Our colleague from Belgium Thierry Coeman shares with us his more than three decades of experience in the International Home Improvement Sector.
A relentless drive keeps pushing me to seek out the best in DIY and Home Improvement. And yes, finding true gems that still stand out with their unique strengths is no small feat in 2024. Across Europe, both retailers and suppliers are under pressure, facing multiple challenges including the unpredictability of seasons. For most companies in our sector, the final quarter of the year will once again be decisive for closing the year in the black.
This time, I’m heading to Cagliari, the capital of the Italian island of Sardinia, with one burning question I hope to answer: how can independent retail stores survive, and more importantly, what are the fundamental factors for remaining relevant amidst the competition with established European Retail Chains?
I found an answer to this question within just a few minutes of my arrival, without a word being spoken. The Fadda family’s management team warmly welcomed me in the office of the family patriarch, which also serves as the core decision-making room where weekly discussions shape the family business. Francesca is the creative marketing mind, Lorenzo handles purchasing and operations, while the eldest, Roberto, serves as the CEO. He also leads the Bricolife Consortium as its chairman. All three together, the leading CFadda generation, seem to have visionary insights and are willing to share these with their peers and across Borders.
When Cosimo Fadda, the founder of the current DIY enterprise, enters the office, he immediately sensed the atmosphere of an unconventional interview.
The Unique Sard DNA
Our conversation quickly focused on CFadda’s unique DNA. “The building blocks of our DNA consist of three cornerstones, seamlessly integrated,” Cosimo explained. “These have driven this triumvirate for over forty years, and I still participate – though now from the sidelines – as a sparring partner at this epic family table,” he added proudly.
Honesty, Modesty, Passion are not just catchy phrases on a company presentation or website. For CFadda, these core values act as catalysts in every strategic move. Transparency, a simple organisational structure, and strong connections with all stakeholders are natural extensions of these values. As the family patriarch, Cosimo has added a fourth cornerstone: Harmony.
“Every day is a blessing when I see my three children, individually or together, fully engaged in the business,” he says. Harmony holds immense value in a family business. It’s about character, but it’s also about the daily effort we put into synchronising our three core values, allowing us to continue leading this beautiful company harmoniously. This synergy is strengthened by complementary skills within the team. Within this context, CFadda’s ethical code was created. It connects the three pillars of business governance: values, skills, and relationships with stakeholders.
Not words, but needs
My initial question gained further depth as the fourth-generation Fadda managers shared how they have translated CFadda’s DNA and values into daily operations. The balancing of the physical store and online presence, adapting pricing strategies to consumer purchasing power, integrating evolving digital technologies, and taking responsibility for climate impacts, especially seasonal changes. For Francesca, Marketing Director, this last aspect is the most crucial: CFadda’s ultimate mission is to become state of the art in sustainability. And her drive is contagious!
“We work on each of these challenges daily, as they push us forward and compel us to stay ahead. And moreover, we keep on benchmarking our company with colleagues, nationally and internationally” conclude both Francesca and Roberto.
The two store visits – to the CFadda Qui city concept in the San Benedetto neighbourhood and the classic DIY format on Via Calamattia, opposite the headquarters – quickly confirmed that the company’s vision, mission, values, and skills truly shape daily operations. Across all processes – product selection, merchandising, in-store marketing, extensive service platforms (kitchen, bathroom, indoor and outdoor furniture, tailor-made customer services), and pick-up points – the unique identity of CFadda and the pride of its employees’ shine through.
La vita è bella
Hundreds of independent retailers, from Hammerfest to Tarifa, (the far north to the far south of Europe) are searching for rational and emotional inspiration to reinvent themselves. An independent DIY organisation that has already carved out 140 years of regional history while setting the course for the future proves itself a credible cross-border benchmark. The formula for success isn’t simple. Yet, CFadda humbly shares its secret: DIY is, and will always remain, a people’s business.
Every day, customers visit our stores with the same expectations: seeking advice, learning new skills, and making informed purchases. The challenge is to meet these expectations, with or without the aid of technology. CFadda master’s this art and continues to pass it down from generation to generation, ensuring all stakeholders stay engaged. And thus, the circle continues, with everyone living on in harmony.
The most obvious proof of this harmony is symbolically found in the trophy for Best Italian Retail Chain, which the company has won for the fourth consecutive time, awarded by the entire Italian population.
The Power of the Network
CFadda’s unique character has become a catalyst for hundreds of independent retailers across Italy. Over the past decade, Roberto Fadda has been the Italian standard-bearer for the values of independent entrepreneurship. For three years, he has been leading the Systema Consortium, established in 2015, which unites the purchasing power of Bricolife and Brico Io, and serves simultaneously as the chairman of Bricolife.
Today, more than 200 independent Italian DIY stores and 180 Italian suppliers are part of the Systema Consortium, based on strong cooperative purchasing policy agreements, which boasts a total turnover of €700 million. “It goes far beyond simply leveraging combined purchasing power,” Roberto explains. “Systema is, above all, a meeting platform, a voice, a forum for hundreds of Italian family businesses looking to prepare the next generation for the challenges ahead.”
Sprezzatura
It may seem effortless, but it’s not. The challenges facing both the Home Improvement and Garden sector, together with the independent retailers, are only growing.
For those who constantly reassess themselves, surround themselves with the right people, seek out tomorrow’s solutions, and invest wisely, there is still a place in this challenging and promising universe.
There’s a beautiful Italian term that captures the right mindset for this: Sprezzatura – a natural attitude that makes complex things appear simple. Lorenzo Fadda provided CFadda’s team with a T-Shirt mentioning ‘Sprezzatura’ as a state of mind, naturally.
Many thanks to the Fadda family for sharing their DNA with their Irish and European colleagues. Grazie mille e tutto l’onoreal Dottore Cossimo Fadda!
Technical Form CFADDA
Number of Stores Sardina: 12
Average Footprint: 2,000 m²
Average Number of SKU’S per store: 18,000
Overall FTE Employees: 140
Average Turnover by Store: €2.7 Million
Technical Form Bricolife
Number of Members: 18
Number of Stores: 90
Total Store Area of all members: 190.000 m²
Annual Turnover: €320 Million
