Towering above the quaint tile roofs of
Valdagno. a village in Northern Italy, are two imposing structures—a
huge textile mill, now being enlarged into Europe's biggest spinning
and weaving plant, and an eight-story grey marble mansion. Both belong
to the Marzotto family. So do the village's hospitals, orphanages,
parks, cafes, hotels, shops and just about everything else, including
the railroad station and the 20-mile electric railway that links
Valdagno with the outside world. As feudal as such a family fief may seem, the Marzottos' benevolent
paternalism is based on the modern conviction that prosperous workers
are more productive. The Marzottos are rarely struck, enjoy intense
worker loyalty, have forced much of Italian industry to pay higher
wages by frequently raising the wages and benefits of their own
workers. Valdagno's 32,000 inhabitants are so satisfied with the way
things are that the village has the lowest percentage of Communist
voters of any Italian industrial community —8%, v. 40% in Turin and
50% in a village only seven miles away. Marauding Bedbugs. Valdagno is only one part of what Italians
respectfully call “Il Miracolo Marzotto.” The Marzottos own textile
plants in six other Italian towns, are Europe's largest producer of
woolens. They own huge farms, 60 low-priced Jolly Hotels scattered
throughout Sicily and Italy, and ten clothing shops that handle their
Fuso d'Oro readymade clothing, which they pioneered in
tailor-ridden Italy. Revenues last year from the Marzotto enterprises
exceeded $100 million. Descended from a long line of weavers who set up looms in Valdagno
nearly 200 years ago, the clan is headed by hardheaded, domineering
Count Gaetano Marzotto, 68, who added hotels to his business after
being bitten by marauding bedbugs during a stop in a hotel in Southern
Italy. Made a noble in 1930 by King Victor Emmanuel chiefly for his
exemplary treatment of his workers, Count Gaetano has five sons to
carry on his title and the family business: Vittorio Emanuele, 40, a
Liberal Deputy; Umberto, 36, who runs the farms; Paolo, 32, a sales
executive with the retail outlets; Pietro, 25. a law student, and
Giannino, 34, who has been handed the prize assignment—running the
textile company. As a youth, handsome, soft-spoken Giannino became an
Italian national hero by twice winning the Mille
Miglia road race. Says Giannino: “Racing was a good preparation for the
future.” In the Moon Race. Giannino steers the textile company as deftly as he
did his Ferraris. Though he has raised wages 250% since taking over in
1958, he has automated so rapidly that increased productivity has
offset higher labor costs. As a result of more efficient methods,
Giannino this year will eliminate 1,000 of the 8,000 jobs in the
Valdagno mill. To keep from firing anyone, he will shift the displaced
workers to new Marzotto plants near by, where blankets and high-fashion
clothes will be turned out.
