Mario Moretti Polegato

He is the President of the Company and founder of the Group. He was born in 1952 in Crocetta del Montello (Treviso). Upon completing his studies as an enologist and graduating in law, Mr. Moretti Polegato concentrated on managing his family-owned agricultural and wine business, which had been in operating for three generations.

In the mid nineties, following the invention of the waterproof and breathable rubber sole, Mr. Moretti Polegato commenced a new business in the footwear sector. In 1994 he received the Italian “award for creativity” from the Italian Industries’ Association (Confindustria). In 1995 he was granted the honorary title of “Commendatore Nazionale” of the Italian Republic. In 2000 he was appointed Honorary General Consul of Northeastern Italy to Romania and granted the honorary title of Cavaliere al Merito dell’Ordine Nazionale di Romania (Knight of the National Order of Romania for Merit).

In 2002 he was appointed as member of the Board of Directors of Unicredit Romania (he is not in charge of that at present) and Ernst & Young, Borsa Italiana and Il Sole 24 Ore conferred upon him the award for “Entrepreneur of the Year”, and for the “best strategic use nationally and internationally of the openings and opportunities offered by the market, combined with a capacity for constant innovation”. In 2002 he also became a member of Aspen Institute Italia, an international non-profit association.

In 2003 Mr. Moretti Polegato received the award in “integrated logistics and supply chain integrated management” from the University of Verona, Faculty of Economics and Trade; in the same year Ernst & Young Global elected him best Italian Entrepreneur in the World.
In 2003 he also received an honorary Doctorate degree (Doctor Honoris Causa) from the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of the Banatului-Timisoara University (Romania), and was also appointed Probiviro of Confindustria for a four-year term.

In 2003 he has also been a member of the board of directors of Siparex Italia, a French-Italian international private equity fund. In 2004 he founded the ONLUS “Il Ponte del Sorriso”, an Italian association helping young poor Romanian orphans. He received the 2004 Marketing Award from the Italian Marketing Association for the optimum promotion and development of the marketing culture, and the Fidelity to Work Award form the "Consorzio dei Santi Crispino e Crispiniano” as the best shoes entrepreneur. 

In 2005 he was appointed as a “Cavaliere del Lavoro” from the President of the Italian Republic Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, and a director of UPA, an Italian advertising association. Moreover, he received a “ad honorem” degree in Chemistry and Environmental Compatibility from the University of Ca’ Foscari, Venice. 

In 2006 he was appointed as “Affiliate Professor of Entrepreneurship” by ESCP-EAP European School of Management Italia, “Grand’Ufficiale al Merito della Repubblica Italiana” by the President of Italian Republic, Giorgio Napolitano, and he received a “ad honorem” master by the CUOA Foundation of corporate management of Vicenza.

In 2007 he received the award “Premio Leone del Veneto” from the “Ufficio di Presidenza del Consiglio Regionale del Veneto” and he was elected member of the Managing Committee of Comitato Leonardo - Italian Quality Committee. In 2008 he gained the International Career Award from the European Academy for Economic and Cultural Relations and was appointed as Member of the Executive Council of Confindustria (Association of Italian Industries). 

In 2009 he was appointed as part of the International Advisory Council of the Bocconi University. In February 2010 CNBC and Financial Times conferred him the title of “Innovator of the Year” during the CNBC European Business Leaders Awards, for the development of a brand which combines fashion and technology.