Brunello Cucinelli to be awarded Global Economy Prize

Italian fashion designer Brunello Cucinelli has been named among the winners of the Global Economy Prize awarded by the Kiel Institute for the World Economy in partnership with the City of Kiel and Schleswig-Holstein Chamber of Commerce and Industry for “international efforts to tackle major global economic challenges”.

The annual award, which is now in its 13th year, honours what it calls individuals who are “pioneers of a cosmopolitan, economically liberal, and public-spirited society” and Cucinelli is one of the this year’s four winners.

"Brunello Cucinelli created his company from the ground up, but right from the start, it was about more than achieving business success. His goal was and remains to give the people in his region new, long-term prospects and the feeling of being needed," said Klaus-Hinrich Vater vice-president of Schleswig-Holstein Chamber of Commerce and Industry. "He represents the tradition of the honourable merchant at its best.”

Cucinelli founded his fashion company in 1978 with the idea of selling quality cashmere sweaters in bright colours. In the first year, he sold more than 50 sweaters, which he saw as a great success, however when he showcased at the fashion fair in Munich he landed nearly 12,000 orders. Brunello Cucinelli S.p.A is now valued at around 1 billion euros on the Milan stock exchange and generates sales of approximately 400 million euros a year and employs some 1,000 families in Umbria in Italy.

Kiel Institute for the World Economy names fashion designer as Global Economy Prize winner

He has become known for seeking to protect his local region from decline and is a big promotor of preserving traditional skills and even established a school of arts and crafts to given artisanal work new prestige. In addition, he is known for treated his employees well, with his staff receiving 20 percent above the median wage and he limits working hours to 8:00—17:30, including a one-and-a-half hour lunch break to encourage workers to spend time with their families.

The Global Economy Prize awards ceremony will take place on Sunday, June 18, during the Kieler Woche festival, in Kiel City Hall, and will honour the other winners which includes the former Federal President of Germany, Professor Horst Kolher, Indian banker Arundhati Bhattacharya and Swedish economist Professor Assar Lindbeck.

"This year's winners have made the socially vulnerable and disadvantaged the focus of their work. They, therefore, represent a central concern of the Kiel Institute and the core idea behind the Global Economy Prize, i.e., making people and their social well-being the central focus of economic activity," added Professor Dennis Snower, president of the Institute for the World Economy.

Image: courtesy of Kiel Institute for the World Economy