
in a given society.”
(Swidler, 1986†).
FEATURES
Alessi S.p.a, Crusinallo, Italy / alessi.com
‘A Cultural Quest: A Study of Organizational Use of New Cultural Resources in Strategy Formation’ - Elena Dalpiaz, Davide
Ravasi and Violina Rindova. ‘The Cultural Side of Value Creation’ - Elena Dalpiaz, Davide Ravasi and Violina Rindova.
† Swidler, A. (1986) ‘Culture in Action:
Symbols and Strategies’, American
Sociological Review, 51 (2): 273 – 286.
Alessi S.p.a, Crusinallo, Italy / alessi.com
profoundly innovate its product range. During this
period, Alessi transformed itself from a national
producer of steel kitchen tools to an internationally
renowned producer of high-end kitchenware,
tableware and bathroom products. In response to
market challenges Alessi decided on a radically
different strategic direction for the company and
commissioned well-known artists to design table
decorations made of steel.
Alessi collaborated with designers to create new
stylish designs for its kettles, coffee makers and
teapots and, as a result, opened up a new market
for “designer kitchenware”. It found
that, by giving its household
products a new aesthetic value,
customers were willing to pay
substantially more for them. Dr Dalpiaz observed
that the new bold shapes not only increased the
aesthetic appeal of the products, “but also made
a statement about the purchasers’ artistic taste
and appreciation of design”. The new designs gave
the products added value by positioning them
as stylish gifts whilst maintaining their practical
purpose. As a result of these changes over the past
30 years, Alessi has sold hundreds of thousands
of redesigned kitchen products at prices 5 to 10
times higher than those for conventional products.
By hybridising concepts from the industrial world
with concepts from the cultural world it created
a new category “kitchenware as
applied art“ and opened up
a new market. Today, its
products are recognised
for their aesthetic qualities
and many are exhibited in museums
around the world.
Alessi’s story was not without its change
management challenges, but its success is just one
example of how exploring and implementing cultural
resources into product development processes can
lead to new sources of value and solid business
growth by creating new product categories and
giving new meanings to existing products.
Dr Dalpiaz’s advice to other companies seeking
to enrich the value of their products using cultural
resources is: “Identify cultural resonances that might
be relevant to your products and be willing to plan
and implement these changes in the production
processes and organisational structures. There is a
whole world to explore through the use of cultural
resources to create an additional source of product
and brand value and continuing business success.”
By Nora Dennehy
33 BUSINESS INSIGHTS 2012 – 2013