The chairman of the Italian leather good company Tod’s is Diego Della Valle. Diego Della Valle is Dorino Della Valle’s elder son and Filippo Della Valle’s grandson. In the 1920s, Filippo founded his shoemaking business, which Diego expanded into the now-famous Tod’s brand. Diego studied Law at the University of Bologna, graduating in 1975, and has been juggling his career and marketing his family’s shoemaking business since 2000. Diego was business knowledgeable even in his youth. Diego once convinced his friend Luca di Montezemolo, who was a close associate of the then Fiat boss Gianni Agnelli, to introduce Agnelli to a couple of Tod’s driving moccasins – the lawyer got Agnelli to dress Tod’s shoes when participating Juventus football games, which were widely broadcast live; this sponsored content urged a spike in sales.
Diego now runs Tod’s alongside his brother Andrea. Emanuele, Diego’s older son, is also involved in the family business as the creative director. Barbara, his wife, designed the factory in Casette d’Ete. Diego serves on the boards of several companies, including Ferrari, Maserati, the Banca Nazionale del Lavoro, and LVMH. Diego bought the Tuscan football club ACF Fiorentina in 2002 and has owned it since. He also holds the fashion label Maison Schiaparelli, which he is reviving. At the end of the 2018/2019 season, he sold ACF Fiorentina to Rocco Commisso. In 2013, he announced that he would undertake the restoration of Rome’s Colosseum at the cost of more than €30 million.
Even though he gets to live a life of luxury, with homes in Capri, Paris, and New York, and dallies with big boy’s toys, he also enjoys everyday activities such as watching movies, reading, jogging, and eating pasta with friends, and swimming. Even though Diego is in Hong Kong, he is not interested in taking a quick trip to Bali or Phuket. The 57-year-old prefers to talk about high quality rather than luxury, citing craftsmanship and family values as key components of his fashion empire, which includes Hogan, Fay, Roger Vivier, and the soon-to-be-launched Schiaparelli label, in addition to Tods. His brands have been rapidly expanding since he launched them, with a unique strategy for each. Della Valle is not interested in gambling, claiming that his success is the result of hard work.
Diego Della Valle talks about taking risks
No one can be certain that risks will pay off, no matter how calculated. However, this should not deter you from taking risks. Risks are required for your business to succeed. Numerous entrepreneurs have taken risks to get their companies to where they are today. Taking risks, on the other hand, does not imply going into business blindly and expecting great results. Instead, approaching risks successfully necessitates careful planning and an underlying strategy. You have no idea how and what would the future will unfold or whether your business will be successful. However, we can plan ahead of time to help reduce the likelihood of failure. Creating a business strategy, experimenting with financial scenarios, and revisiting initial performance are just a few methods for navigating the unknown.
“I never take risks,” Diego said. “I follow my instincts a lot, but it’s under my control. I work a lot. My family was very simple, and we had a very simple life.” He added.
Diego Della Valle was dreaming not just for his own life but for his family too
Diego Della Valle is Dorino Della Valle’s elder son and Filippo Della Valle’s grandson. In the 1920s, Filippo founded his shoemaking business, which Diego expanded into the now-famous Tod’s brand. Diego studied Law at the University of Bologna, graduating in 1975, and has been juggling his career and marketing his family’s shoemaking business since 2000.
Diego was business knowledgeable even in his youth. He once convinced his friend Luca di Montezemolo, who was a close associate of the then Fiat boss Gianni Agnelli, to introduce Agnelli to a couple of Tod’s driving moccasins – the lawyer got Agnelli to dress Tod’s shoes when participating Juventus football games, which were widely broadcast live; this sponsored content urged a spike in sales.
Pursuing your dreams will strengthen your courage. Follow your dreams and exercise courage to achieve incredible success in life. You will undoubtedly become unstoppable in due course.
“It’s important to believe in what you want,” Diego says. “You need to follow the dream and keep your feet on the ground. Try to do this on a day-to-day basis, and try to do it in a very normal way. You don’t need to be aggressive towards others and focus solely on the dream. The secret is to believe in a dream and to follow it – day by day, hour by hour. And at the same time, try to remain normal.”
“Don’t forget that the most important thing in life is not to be the number one or the biggest, but to do what you like to do. The most important thing is to have a solid balance in life and in relationships. Don’t ever push people to meet your dream. That will destroy your character. This society prefers winners, but whether you’re a winner or not, you win in life when you do as you like.” Diego stated.
“My dream was to do what I do today. Every morning it’s important to remember that. Sometimes you forget that. It was my big dream when I was young. Two days ago I was in my headquarters – unfortunately, it’s not possible to do that often, because I travel a lot – and I was in the factories, and for a brief moment I remembered the times when I was in the factories as a young child, and my dream was to have a big factory one day. And now our factories are as big as a small city. Why not be happy about that?” It was clear that we all are catching our own path to achieving our dreams, being happy, and wanting what we are doing. Dreaming is not easy unless you are slowly taking the right way. Always remembering what you want in the future is one step toward your dream.
Diego Della Valle’s Business
Diego Della Valle grew his grandfather’s small shoe factory into the global shoe and purse maker Tod’s S.p.A. Della Valle, who is chairman, and his brother Andrea own the majority of the company. The brothers are also shareholders in the Italian scooter manufacturer Piaggio, the multimedia conglomerate RCS MediaGroup, and the investment bank Mediobanca. From 2002 to 2019, the brothers owned the Florence-based soccer team AC Fiorentina, which they sold to fellow billionaire Rocco Commisso. In 2006, he cofounded Italy’s first private rail operator, Ntv-Italo, and sold it 12 years later for $2.2 billion to an American investment firm. Della Valle is a director of several businesses, including Ferrari, Maserati, the Banca Nazionale del Lavoro, and LVMH. In 2002, he purchased the Tuscan football club ACF Fiorentina.
Diego’s headquarters in Italy’s east coast Marche region are a glass-and-marble factory-cum-palazzo filled with abstract expressionism worth $60 million. There is also a kindergarten, a communal restaurant where all employees eat for free, a gym, and a concert hall for presentations and expositions. His wife designed the complex, and other family members are heavily involved in Tod’s group. Della Valle’s brother Andrea controls the business alongside him, and his son Emmanuele is a creative director who oversees all advertising campaigns for the Tod’s Group.
Diego’s brand is one of the most talked about and eye-catching brands all over the mall. This only shows how these hard-earned businesses of Diego are a hit. “I think many brands are showing off too much,” Diego says. “When you walk around in the shopping mall, there are too many names. The shops are too big, it’s a very commercial touch, and it’s not for everybody.”
“At the end of the day, when people speak about a dream, you speak about quality, exclusivity. We’re a very strong example of the Italian lifestyle. We receive incredible attention around the world, especially in Asia at this moment, and we don’t want to make any mistakes. We want to remain very, very exclusive and respect our customers, too.” Diego added.
Diego Della Valle in the fashion industry
We all know that Tod is a brand that produces luxury shoes and goods that are leather. Tod’s has continued to expand its brand over time into shoes and bags. Della Valle makes it clear that he doesn’t want to transform his brand Tods into a clothing company.
“We want to touch on apparel like accessories, perhaps the iconic five pieces per season. Many competitors do good products. We don’t want to do fashion, but maybe if you want a trench coat, I would like you to visit me because you know it’s a piece that will last many years.” Diego explained.
Competing with others is very usual, but most people in the business industry are in denial about the competitor’s capability. He partnered with Karl Lagerfeld for Hogan and works with Alber Elbaz and Azzedine Alaa. “There are a lot of notable people, but they aren’t real designers,” he says bravely.
Since Diego was a little kid, he has had knowledge about keeping and having branded and/or luxury things. There’s a specific time that Schiaparelli was being started; he was seeking a director, and it was clear that Schiaparelli was for a revival plan. “When we’re finished developing and expanding Vivier, we’ll start with Schiaparelli,” Diego says. “This is the last challenge, to develop this brand.” He added.
Diego Della Valle is not only a fashion enthusiast and creator but also a man full of surprises and kindness. He wants to share his wealth with those who are in need of it.
“I work a lot with our charity foundation because I want to organize a specific system…the title is competitiveness and solidarity. I want to organize a friendly charity business model that produces profit. I’m very happy when I have the possibility to do something for other people. I’m a lucky man. Life gave me a lot of things, and if we give back a small part of that, I think that’s normal, no?” He explained.
Lastly, Diego stated, “At the end of the day, I think I’m a very normal guy. I’m like an old farmer. We change our life day-by-day. I make small changes. I don’t like to change a lot. I like the same hotels, same restaurants, same color, same tailor, same shirt-maker. My son tells me that I’m a little too old now. I’m lucky because I like this type of life. I’m proud when I think that my life is balanced.”