In Carpi (in the province of Modena), in 1986, an agency was born with the mission to bring together several professionals, anticipating trends that would shape the future. From the smell of ink in the early days to the algorithms that drive today’s campaigns, the goal has never changed: turning ideas into value. For FARE Insieme, Giampaolo Colletti interviews Alcide Po, sole administrator at APVD
by Giampaolo Colletti
@gpcolletti
A printing machine, a roller turning, the scent of ink in a warehouse. Some stories begin with seemingly insignificant details that, in reality, prove to be essential because they define identity. It is 1986, and in Carpi - a textile and manufacturing city in the province of Modena- two young professionals (who nowadays would be referred to as startuppers), Alcide Po and Alessandro Andreoli, decide that carrying out graphic design alone is no longer enough. In fact, it is necessary to put together the pieces of a fragmented supply chain. All this to unite creativity and technique, imagination and attention to detail. Thus, APVD was founded, initially as a graphic and printing studio, later as an integrated communication agency, and today as a contemporary art laboratory. “The most fulfilling moment was when we realised we could live exclusively off our passions”, recalls Alcide Po, sole director of APVD. This was a forward-thinking step in an era when communication was spread across multiple individuals and flowed through diverse pathways. “Before the digital revolution, the communication world was divided into silos: the graphic designer, visual artist, copywriter, photographer, photo lithographer, typesetter, and printer. Our objective was to create a multidisciplinary structure within a single building. This entire organisation offered the client a single point of contact for a wide range of services, allowing for absolute control over timing, costs, and quality.” Connecting the dots, one might say. This is how APVD grew, earning the trust of companies it continues to serve after twenty or even thirty years. The Pandemic Arrives: The toughest period was definitely 2020, when we already had an expensive structure, inoperable printing equipment, and revenue that had almost been halved. Thank goodness, through a combination of public incentives and a great deal of tenacity, our company remained afloat”, Po recalls.
From yesterday to today. The headquarters consists of a 500-square-meter warehouse in Carpi, with 14 employees. The market is predominantly Italian, focused on B2B: companies in the Horeca, mechanical, and biomedical sectors. The projected 2025 turnover will reach about Euro 1.3 million with a growth of +12% compared to the previous year. Furthermore, the prospects are even more ambitious thanks to a new project: Materico. This is a D2C art-tech startup that creates paintings using an innovative 2.5D technique. The dual nature is APVD’s hallmark: “We continue to grow as a communication and marketing agency, strengthening our role as a trusted B2B partner. At the same time, through Materico, we have launched our first consumer brand, which has already brought us significant satisfaction within just one year.” The two are intertwined, each supporting the other. The message is clear: digital is not an option, but a necessity. “Digital is a sector in constant evolution, and our speciality has always been anticipating trends. Nowadays, clients demand practical solutions to generate results: qualified leads, targeted traffic, and online sales”, says Po. First-hand experience with Materico allowed us to test campaigns, e-commerce logic, and market dynamics directly in the field. This is an asset that has been leveraged to provide valuable consulting services to our clients. “A strong digital presence is no longer optional; it is an across-the-board necessity. For large corporations, it means consolidating their brand reputation; for SMEs, it can be the catalyst for rapid growth. With Materico, we experienced this directly: a new brand, developed anew, that in just a few months reached a broad audience thanks solely to digital strategies.” Every client is treated as a partner, with a tailor-made approach: “We start by listening, define clear objectives, build strategies, and measure results, always ready to adapt the strategy according to data. This is exactly the same method we apply to Materico: we consider ourselves our most valuable client”, Po explains.
Collaboration is central. Our team consists of creatives and technicians, graphic designers and digital strategists, photographers and web developers. “We strongly believe in professional development, investing every year in advanced training and specialisation across different fields, from AI integration to digital printing of relief artworks, which is where the Materico brand was born.” What about the future? There are two parallel paths that feed into each other: our growth as a fully integrated communication and marketing agency, and the expansion of Materico, which serves as our creative laboratory. From the smell of ink in the early days to the algorithms that drive today’s campaigns, the goal has never changed: turning ideas into value. The APVD has demonstrated that it is possible to remain true to one's own history while at the same time inventing a new one. A foot in the industry and a foot in the arts. All this with the same passion as at the beginning.
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