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Tag interview

Interview with ice cream maker Paolo Brunelli

by lorenzo in Pastry

Interview with Paolo Brunelli

Paolo Brunelli is an award-winning master ice cream maker from the Marches who can boast numerous and coveted awards in his palmares, including the maximum score from Gambero Rosso (3 cones, the only brand in his region) in the Gelaterie d’Italia guide as well as national recognition for the best chocolate ice cream and, for two consecutive years, the prize for the best Italian ice cream shop.

A rigorous professional, with a marked capacity for innovation and a great flair for quality raw materials, for years he has dedicated himself to enhancing ice cream as a product of excellence capable of breaking the mold of seasonality, renewing the proposal and keeping his laboratory active all year round.

And the clientele seems to have understood and appreciated Paolo’s commitment to focusing on ice cream again this winter. He happily succeeded by making use of his ability to transform and work raw materials, creating new and inviting flavors thanks to new Christmas-inspired combinations. A return to ice cream, to the origins of its proposal, albeit in the cold season, supporting in such a particular year the product from which its professional history started.

Its stores are three, all  in the province of Ancona: in addition to the enocioccogelateria in the historic center of Agugliano, there are the Senigallia branch and Combo, a brand new location in Marzocca di Senigallia, a contemporary combination of ice cream, pastry and chocolate .

Ice cream in winter: how did the idea of developing this proposal come about by thinking of new themed flavours?

It is an idea that we have strongly sought. Almost a necessary choice, after the opening of our first store in Senigallia: a place dedicated only to ice cream, to be kept open all year round. Compared to the past, in fact, the scenario has changed and it is no longer possible to bear the burden of bureaucracy with a shop open only in the summer months. Well aware of the fact that in the winter the demand for ice cream from customers drops drastically and inevitably, we have developed a different offer for the colder months. So here is ice cream in winter, with the creations designed for this season.

What flavors do you offer in particular?

For the first time this year we offer a “Christmas Card” with the specialties of the moment. We have devised some particular flavours, dedicated precisely to the festivities, which recall the sweets of the Christmas tradition, evoking their flavours, aromas and characteristic notes. Among these we find, for example, Pandoro, Crema di Natale, Gingerbread, Panforte, Torroncino and Fior di Legno, a brand new fior di latte that recalls the scent of the fireplace. Among the flavors there is no panettone, instead the protagonist of a very popular ice cream cake.

How are the first feedbacks with customers?

The results are very good, I must say: already in recent years we have noticed that, during the holiday season, customers are happy to opt for ice cream cakes and frozen desserts, perhaps tired of the usual leavened desserts. Now he is also showing interest in the new ice cream flavours.

How does it preserve the flavors in the gelato shop? Do you use pozzetti or do you put the flavors in jars and display them inside your vertical display cases?

We have adopted both types of display. For take away we use pozzetti and tubs for ice cream to be served in a cone or cup. Furthermore, for years we have been using the lines of vertical display cases in which, in addition to cakes, we display ice cream in jars, other alternative versions such as ice cream on a stick or with biscuits, and semifreddos.

How do you highlight these new Christmas flavors in your display?

In this period of the year, in the carapine there are not the canonical 20 flavors but only the Christmas ones. We have chosen to focus heavily on the proposal contained in the Christmas Card. At the same time, however, the vertical display cases allow us to continue to offer other flavours, but in jars. In this way the ice cream is kept in ideal conditions from an aesthetic, sensorial and gustatory point of view.

How do you highlight these new Christmas flavors in your display?

In this period of the year, in the carapine there are not the canonical 20 flavors but only the Christmas ones. We have chosen to focus heavily on the proposal contained in the Christmas Card. At the same time, however, the vertical display cases allow us to continue to offer other flavours, but in jars. In this way the ice cream is kept in ideal conditions from an aesthetic, sensorial and gustatory point of view.

So, what do you think are the ideal characteristics of the showcases for optimal exposure, taking into account the needs of the customer and the gelato maker?

As far as we are concerned, we are very satisfied with the vertical display cases, which are very important to us: thanks to this solution we are able to better manage the offer for the winter period, diversifying the products on display. I wouldn’t open a new ice cream parlor without a vertical display, that would be unthinkable for me.

These refrigerated display cases have a temperature of -18° / -20°, which ensures that the ice cream is kept better and undergoes less degradation than the traditional carapina (which has a temperature of -12°), and this feature is essential for canned ice cream, which has a longer shelf life, naturally without ever changing the quality of the product.

How did you insert these showcases in the shop? What results have you already noticed?

In the shop, we have chosen a strategic location, which is visually very appealing: the windows are positioned at eye level, at the entrance and exit of the premises.

On a commercial level, they have guaranteed us a turning point: with the right exposure, we have recorded an increase in sales of showcase products, with an increase from 5% to 15%. In our case this segment is expanding considerably since we started working like this.

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Interview with Nicola Pansa

by lorenzo in Pastry

Interview with Nicola Pansa

In the heart of Amalfi, in a place of indisputable charm, is the historic restaurant of the Pansa family. A family business active since 1830, where the cult of the Amalfi tradition has been handed down for five generations. Today at the helm are the brothers Nicola, Andrea and Marilla Pansa, who carry on one of the most prestigious and happy realities of the Campania gastronomic scene.

How important do you think digital communication is for your business today?

It is fundamental, but not from today: it has played an essential role for us for more than ten years now. Surely the basis of everything is the product, which must never betray expectations. Today, anyone who has an excellent product and doesn’t communicate it doesn’t do a good job. Just as those who communicate a product that doesn’t actually exist are wrong. Starting from an offer of great qualitative value, many years ago we asked ourselves how to communicate it at high levels. Many already knew us, but you are never known enough. For us, communication is experienced as a truthful account of what we do every day. Our social profiles are a sort of daily diary and we also enjoy this thing. All digital channels have the official website as a point of reference and this has given us sweet satisfaction. In recent years, we have seen concrete results from the online shop and visits to pastry shops, and we have won several awards related to digital communication.

What services do you offer via digital channels and with what feedback? What other services would you possibly like to introduce in the future?

We take great care of the online shop on our official website, where we insert a series of products that we sell all year round, even if the most important moments for online sales are obviously Christmas and Easter. In recent years, e-commerce has experienced significant growth, in terms of numbers and turnover, and I believe that this year the trend will develop even more, because in-store sales, unfortunately, will be greatly affected by travel restrictions . Our online shop has been operational for about ten years and works very well, because it is the fulcrum of a multi-channel and coordinated digital communication strategy that also involves social networks and the newsletter. In particular, we have seen very positive results from email campaigns, which lead us to have a 30-35% increase in sales on the days of sending. We try to optimize our offer by using multiple channels to intercept different types of users. We have been shipping throughout Italy and abroad for years: there are many tourists who come to Amalfi from all over the world and once they return home they contact us to place an order. We have many other projects for the future: for example, we are working to create an online shop also on Facebook.

How has the situation we are facing changed your digital communication strategy, if it has?

It hasn’t changed much, because we have already invested in digital communication in unsuspecting times. What has changed is our approach, especially on social media. We have perceived that people forced to stay at home want to share and participate, and we can keep them company through our content. We have therefore increased live videos, to share moments of daily work and tell a few anecdotes: people like it, they feel involved, they get a little distracted from everyday life. Beyond the commercial aspects, we also claim a “social” role through communication.

What elements did you want to include on the site and in digital communication in general to best reflect the image of your restaurant?

Our philosophy has always been to innovate, but in the wake of tradition. This is very important in any decision we make. Even when choosing a color for the site’s graphics, activating a social media campaign, creating a video, we feel the responsibility to always be faithful to our identity. We can never ignore the fact that we have 200 years of tradition behind us, we have moral and non-moral ties. We have thought a lot about this. How could we reconcile digital communication with the fact that Pansa is an institution? With intelligence, with caution and great respect. Our important past and our location are added values, which we also try to highlight in communication.

Who follows digital communication within the pastry shop? Do you rely on an external agency in whole or in part?

We do not rely on an external agency: I personally follow the communication, making use of the invaluable collaboration of a working group made up of professionals specialized in specific fields (graphics, photography, programming). Everyone knows exactly what their role is and we work together on the contents to be published, sharing ideas to arrive at the best result.

Digital communication as a means to export the renowned family confectionery tradition all over the world. Through social media and online sales channels, throughout the year, Nicola Pansa thus manages to fulfill the wishes of an international clientele. The same that, together with the brothers, delights in the historic restaurant framed by the suggestive and famous square of Amalfi.

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Interview with Lucca Cantarin

by lorenzo in Pastry

Interview with Lucca Cantarin, strategies to get going again

That he can rightfully be placed in the gotha of Italian pastry is shown by his curriculum, dotted with important milestones. He was in charge of the pastry shop at Le Calandre, the three-star restaurant of the Alajmo family. Then came the Spanish experience of Paco Torreblanca, a world-renowned pastry chef. Then the passages in France to the Maison Baud and in the nearest Padua, to the court of the world champion of pastry Luigi Biasetto. To all this is added the tradition in the confectionery art started by grandfather Mario with the production of homemade ice cream. A tradition that his family has been handing down from generation to generation for over a century. Returning to his Arsego after the important experiences with the great masters, Lucca has enriched the proposal of the place that bears the name of his mother Marisa with the pastry shop. A story of success and in constant growth that of the Paduan pastry chef, who has maintained his determined verve even during the Coronavirus emergency. “My state of mind is still positive today”, he says confidently. A positivity supported by facts and even before that by some choices that have proved successful and that he himself tells us.

 

Lucca, how is the situation at the moment for your business?

It is paradoxical but we are working harder than before. My restaurant is located in a small village outside the center and many are not going on vacation, so they come to us. The geographical position is now an advantage, but it wasn’t during the closure to the public, when we could only make home deliveries. In a reality like ours, making delivery is more complicated than in a big city because to reach customers you have to move more, since the population density is low. Some conditions have therefore been favourable, others less so, but what I consider fundamental, in the face of an emergency like the one we are experiencing, is not to sit still, not to wait for customers to arrive by themselves or for everything to go back to the way it was before the pandemic broke out.

So, what were the winning strategies?

First of all we never stopped. In the first phase, I developed the delivery by investing heavily in the packaging to find a formula that would facilitate the work, allowing us to achieve two objectives: to be quick in managing orders but also to present our products in an attractive way, taking great care of the packaging graphics. As regards ice cream, for example, we have given customers the opportunity to order 11 different kits from our site, each containing 2 different flavours, for a minimum purchase of 20 euros. In the trays the flavors were already portioned and separated from each other so that they didn’t mix, which was very important to me. We already had an optimized site for managing online orders and this helped us a lot.

Then you reopened and what were the changes implemented inside the club?

The ice cream parlor and pastry shop with adjoining cafeteria are two separate shops, even if housed in the same building. In both we have positioned safeguards aimed at containing the virus, with particular attention in the areas where contact with the public is more direct, such as at the point where orders are placed at the counter or where payments are made. Furthermore, we have reduced the seats both inside and outside, to ensure the correct spacing of the tables.

For some colleagues, reorganizing the spaces was experienced as a drama…

For me it was not like this, indeed I think it is possible to change the layout of the premises managing to guarantee the safety required by the emergency and at the same time preserving the pleasantness of the environment and of the display of the ice cream and sweets. Looking back, I don’t understand why a pandemic was needed to introduce innovations that I consider a form of respect for the operator who works in constant contact with the public. And then we must bear in mind that there are precise regulations to observe: I am sorry to see around that the desire to transgress often prevails, I find all this not very sensible. Operating safely is not at all like a compulsion. It would be worse, however, if the lack of attention led to a new lockdown.

Speaking of customers, how have behaviors changed?

In most cases I notice that the level of education has increased. If before people crowded inside the club, now they stand in an orderly queue for 10 – 15 minutes waiting for their turn: scenes that I used to only see abroad. This is a good sign for me: it means that the pleasure of enjoying a good ice cream prevails over the “sacrifice” of waiting longer than usual, which is inevitable in the context in which we find ourselves now.

So what is Cantarin’s recipe for staying afloat during the Covid-19 storm?

The ingredients are many. There must be presence and closeness to the customer, with punctual communication and an even more attentive service. Then the opportunities offered by technology must be exploited (as in the case of online orders) and the possibility of modifying the fittings as needed to ensure compliance with safety standards. This is for everyone’s good. It’s a difficult time for anyone to manage: for those who govern us and have to make decisions, for us craftsmen and for all citizens. The first thing, I repeat, is not to stand still and suffer the situation. I am convinced that if we manage to overcome this challenge by drawing positive lessons from it, we will come out of it having made great strides that are useful for the future.

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