Ferrari plans to capitalize on its name, its logo, and its image to increase its profits during the 2020s. The storied Italian brand announced a series of ventures that will take it outside of the automotive industry, including a new restaurant.
The yet-unnamed restaurant will open in Maranello, Italy, the firm’s home town. Ferrari peddles horsepower, not Italian cuisine, so it is joining forces with chef Massimo Bottura to leap into the food business. The 57-year old Bottura owns and runs a restaurant called Osteria Francescana that’s located a stone’s throw from Ferrari’s headquarters, and he earned a coveted three-star rating from Michelin, so he’s a good fit. You didn’t think Chef Boyardee would put together the menu, did you?
Speaking of, Ferrari hasn’t revealed what it will serve in its restaurant yet. It will hopefully be car-themed, with memorabilia-lined red walls, tables made using old V12 blocks, Recaro bucket seats, and motorsport-inspired dishes. We’re looking forward to waiting a year and a half for the opportunity to sit behind a plate of GTC4Lasagna.
Ferrari will also expand its presence in the world of fashion through a newly-minted partnership with Giorgio Armani. The firm already offers a growing line of Prancing Horse-branded clothes and various accessories, but the tie-up will spawn more upmarket products. “The carefully-chosen array of apparel products and accessories will embody the style, creativity, and quality that we stand for as a brand,” pledged CEO Louis Camilleri during a call with analysts.
Diversification is a way for Ferrari, which gained its independence from Fiat in 2016, to increase its profits. Camilleri expects sales from non-automotive projects like pasta and pants will represent about 10 percent of the company’s profits in the next seven to 10 years. “It is our intention to increase the size of the cake, and our share of the cake,” he summed up. That’s a metaphor, but it might take on a more literal meaning if Ferrari’s restaurant puts an F8 Tiramisu on its dessert menu.
Ferrari has stepped out of the automotive industry before. In addition to selling a variety of merchandise, it opened a theme park in Abu Dhabi called Ferrari World in 2010. The site suitably features the world’s fastest roller coaster, the Formula Rossa, in addition to attractions like go-kart races, a tour of a miniature Italy, and a flight simulator.
