F IS FOR FEMALE

There is pink in Ferrino's DNA because we have always believed and invested in women in the outdoor world. Anna Ferrino herself emphasizes how the latter is not for the company a simple passing fad dictated by today's trends, but a choice, made a long time ago, in which it strongly believes today more than yesterday.

After so many years, what does Ferrino represent for you?

Ferrino is the family business, now in its fifth generation with me and which I now manage together with my partners, the Rabajoli family.

It accompanied my life day after day, at two years old I posed for the cover of the catalogue being used as a little model to represent that typical situation of an Italian family that went camping, often and willingly with a Ferrino tent.

I have always been interested in interacting with the outside world thanks to my great curiosity, so in the first part of my career I decided to interface with external realities and, later, dedicate myself to Ferrino which for me today represents the most important work challenge of my life. Companies must continue to innovate, communicate, engage consumers in order to stay on the market, it is a challenge that I lead on the front line in this wonderful company that has always had a unique rigor and attention to business ethics, combined with seriousness in product development and in relationships with its partners. For all these reasons I think that Ferrino has the ability to become an increasingly large brand on an international level.

Many are the female faces that have represented and represent Ferrino, one in particular that of Carla Perrotti.

First of all, I would like to point out that almost 60% of our collaborators are women and thank them for their great commitment and daily contribution that is fundamental to the success of the brand.
Carla is our historic ambassador and everything she has achieved is historic. A seemingly normal person who has completed extraordinary feats, putting herself on the line and crossing a desert on each continent alone, equipped by us. On our side there has always been great attention in listening to her requests, in following her in her adventures and in designing equipment that met her needs. Carla has become a bit of an icon of Ferrino's ambassadors, who was then followed by other mountaineers until arriving at the Ferrino Women Team.

How can we valorize women in this mountain universe that is still too often seen as only male?

Lately there has been a great deal of attention to the female world, often driven by the attempt by many companies to grow this segment. I believe that Ferrino, through its historic attention to female athletes, has been a bit of a trailblazer in the sector, today all brands are looking for female testimonials but we did it in unsuspecting times in the 80s. We certainly intend to continue on this path undertaken many years ago, not for a question of fashion or opportunity, but for an attention that we have always had towards the needs of the outside world.

You believed a lot in the Ferrino Women Team and you are getting great satisfaction and results, can you tell us about it?

Ferrino Women has a well-defined message at its core, an invitation to all women to reflect that nothing is impossible if you put yourself on the line. Our athletes are all normal women, with a life, a job and a family, at the same time they have a very strong passion for running that leads them to carve out the time necessary to train and reach those levels of quality standards that allow them to run a Tor de Geants for example.
It is a message of challenging one's limits: if you have a passion, pursue it with commitment and determination and you will see that everything is possible.

Stefi Trogue has conquered her second 8000 and seems intent on continuing her feats. She stands out because she always climbs with lipstick on her lips, how much does she serve as a character identifying the pink quotas of the mountains for Ferrino?

She is a very determined girl with an ambitious dream that she pursues with that little touch of coquetry that is red lipstick, a warning to never lose femininity. She is moving well and is also growing from a technical point of view, she was certainly chosen and supported mainly by our local distributors but also by us within a project that is based on a development of digital communication related to our brand in Spain. The fact that Stefi has her own digital presence of a certain weight helps to make our brand known through content consistent with our positioning. We are happy to have welcomed her into our team.

You have a very strong personality, have you ever encountered any difficulties just because you are a woman in the outdoor/business world?

I certainly have a fairly strong personality but, at the same time, I think I have always tried to act in a feminine way. Objectively, I have never had great difficulties. However, I realize that even today it is a great problem to overcome and improve in some societies more than in others. It exists and must be addressed seriously but, as far as I am concerned, I have never wanted to set it as a limit.

Ferrino produces products designed exclusively for women who obviously have a different physique than men. How much do you invest in terms of time and resources in developing these products?

Our line of products dedicated to women is made up of backpacks, sleeping bags and clothing. In backpacks in particular there is a more obvious ergonomic component compared to other product technologies, a backrest that adapts well to the female physical conformation makes the difference in terms of comfort and safety of use. The line has been very well received since its debut. We were one of the very first brands to offer products dedicated to the female universe. Today this market is growing and so consequently we too have decided to expand the range and investment in this sector. Many of our athletes have helped us: Carla Perrotti has a small physique and a delicate back. The work done with her was the forefather of all the sensitivity and technical skills that we have progressively developed and continue to develop, trying to give women backrests that adapt perfectly to their body shape.

So will the mountain world be increasingly rosy and pinker?

For me the world of the mountains follows the trends of our society, women are bringing fundamental contributions to the development of our world: they are increasingly important and capable of making a difference, still with smaller numbers but progressively growing they occupy increasingly relevant roles where that touch of feminine ability, of multitasking and also of sensitivity in human relationships is always able to make a difference. I believe that in the outdoor world the segment linked to women's products will continue to grow a little in line with the evolution of the female role within our society.