From a family pasta business in Parma to an internationally recognised Italian brand, Pietro Barilla transformed Barilla through entrepreneurial vision, modern marketing and an early commitment to international expansion.
The Gold Mercury Award Presentation to Pietro Barilla, Founder of Barilla, Campidoglio, Rome, 1965.
Award Motivation
For entrepreneurship and development of international economic trade.
Pietro Barilla (1913–1993) was the third generation of the Barilla family to lead the company his grandfather founded in Parma at the turn of the twentieth century. Together with his brother Gianni, he played a decisive role in transforming Barilla from a traditional family food business into one of Italy’s most recognised food brands.
Transforming the Barilla Company
Born in Parma on 16 April 1913, Pietro Barilla inherited a family enterprise with deep roots in Italian food production. His vision was to transform the company for the modern age.
In 1952, he made the strategically significant decision to discontinue the production of bread and concentrate the company entirely on pasta. This decision established the direction for Barilla’s subsequent transformation and helped build the foundations of what would become one of the world's best-known Italian pasta brands.
Pietro understood that the future of the company would depend not only on production, but also on marketing, packaging, distribution and international expansion.
Learning from America
In 1952, Pietro travelled to the United States to study the methods being used by one of the world's most advanced consumer markets. He examined packaging, advertising, production and distribution, bringing new ideas back to Parma.
The experience helped shape his ambition to build Barilla into a leading Italian consumer brand with an international presence.
The company's development during the following decades reflected this increasingly outward-looking approach. Barilla managers and collaborators travelled extensively and absorbed new approaches to marketing, planning and modern business management.
Rebuilding Barilla
The early 1970s brought a profound challenge for the Barilla family. In 1971, Pietro and his brother sold a majority stake in the company to the American corporation W. R. Grace, following financial difficulties.
Although the American owners assumed control of the company, Italian management continued to play an important role in its operations. Pietro subsequently rebuilt his position within the business and, in 1979, reacquired control of Barilla.
He then accelerated the company's international development, establishing operations including Barilla France, Barilla España and Barilla Deutschland.
Pietro later reflected on the emotional cost of having temporarily lost control of the family company:
“I was a man suffering for many reasons, the most important of which was having dropped out of the ‘ship’ that had been entrusted to me.”
Building an Italian Brand for the World
Pietro Barilla understood that creating a great Italian brand required more than producing a great product. He invested in the distinctive combination of product, packaging, advertising and cultural identity that would make Barilla recognisable far beyond Italy.
This approach reached another landmark in 1984, when Barilla commissioned the celebrated Italian filmmaker Federico Fellini to create an advertising campaign. The campaign, featuring internationally known actors and personalities, helped reinforce Barilla's position as a major Italian consumer brand in international markets.
Pietro's vision was ultimately to make Barilla synonymous with Italian pasta — an ambition that extended the family's Parma origins into an international brand.
Gold Mercury Award — 1965
Pietro Barilla was a recipient of the Gold Mercury Award in 1965, recognising his contribution to the development of modern Italian enterprise and his international vision for the Barilla brand.
His career represented a distinctive form of entrepreneurial leadership: rooted in family heritage while embracing modern management, international markets, consumer culture and innovation.
Pietro Barilla died in Parma on 16 September 1993. His contribution to the development of Barilla remains an important chapter in the history of Italian enterprise and the internationalisation of Italian brands.
Gold Mercury Award 1965 — Pietro Barilla
A visionary Italian entrepreneur who helped transform a family pasta company into an internationally recognised Italian brand.