CAMPODARSEGO, Padua, Italy — Maurizio Maschio and Enrico Polo, owners of the Milleuno-Imoco group known for its diversified business interests, have just become shareholders in Antonio Carraro spa.

The deal is expected to provide an increase in capital to finance a 5-year industrial strategy. Company President Antonio Carraro says the investment “will bring about an important level of corporate growth in terms of increased capacity of the production lines, new product development, the conquering of new markets and new segments for compact tractors. This is not a fleeting financial move, but a long-term partnership. It is a necessary step toward entry at an international level and to begin the process of a future floatation on the stock market. We will work with new planning, control and programming systems as well as through a process to bring about the 'depersonalisation' of the family business in order to become a patrimony of stakeholders.

"We need to look toward the next 50 years. The world will move forward and we have to be ready to face the future challenges with a solid, capitalized and highly competitive company. We have growth and development projects for the emerging markets, for the USA, Turkey, India, Russia, Brazil and the Middle East above all in the markets for the mechanization of specialized agriculture (vineyards and fruit plantations) where we are currently world leaders."

Currently, the company is present in 100 countries and has 650 sales outlets via importers and dealers. In 2016, it had a gross operating margin of 10%. Carraro added, Tthis is the beginning of a new era for Antonio Carraro. It will represent an opportunity for growth and motivation via the creation of wealth in terms of new production and new jobs, thus boosting the “human resource” currently working within the company (around 350 people are employed at the Campodarsego single production unit and the commercial subsidiaries in Spain, France, Turkey, Oceania and South America), which I firmly believe to be our greatest asset at Antonio Carraro.”

Maurizio Maschio is a long-term customer of Antonio Carraro tractors for his vineyards in the DOCG Prosecco area.