Final Recap

Wow - 11 days of travel, cultural experiences, business visits and so much food! The purpose of the trip was to allow myself and others in the program to experience and expose us to the global market outside of the US. The program not only did this but so much more.

Visiting each of the companies allowed me to realize that every business from the foundation is similar. Similar in the desire to serve a market, provide a unique product or service and of course to make money. Each company had to adapt or build into the culture, the ability to survive based on location, cultural and political environments.

It also opened my eyes to the realization that if your desire is to become a successful business leader domestically or globally, you have to be open to different ways of doing and adapting your business. Having this mindset, has allowed me to understand that the US as large of a market as it is, has its own rules and culture that are not necessarily shared globally. Opening up to hearing how these businesses have adapted, has allowed me to see and hopefully put into practice that businesses who are global must be flexible in each market to survive.

This was a great trip, which provided me great experiences culturally and professionally, all of which will provide a life time of memories.

Day 9: Eataly

If you haven't been to Italy and enjoyed authentic Italian food, Eataly besides Italian home cooking is 2nd best.

Eataly is essentially a grocery store with high quality Italian food. We were lucky enough to meet with the CEO and marking VP, both of which were very young.

Together they explained the business philosophy: Eat-Shop-Learn.
Eataly uses small suppliers who only provide high quality food.

They want to target all clients regardless of price point who want high quality food.

What I found most interesting was that at some locations they make no money. But believe it's important to provide high quality food and employ local and national suppliers.

The closest one in the states is NYC. I've been now to both NYC and Rome, and will be going back!

Day 9: St. Peters

Had a quick hour long walk through the basilica in which our tour guide Massimo gave us a short brief on the more important aspects found inside.

We then had a short time to take pictures and move on to lunch.

When visiting plan on spending the whole day there. We were lucky because we had a tour guide who had connections and took us through a 5 min line. Usually the line is 2-3hrs.

Day 9: Radio Vatican

A short walk from St. Peters is the head quarters for Radio Vatican. We were met by Sean Patrick Lovett who has worked for Radio Vatican over 30 years.

He was able to bring a great perspective of the technology change of the media and how getting the Catholic message out has evolved.

We had a very candid conversation with Sean Patrick, who explained the history and now current mission of Radio Vatican.

He was obviously very proud of the history, the linguistic strength providing 40 languages that are broadcasted, and the ability to reach so many people globally.

Day 8: Made it to Rome

Nice train ride down from Parma. Train ran up to 300km/hr...it's way over Amtrak standards.

Had a tour of the Coliseum, the Forum and surrounding area.

Enjoyed a nice lunch at IL Bocconcino.
www.ilbocconcino.com

Now off to find the hotel!

Day 7: Wine Tour

After filling ourselves with prociutteo we made a short trip to Lamoretti winery.

Founded in 1930 and covering 54 acres the wine and location is outstanding.

If you are in Parma it's a must visit, and the castle located in the back drop provides a wonderful tasting experience.

www.lamorettivini.com

Day 7: Prosciutteria Museum

Short bus ride out of Parma to the Prosciutteria museum. Had a historical tour of the origins of prosciutteo and how it was processed. Not for the weak of stomach.

We enjoyed a nice sit down lunch at the museum, which of course features a variety of prosciutteo.

A must stop!