A benchmark player in the mineral water sector has its roots in Emilia. Its story begins over forty years ago in Fanano: a mountain town of three thousand inhabitants. Today the company has 140 employees, 5 plants and consolidated revenues of 54 million euros. Yesterday, as today, one lesson stands out above all: preserve, never exploit. For the FARE INSIEME series, Giampaolo Colletti interviews Claudio Turchi, owner and President of the SEM Group.
by Giampaolo Colletti
@gpcolletti
“Water is the substance of dreams, but the mountain is its discipline.”This is what Gaston Bachelard wrote. For this French philosopher, who spanned the twentieth century, water embodied the primordial dimension. The mountain becomes its discipline, the place of measure, responsibility and form. A balance that still speaks to the present with surprising clarity. This is because a kind of ‘blue gold’ runs through Emilia from north to south, rises towards the Apennines and then descends again, flowing through communities, stories and businesses. It is water. It is from here that a narrative must begin in order to tell the story of a business group and its approach to business. Everything starts from a spring and from those uplands that teach respect for time, nature and resources. But let us proceed step by step.
Company profile. Today the SEM Group is a structured operation with 140 employees, five plants and consolidated revenue of 54 million euros, yet its story still moves with the same deliberate pace as at the beginning.“We were raised in the mountains, and the mountains teach us all one essential thing: resources must be protected, not exploited.”This is how Claudio Turchi describes it straightforwardly. He has been the owner and President of the group since 2019, having previously served as the group's administrative manager and CFO.A managerial story that, over the years, has become an entrepreneurial one. We are in Vignola, in the heart of Emilia: a region of hard work and clear thinking, but also a land of crossroads and balance. Similar to the plains surrounding it, which reach toward the Apennines, the company keeps its gaze fixed upward. It was here, in 2019, that the company’s headquarters took shape. Not just an operational base, but a symbolic place, designed to dialogue with the landscape, welcome people, and give visible form to an industrial philosophy based on respect for resources. From Vignola, the group’s presence extends across the Apennines like a natural ridge. A presence that flows along the line of water and responsibility, proving that to grow is not to leave one’s origins behind, but to carry them further. Ospitale di Fanano, where it all began, Nocera Umbra, Ventasso, Anguillara Sabazia, and the new site in Marano Lagunare. Five plants, five different areas, one shared vision. The story begins over forty years ago in Fanano itself: a mountain town of three thousand souls at 640 metres above sea level, set within the splendid Parco dell’Alto Appennino Modenese. We are on the slopes of Mount Cimone. Fanano is also known as the “city of stone” for its distinctive, age‑old tradition. This is where the entrepreneurial adventure began, with Acqua Monte Cimone.“We were a small business with a clear yet ambitious dream. Monte Cimone was our first teacher: it taught us how to relate to the spring, how to care for quality, and how to earn people’s trust.”
Evolution within tradition. From there, step by step, the group built a steady, understated growth path, always consistent with itself. The year 2002 marked a turning point with the arrival of Nocera Umbra, a historic spring with over a century of history behind it.“Welcoming Nocera Umbra meant taking care of a national asset.”Then came Fonte Ventasso in 2007, in the heart of the Reggio Apennines, and Acqua Clavdia in 2016. The latter is a spring known since Neolithic times and valued in the Roman era. At Clavdia, we safeguard something unique: a plant that coexists with an archaeological and nature park. Here the past is not a memory, it is a living part of the present”, says Turchi. Growth didn’t stopped with water. The investment in Birrificio 620 Passi, 70% owned by SEM, opens a new chapter. The choice of craft beer is not about chasing a trend, but about expanding the company’s narrative: from water as a primary resource to water as a cultural ingredient. From the Monte Cimone bottle under the Coop brand, made from 100% regenerated and 100% recyclable PET, to product lines containing 30–50% recycled material, through to ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and IFS certifications and an outstanding ESG rating.“Our commitment is measured, certified, verified. Our philosophy is simple: nature offers its gifts to those who respect it”, says Turchi.
Human capital. Values and people, together.“Our real competitive advantage lies in them. From a head office designed for everyday wellbeing to continuous training, and strong ties with local communities. Operating in mountain areas means being an active part of a community that shares values such as collaboration, integrity and resilience”, Turchi explains. In 2024, two anniversaries speak to the depth of this journey:40 years of Monte Cimone and 130 years of Nocera Umbra.“If a brand spans decades, it means it carries genuine values”. This is how Emilia becomes a story, beginning with the blue gold of the water that rises in the mountains, flows through the land and travels far, without ever losing its origin. This is a story of enterprise and excellence. It is a model based not only on know-how, but also on a skill that is even rarer in these accelerated times: listening. This means listening to people, as well as paying close attention to local areas and natural resources. Our company is attuned to the mountain, which allows no shortcuts, and to the water that moves slowly through it, filtering it and safeguarding it before flowing down into the valley, carrying balance and memory. Reinhold Messner, Italy’s legendary mountaineer, repeated it like a mantra: “A mountain is not conquered; it is listened to.”
https://podcast.confindustriaemilia.it/
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