Ernesto Illy

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Ernesto Illy (1925-2008)

« I am a cocktail of science and business ».
 
That’s how Ernesto Illy liked to define himself, with an epithet as uncomplicated as he was, but read in another light revealed the complexity of his story and his boundless capacity for innovation and experimentation.
 
The son of Francesco, the founder of illycaffè, Ernesto was born in Trieste on 18 July 1925.
 
In 1947, he graduated in Chemistry from the University of Bologna, and married Anna Rossi in 1952.
 
In 1956 he became the co-owner and director of the company. From 1963-2005 he was its chairman, then honorary chairman.
 
He co-founded the Association Scientifique Internationale du Café (now the Association for Science and Information on Coffee) and was a member of the Physiological Effects of Coffee. He was a member of the Institute for Scientific Information on Coffee, and chairman of the Coffee Promotion Committee, within the International Coffee Organization (ICO).
 
In 1994 he received the Italian award Cavaliere del Lavoro, the order of merit for industrial achievement, and in 1996 he became chairman of Centromarca, a position to which he was re-elected several times.
 
Ernesto Illy revolutionised coffee growing in Brazil and elsewhere in the world. In his tireless quest for the perfect espresso, he encouraged the production of top quality coffee and constant investment in research. Known as the Ambasciatore del caffè (‘Coffee Ambassador’), he promoted the Premio Brasil de Qualidade do Café para Espresso, the University of Coffee in Brazil, and the Clube illy do Café. All these initiatives provided incentives for public and private institutions and not only in the coffee industry. His hard work over the years led him to become an honorary citizen of the cities of Monte Carmelo, Venda Nova do Imigrantes and Araponga; in 2004 he received the highest award from the State of Espírito Santo, the Comenda Jerônimo Monteiro and in the same year, the National Coffee Association of Guatemala bestowed him with its highest decoration, the “Flor del cafè”.
 
In Italy, he pioneered the basic formula for the modern concept of branding. He believed that a brand had to be designed and created on the basis of a promise given to the consumer, and that the ethical dimension should distinguish a company’s inner life as well as its business.
 
In 2007 he became – for the second time - one of the 'three wise men' of Confindustria, along with Luigi Attanasio and Antonio Bulgheroni, responsible for determining the strategies and possible candidates for the association’s top-level management.
 
He has left us this legacy: “our conduct is guided by a compass of ethics”.