Family businesses between tradition and innovation
In an era characterized by rapid and continuous change, family businesses find themselves at the center of a profound transformation that involves not only markets, but also the ways in which relationships with consumers are built.
These businesses, often steeped in long-standing traditions and deeply rooted values, face a tricky challenge: maintaining consistency with corporate values while also being able to respond to contemporary needs, emotions, and expectations.
Why marketing has become strategic for family businesses
For family businesses, therefore, marketing can no longer be understood solely as promotion: it becomes a real strategic tool, through which family businesses can continue to be a point of reference, transforming their roots into a lever for innovation and relevance. To achieve this goal, it becomes essential to reshape the communication style, adapting it to constantly evolving consumers, with ever-changing needs, languages, and relationship styles.
Olivetti: the lesson that revolutionized corporate communication
A historical example of Italian excellence in corporate communication is represented by Olivetti, a company that was able to transform advertising into a cultural and identity tool long before the term “branding” became commonplace.
Under the control of the family of the same name, in the 1950s and 1960s, the Olivetti brand established itself not only as a leader in the production of typewriters and calculators, but also as a pioneer of communication that combined design, art, and social commitment. A case in point is the advertising campaign for the Lettera 22, one of the company’s most iconic portable typewriters. Launched with the famous slogan “The typewriter that fits in a bag,” the campaign highlighted not only the compactness and technical innovation of the product, but above all a modern, dynamic, intellectual lifestyle. The graphics—often entrusted to big names such as Giovanni Pintori—used geometric shapes, bold colors, and a minimalist aesthetic to evoke lightness, elegance, and design intelligence.
Rather than selling an object, Olivetti communicated a possible world: one of accessible culture, creative work, mobility, and progress. At a time when commercial communication was predominantly descriptive and functional, Olivetti anticipated the trends of experiential marketing, building a collective imagination in which technology and humanism could coexist harmoniously. That lesson remains relevant today.
Lavazza: how a family transformed the brand with modern communication
While Olivetti was ahead of its time in transforming communication into a vehicle for cultural vision and identity, other Italian family businesses have also been able to take up this legacy, reinterpreting it in the light of social and technological transformations. Among these, Lavazza stands out for the ability of the new generations of the family to profoundly renew the language of advertising, evolving it from a promotional tool to a narrative of values, without ever losing touch with its historical identity.
In particular, in the 1960s, Lavazza captured the collective imagination with its famous coffee maker advertisement featuring Caballero and Carmencita, characters created by designer Armando Testa. Set in a stylized and surreal world, the campaign played with irony and a simple but memorable aesthetic.
Carmencita, the woman who never wanted to marry anyone, and her suitor Caballero, portrayed the moment of coffee as a domestic, familiar, and reassuring ritual in a light-hearted and entertaining way.
Over time, however, Lavazza has gradually abandoned this fairy-tale and caricatured tone in favor of a more sophisticated and international communication style. Today, it focuses on campaigns with a strong emotional and value-based impact, telling stories that speak of inclusion, sustainability, culture, and ethical commitment, in which coffee becomes a symbol of connection, reflection, and responsibility.
Values, sustainability, and storytelling: what makes communication effective today
In other words, modern communication styles and campaigns focus on:
- Ethical values and environmental sustainability: Lavazza has launched projects such as the “More than Italian” campaign and invested in narratives that speak of inclusion, culture, and respect for the environment, reflecting the company’s social commitment.
- Art photography and art: emblematic examples include the famous Lavazza Calendars and collaborations with world-renowned photographers (from Steve McCurry to David LaChapelle), who communicate the brand’s social and cultural mission through images, often linked to coffee-producing countries.
- Emotional and international communication: recent commercials tell stories of people, communities, and passions, shifting the focus from the product itself to the experience of coffee as a moment of connection, reflection, or positive action in the world.
Best communication practices for family businesses
So, what are the best practices for effective communication in family businesses?
1 – Cultivate narrative consistency between past and future.
Successful communication in family businesses stems from a balance between tradition and innovation. Telling the company’s story does not mean remaining anchored to the past, but rather valuing it as a lever for interpreting the present and planning for the future. Every message should be consistent with the founding values of the family, but expressed using contemporary language and channels.
2 – Integrate aesthetics and content.
Form is substance, especially when communicating with new generations. Investing in a well-crafted visual identity – whether in packaging, social media campaigns, or digital environments – strengthens the credibility and appeal of the brand. The example of Olivetti shows how aesthetics can be a vehicle for vision and strategic positioning.
3 – Use advertising as a cultural space.
Move beyond promotional logic to embrace narrative logic: family businesses can use communication as a tool to talk about culture, territory, sustainability, and relationships. As Lavazza and Olivetti demonstrate, telling meaningful stories strengthens the bond with the public and builds lasting reputational capital.
4 – Involve the younger generations in crafting the message.
Children, grandchildren, young employees: they are the ones who know the cultural codes and emerging languages. Involving them in defining communication strategies allows family businesses to remain authentic, but also relevant. Generational transmission is not only about management, but also about how the company presents itself to the world.
(Article taken from We Wealth magazine no. 83, October 2025)
