It all began in 1882, when Luigi Olivieri moved to Arzignano to open his first bakery. Years went by: some children moved abroad while others remained in Italy and kept the business alive during the hard years of the First World War. Bianco Olivieri, Oliviero’s father, was born in 1927.
After his first experience in the family’s shop, he went on to open his own bakery. With the help of his wife, Miranda (known today as Nonna Miranda) he bought a piece of land, where he built a bigger work place than the previous one. In the 1970’s he was the first seller of Pan Biscotto and packaged biscuits in town. In the meantime, Miranda began to produce the first baked goods. The result was known as “Le ciambelline di nonna Miranda”, which were sold in many grocery stores in Vicenza province.
Initially, Bianco and Miranda’s children (Oriana, Romano, Oliviero and Leonardo) chose not to follow in their family footsteps, taking different paths. Bianco died in 1980, at the age of 52, and his four sons had to figure out the best way to go on. 18-year-old Oliviero decided to take over the bakery where he had grown up, provided that he could modernize it with the right machinery. In a few years, Oliviero and his wife Patrizia renovated the building and added the coffee bar.
In 2006 Nicola (Oliviero and Patrizia’s first-born), after years of travel, decided to follow in his father’s footsteps and he embarked on a two-year project where he studied the art of ice cream. Shortly afterwards, he opened the first chain of organic certified (at EU level) ice-cream parlors with his father and other business partners. This retail chain was to be sold a few years later, but the ice-cream would remain one of the brand’s strength in years ahead. Nicola went back to work in the bakery, dedicating himself to leavened cakes. Meanwhile, Nicola’s brother Andrea chose to forge his own path, moving to Milan to attend university. The new brand “Olivieri 1882” was born in 2009, bringing with it all of the experience and expertise acquired since 1882. The artisanal family business increasingly grew, products became a hit with customers and the coffee shop received numerous awards both from culinary guides and from local and international newspapers.
In 2015 Olivieri’s agreed to expand the business, motivated by the growing demand for their products from both Italian and global retailers.
Today, “Panettone Olivieri 1882” is distributed in the best food boutiques all over the world, from Australia to the United States, from Europe all the way to Singapore and Tokyo. That same year Andrea went back to Arzignano to oversee the purchase of a new area where a new project would be launched, joining the already existing bakery and cafe, with production department and offices.
Today, about two-thirds of the 1200 square meters is dedicated exclusively to the bakery’s production space. There are over 30 types of machinery including refrigerators, freezers, ovens, and mixers. The physical space is a large industrial warehouse just a few minutes from the center of Arzignano, completely renovated and officially open to the public since December 2016. In the span of a few months it became the brand’s headquarters for each phase of production, including research, sales and service.
In 2017 “Olivieri 1882” was named one of Italy’s best breakfast experiences in Italy by Gambero Rosso, thanks to the top quality products we offer to our customers on a daily basis, blending tradition and innovation.
The willingness to experiment remains at the heart of it all, fearless in the face of entrepreneurial risks.
Who knows what’s next?
