WHAT'S THE STORY
Do B e t t e r – O m n i ta i l
BASIC NET
THE BUSINESS NETWORK
The fact that an Italian group has been a pioneer in digitisation since the mid-1990s may be surprising. But for Marco Boglione, the founder and chairman of BasicNet Group from Torino, it has always seemed logical to wring the greatest possible benefit from technology. Now the family business, which owns brands such as Kappa, K-Way, Superga, and Sebago, is considering opening the marketplace previously reserved for licensees, where producers and distributors interact on a global scale, for other brands. Text: Kay Alexander Plonka. Photos: Basic Studios
H
e has created an ideal ecosystem for cult brands: Marco Boglione, who had the courage to take over the insolvent company he had worked for in 1994. He got BasicNet going again by focusing on football merchandise. The next step was truly unique. The international expansion of the Kappa brand took place in the digital sphere right from the offset. Boglione created a modular network of more than 300 companies, all connected via a data exchange platform. He used the same system when BasicNet acquired the French brand K-Way in 2004. Three years later, Superga came into the fold. In 2017, BasicNet bought the license for Sebago from US group Wolverine. FELLOWSHIP
The strength of BasicNet is based on community spirit and the idea of effective industrialisation of processes. “We have connected many smaller companies, thus multiplying the synergy effect. All important information, trademark rights, and designs come from Torino. The audited production sites then implement the needs of worldwide distributers in direct consultation. We guarantee smooth production and financing processes in exchange for a service fee of 30 percent,” Boglione explains. Between 2007 and 2017, the annual turnover of BasicNet Group, which collaborates with more than 120 distribution partners on all five continents, rose from 275 to 541 million Euros. Bernhard Aschauer’s CMH - Consulting, Management und Handel GmbH represents Superga, 140
style in progress
Marco Boglione, the founder and chairman of BasicNet, has created a B2B platform that is a highly efficient system for production and distribution on a license basis.
K-Way, and Sebago in Germany and Austria. Kappa Deutschland GmbH is managed by Cornelia and Peter Schmidt. SCALING
“Our real-time based web business system makes scaling particularly simple and allows complete online management of all phases of the production process. In order to remain up-to-date, we are constantly developing the system further and implementing the best IT technologies available,” Boglione says and adds: “Now we’re considering opening up the system to external brands. It’s a highly effective software that is mature and has been fully functional for years. Thus, the digitisation of all processes is possible without major investment.”
