Media

Pharmacies are being transformed. They are no longer just points of sale but actual strategic touchpoints capable of connecting brands and consumers when decisions really count. This was the guiding vision of AdKaora, Mondadori Group’s MarTech agency, when it designed the new campaign developed in collaboration with WPP Media for the launch of the HYALU-FILLER skincare line by Laboratoires Filorga Cosmetiques Italia.

An Ecosystem Combining Digital and Physical Content, Branding and Performance

The new HYALU-FILLER line, inspired by the Skin Booster and Filler treatments, represents an important step for Filorga in the world of pharmacies, which are currently a priority channel. To enhance the products, the brand built an integrated communication ecosystem together with AdKaora to accompany users at every stage of their journey, from product discovery to purchase, through direct in-store interaction.

Media Mix Focused on Pharmacies

The core of the communication strategy was the new in-store retail media channel. The touchpoints activated in the campaign included the Addendo Pharma digital network by Haiku Technologies, AdKaora’s partner in the pharma & beauty sector. Participating pharmacies throughout the country were equipped with indoor digital screens to deliver video advertising, turning points of sale into real media centres.

As a second step, the AdBox™ technology – also developed by Haiku and integrated into pharmacy registers – collected real-time data on user behaviour. With this IoT system, concrete, timely insights are obtained to accurately measure the impact of campaigns on sales, optimising ROI (return on investment) and enhancing the effectiveness of the entire communication ecosystem, as well as providing timely, granular information on sell-out at individual pharmacies.

Proximity Marketing to Trigger Action

The strategy did not stop with the pharmacies. AdKaora also activated a proximity marketing component – its historical strength – to intercept users on the move. With geolocalised, engaging and highly relevant mobile formats, it was possible to stimulate interest and guide users smoothly and naturally to points of sale.

To make the experience even more immediate, a call to action was integrated to activate Find&Go Now! The interactive map, created using AdKaora’s proprietary technology, shows the nearest pharmacies with active screens in real time, presenting the shortest route to get there. A direct bridge between banner and shelf.

Results: Awareness, Action and Concrete Performance

The campaign managed to combine visual impact and activation across the area, recording excellent performance throughout the funnel. The Display format achieved a CTR (click-through rate) of 2.1%, indicating strong interest and involvement by the target audience, while the pharmacy videos ensured a constant and memorable presence at a key moment in the decision to purchase.

However, sell-out is where the strategy expressed its full potential. Weekly sales in Addendo circuit pharmacies that were analysed increased by more than six times the annual average. This increase leaves no room for doubt about the effectiveness of retail media in the pharma sector in generating tangible results, turning engagement into real conversion.

A New Approach to Pharma Retail Media

The campaign deployed a well-orchestrated mix of technology, media and data, both online and offline, with a single objective: enhancing the pharmacy channel as a space for interaction, advice and conversion. Today, using solutions such as those by AdKaora, this aspect can become an active part of a brand’s media strategy.

‘For Filorga, the pharmacy channel is much more than a point of sale. It is a place of trust and advice, developing genuine relationships with consumers. Presiding over this strategic touchpoint with innovative and measurable communication solutions is crucial for enhancing the value of our skincare products, especially in a setting where choices are made at a decisive moment. With the support of AdKaora, we have transformed our pharmacy presence into an omnichannel experience that combines awareness and conversion, confirming our commitment to supporting people along their beauty and wellness journey,’ says Irene Picazio, Marketing Director at Laboratoires Filorga.

‘Retail media in the pharma channel can no longer remain in the shop window. It must become a tool for interaction, activation and measurement. With our full-funnel approach, we take brands exactly where it counts: to customers at the moment they are deciding what to buy. Using a hybrid ecosystem combining pharmacy screens, geolocalised mobile advertising and drive-to-store technology, AdKaora is now able to turn advertising into concrete action, and pharmacies into true physical media touchpoints. With the ability to measure real insights and sales uplift, we guarantee brands not only visibility, but also performance. We would like to thank Filorga for their trust, given the sales results, and for sharing this strategy with us,’ says Davide Tran, MarTech Director of Mondadori Media.

GialloZafferano, the most popular in Italy and one of the world’s most beloved food media brand, opens CasaGiallo, its first house of production in the United States, designed to talk about the Italian way of understanding and experiencing cuisine across the ocean.

Located in Brooklyn, with a view of the three famous bridges of New York – the Williamsburg, Manhattan, and Brooklyn – CasaGiallo is a new creative space for developing content dedicated to contemporary Italian cuisine.  Furnished with characteristic articles of Italian design, CasaGiallo not only overlooks the city’s bridges but also becomes a bridge between Italian cuisine and the American public.

An evolution of the space presented in 2024, the new content studio will form the heart of production for GialloZafferano aimed at the US market. CasaGiallo aims to produce the best cooking content for visual quality and social language, respecting Italian tradition and building open, long-lasting cultural exchange. The studio will host chefs, creators, and branded content projects, offering companies an integrated digital (web and social) and physical multipurpose hub, in an ideal location for unique, innovative experiences.

‘With CasaGiallo, we bring our vision of Italian cuisine to the creative heart of New York,’ says Andrea Santagata, CEO of Mondadori Media Digital Area. ‘It is not just a simple production studio but a dynamic place for talent, cultures, and brands to connect. With CasaGiallo, we offer companies promoting the Italian culinary tradition in America an effective way to tell their story through innovative content that can speak to the American public using authentic, up-to-date language.’

With 72 million followers globally, GialloZafferano strengthens its presence in the American market, initiating a new phase of internationalisation.

CasaGiallo was inaugurated in the presence of the Italian Trade Agency, with an exclusive moment created with the Italian-American creator Bilena Settepani, owner of the historical Settepani Bakery in Brooklyn, and Aurora Cavallo @Cooker Girl, the brand’s ambassador.

GIALLOZAFFERANO, OFFICIAL MEDIA PARTNER OF THE ITALY PAVILION AT THE SUMMER FANCY FOOD SHOW

One of GialloZafferano’s most successful initiatives in the United States is its media partnership with the Italy Pavilion at the Summer Fancy Food Show in New York (29 June – 1 July), the most important food and beverage fair in America. This the third consecutive year for the partnership, which relies on an exclusive collaboration with Universal Marketing, the only Italian agent for the Specialty Food Association and organiser of the Italy Pavilion, which brought 340 companies to New York under the concept ‘Italy, the Art of Taste’.
During the Summer Fancy Food Show, GialloZafferano was accompanied by Italian and Italian-American talent from Zenzero, the vertical talent agency by Mondadori Media in the world of food. Guests included Cooker Girl, Cook with Fez, Daniele Rossi, Bilena Settepani, Rosy Chin, Flavors by Alessandra, Lulù Gargari, Silvia Barban, and Marco Chef.

On the eve of the event, the creators participated in a photo session in Times Square and, during the four days of the fair, enlivened the Italy Pavilion with 20 live showcookings and over 50 original content items shared on GialloZafferano Loves Italy, the social media profile dedicated to an international audience.

ACTIVITIES WITH BRAND PARTNERS

Following the success of the last edition, the collaboration between GialloZafferano and Grana Padano was renewed for the 2025 edition of the Summer Fancy Food Show. In fact, GialloZafferano was present at the Consortium’s stand with two showcookings a day, hosted by well-known faces from the digital kitchen. For the second consecutive year, GialloZafferano was also a partner of the exclusive annual event organised by Grana Padano on 30 June at Bar 65 (Rockefeller Center). Here, creators Cooker Girl and Marco Chef brought the tradition of Italian cuisine to the table, reinterpreting it in a contemporary language.

There was also a great following for this year’s #NotSoFancy Party, the after-party created by GialloZafferano. The event, held in collaboration with Ferrarelle – which has just begun its expansion into the United States and considers this initiative an important milestone in building its reputation overseas – served as a unique opportunity to foster synergy and connections among Italian food brands, celebrate innovation and excellence in Italian cuisine, and further enhance the experience of the Fancy Food Show. The evening took place in the elegant restaurant Travelers, Poets and Friends, with a food and beverage menu epitomising Italian excellence. Key stars of the event included food creators from Zenzero Talent Agency alongside chefs and guests from the food world, as well as influencers, critics, and opinion leaders in the sector. The event was organised in partnership with the Italian Trade Agency, Urbani Tartufi, and Di Marco as technical sponsor.

For this edition as well, several Italian companies in the agrifood sector partnered with GialloZafferano at the Summer Fancy Food Show in NY to develop initiatives – showcooking in particular – and special content with related amplification on social media involving creators and chefs from Zenzero. These included Granarolo, Rega, and Urbani Tartufi in collaboration with Universal Marketing – Regione Campania, Regione Lazio, and Russo Food.

The activities were developed by Mondadori Media in collaboration with the Mediamond agency and the BrandOn Solutions team, which is responsible for special initiatives.

GialloZafferano is the leading food media brand in Italy. On the web, 1 in 2 Italians cooks with GialloZafferano, which reaches 22 million people every month (Comscore Social Incremental Reach, March 2025). With a fanbase of 72 million followers, it tops the world’s food media brand ranking on social media (source: internal analysis of Shareablee-Comscore data and social insights). Offering recipes that are always easy to make and accessible to everyone, it is available to people at any time of day on all channels: from the web to social media, apps, smart devices, magazines, books and local events.

Zenzero is the talent agency exclusively for the best food creators in Italian digital media. Founded at the end of 2022 through a collaboration between GialloZafferano, One Shot Agency, and six of the top food creators in Italian digital media, it reaches over 43 million followers and over 50 million video views. Zenzero Talent Agency is a new point of contact between an extraordinary hub of creators and brand partners. Its goal is to establish effective communication pathways that respond to brand’s growing need to tap into the passions, values, and new language of Generation Z.

For the third year running, TV Sorrisi e Canzoni, a reference in the entertainment world, brings the most popular music of the summer to the public through its exclusive partnership with Cornetto Battiti Live.

THE GLASSBOX BY SORRISI

During the much-loved music event, which took place from 18 to 22 June in the city of Molfetta in Apulia, the famous glassbox by Sorrisi — located within Casa Battiti, a real music resort with a modern and Mediterranean design backstage at the festival — became a set for numerous exclusive events.

In its ‘portable newsroom’, Sorrisi led exclusive interviews, new digital formats and surprise meetings with the artists before and after their on-stage performances. Participants included Alessandra Amoroso, Carl Brave, Clara, Gaia, Gigi D’Alessio, Rkomi and Sarah Toscano and the new faces of Amici 2025, including Trigno, Antonia and Luke3.

During the music event, Sorrisi also launched new social media formats, including ‘Albero Genealogico’, a game with a magnetic board based on constructing an atypical family of artists, ‘Ma com’è che fa?’, a challenge that tests artists to see how much they know about the hits, and ‘La tavola da Disegno’, to see how well some singers and musicians draw.

Finally, the Mondadori Media brand told its social community about the artists’ performances on the stage at Cornetto Battiti Live: from Alessandra Amoroso to Serena Brancale, from Fedez and Clara to Anna and many more.

THE FESTIVAL DURING PRIME TIME

Sorrisi will also accompany the magic of Cornetto Battiti Live on television. Starting on 7 July, every Monday during prime time on Canale 5 and aired again on La 5 and Mediaset Extra, Nicolò De Devitiis will connect from the Sorrisi glassbox to recount funny stories and present exclusive photos of singers in the competition.

TV Sorrisi e Canzoni is the reference for TV and entertainment lovers, reaching 2.6 million readers every month (source: Audipress 2025/I), 4.1 million website users (source: Audiweb April 25) and 1.15 million fans (source: social insights IG, FB, TikTok, X, YouTube) due to a multichannel system ranging from the magazine to the website and social media, up to events and related products.

Building on the success of previous editions, McDonald’s is once again offering new McChicken Creations, recipes created in collaboration with GialloZafferano, Italy’s favourite food media brand, and inspired by the original McChicken sandwich. It will be available in the more than 760 McDonald’s restaurants from today to 19 August.
The successful partnership between McDonald’s and GialloZafferano is now in its seventh year, with more than 55 million sandwiches sold.

This year’s new McChicken Creation recipes, using 100% Italian chicken breast, are topped with three PDO and PGI ingredients: Provolone Valpadana PDO, which returns to McDonald’s menus, Cappero (capers) delle Isole Eolie PDO and Peperoni (bell pepper) di Senise PGI, which appear for the first time as an extra touch in the mayonnaise and sauce on the new sandwiches. The Peperone combines bacon, crispy onions and a flavourful, fragrant sauce made using Italian Peperoni di Senise IGP. In contrast, the Provolone consists of crispy bacon, the authentic and enchanting Provolone Valpadana DOP and a special mayonnaise with the intense, unmistakable flavour of Cappero delle Isole Eolie DOP.

McChicken Creations demonstrate a commitment to making the quality and authenticity of Italian ingredients accessible to everyone, enhancing the recipes with treasures from our land. With this goal in mind, the relationship with the protection consortia, which began in 2008 with the invaluable support of Fondazione Qualivita, has grown stronger over the years. This interaction has led to the introduction of 24 PDO and PGI ingredients on McDonald’s menus, enabling millions of people to discover and recognise the value of Made in Italy.

Through the collaboration with GialloZafferano comes the new McChicken Creations: two original recipes meticulously created to celebrate and make the most of 100% Italian flavours, combining the best of innovation and tradition.

‘We are proud to present the seventh edition of McChicken Creations, an initiative that strengthens our commitment to supporting the Italian food supply chain,’ says Giorgia Favaro, Managing Director of McDonald’s Italy. ‘Through our collaboration with GialloZafferano, the Qualivita Foundation and the protection consortia, we are able to integrate PDO and PGI ingredients into our offerings, making them accessible to an ever wider public. We have been working in this direction for more than 15 years, aiming to enhance quality raw materials and support local producers,’ Favaro concludes.

‘The collaboration between GialloZafferano and McDonald’s, which is celebrating its seventh edition, conveys solid synergy with the aim of depicting the Italian way of life in an innovative manner,’ says Andrea Santagata, Managing Director of Mondadori Media. ‘The project combines taste, accessibility and innovation through effective interaction with the public, using a new and engaging language. The results achieved over the years demonstrate the effectiveness of a strategy — in terms of reach and audience appreciation — that focuses on quality, creativity, tradition and experimentation,’ Santagata concludes.

The new edition of McChicken Creation was presented with a special event at the GialloZafferano headquarters, with the participation of Giorgia Favaro, Managing Director McDonald’s Italy, and Andrea Santagata, Managing Director Mondadori Media. Speakers also included: Valeria Casani, Chief Marketing Officer McDonald’s Italy; Nicola Lussana, Managing Director Mediamond; and Mauro Rosati, Director General Fondazione Qualivita. Other participants included representatives of the certified ingredients in the new recipes: Vittorio Emanuele Pisani, Director of the Consorzio di Tutela Provolone Valpadana DOP; Lorenzo Cortese, President of the Associazione Cappero delle Isole Eolie DOP; and Enrico Fanelli, President of the Consorzio di Tutela Peperoni di Senise IGP.

The event was also enlivened with an engaging cooking show by McDonald’s Chef Raffaele Bellini, who revealed the secrets and preparation of the new recipes to the audience. GialloZafferano involved a team of exceptional chefs and food creators to preview the new recipes and create exclusive content for social media: Andriana Kulchytska, Roberto Valbuzzi – Notordinarychef, Angelo Coassin – Cooking with Bello, Eva Andrini – Evasfoodaddiction, Gessica Runcio – Le ricette da Gessica, Nonna Silvi and Dany Resconi. With his charismatic attitude, Radio 105 host Nicolò Torielli led the event, encouraging interaction and participation and creating a dynamic and engaging atmosphere.

The entire activity and visibility plan for McChicken Creations were developed together with Brand On Solutions, the project area of Mediamond, with the coordination of OMD and OPRG and the creativity of Leo Burnett for all GialloZafferano digital channels, from its website to social media profiles – Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube – up to the app, which has a push notification targeted at the McDonald’s drive-to-store and drive-to-app.

McDonald’s Italia
Present in Italy for 39 years, McDonald’s now has over 750 restaurants across the country with a total of 38,000 employees serving 1.2 million customers every day. Ninety per cent of Italian McDonald’s restaurants are managed as franchises by more than 160 local entrepreneurs who testify to the brand’s rootedness in the territory. With regard to suppliers, McDonald’s also confirms its desire to be a ’local’ brand. To date, in fact, most suppliers are Italian. Worldwide, McDonald’s is present in more than 100 countries with more than 41,000 restaurants.

GialloZafferano
GialloZafferano is the leading food media brand in Italy. On the web, 1 in 2 Italians cooks with GialloZafferano, which reaches 23 million people every month (Comscore incremental reach, March 2025). With a fanbase of 72 million followers, it tops the world’s food media brand ranking on social media (source: Shareablee-Comscore and social insights). Offering recipes that are always easy to make and accessible to everyone, it is available to people at any time of day on all channels: from the web to social media, apps, smart devices, magazines, books and local events.

MypersonalTrainer, the leading health and wellness brand by Mondadori Media, recorded a great public response and participation at RiminiWellness for the second year running. The most important international event dedicated to fitness and wellness took place from 29 May to 1 June at Rimini Feria.

A big novelty at this edition was the 400-m² stage in Hall C5, designed by MypersonalTrainer together with Cross Cardio and realised in partnership with Napisan.

The Stage Turns Green with over 5,000 MypersonalTrainer Fans

During the four-day event, MypersonalTrainer was the star of RiminiWellness. The schedule of events won over more than 5,000 MYPT fans, who dyed the event green wearing the media brand’s T-shirts. The programme was full of energy, movement and wellbeing, with a total of 50 non-stop workouts, to the delight of everyone who participated in mobility lessons, yoga, functional circuits and original Cross Cardio formats. High-impact training sessions led by the best trainers of the MYPT crew, with creative stage direction by Jairo Junior for Cross Cardio, engaged a diverse audience in a motivating atmosphere accessible to everyone.
Leading coaches included: Nicolò Famiglietti and Silvia Fascians, both from the Power Talent Agency roster, Eleonora Giordani, Giorgio Pallikullen and Tamara Tanzilli.

Dedicated Stands, Fitness-Themed Challenges and Lots of Gadgets

Topping off the experience around the stage were two stands by MypersonalTrainer and Napisan with dynamic and engaging activities for the audience, including interactive challenges led by community fitfluencers and the distribution of customised elastic bands for all participants.
At the MypersonalTrainer stand, visitors were welcomed by Tamara Tanzilli — a postural mobility coach who led original challenges to help participants rediscover fluidity, stability and physical wellbeing through an integrated approach based on conscious movement, breath and body control — and Roberta Vanzella, an expert trainer in yoga, Pilates and mobility, who enlivened the space with accessible and stimulating activities designed to rebalance the mind and body.

Media Partnership with RiminiWellness

As media partner of RiminiWellness for the fourth consecutive year, MypersonalTrainer once again affirmed that it shares the values that have always enlivened the famous event, which celebrated its 19th edition this year: a love of fitness, sport, wellness and personal care.
Through extensive daily social media coverage, MypersonalTrainer provided an overview of both its own activities and highlights of the entire event, offering the fitlover community an engaging and continuous story throughout the event.
The presence of MypersonalTrainer at RiminiWellness was enhanced by an important brand visibility strategy featuring a strong visual presence of the media brand, with posters and other dedicated spaces at key strategic points of the Feria.

Activities with Brand Partners

In addition, MypersonalTrainer developed branded content and social storytelling in cooperation with Brand On Solutions, a unit dedicated to special Mediamond initiatives.

Napisan
Napisan was the title sponsor of the MypersonalTrainer stage, one of the most active and participatory spaces at RiminiWellness 2025. Next to the stage, the MypersonalTrainer area hosted a dedicated Napisan stand, where the audience could participate in themed challenges and activities combining entertainment, content and educational value.

Other Brand Partners

Barilla Protein+ Pasta
Two activities on the MypersonalTrainer stage were curated by Silvia Fascians, who invited the audience to the Barilla stand at the end of the sessions to discover and taste Barilla Protein+ Pasta first hand. The activity was amplified by social content by Silvia Fascians and MypersonalTrainer.

Zespri
MypersonalTrainer supported the visibility of the Zespri stand (Hall B5) through social media coverage with Instagram stories, showing key points and highlights of the engagement activities offered by the brand.

Omegor
MypersonalTrainer worked with Omegor on a branded content activity focusing on the importance of nutritional supplements for high-intensity athletes. Silvia Fascians, Nicolò Famiglietti and Laura Crugnola starred in Instagram content on omega-3 supplements in daily athletic training.

Bayer – Vaginaverso
In the area dedicated to women’s health, MypersonalTrainer collaboration with Bayer to talk about the Vaginaverso project and the Gyno-Chat service, in videos made with gynaecologist Monica Calcagni and psychosexologist Sabina Fasoli.

Appointment with MypersonalTrainer Days in September in Milan

At RiminiWellness, MypersonalTrainer announced the fourth edition of MypersonalTrainer Days, scheduled for 13 and 14 September at the Arco della Pace in Milan. This weekend full of free appointments dedicated to fitness, health and wellness will include engaging activities, experiential corners and the presence of well-known faces in sports, special guests and fitfluencers.

MypersonalTrainer: Integrated Leadership with Web-Based and Live Experiences

Following the success of RiminiWellness 2025 and in view of the high-profile event in September, MypersonalTrainer confirms itself as a reference in the health and wellness sector. It not only tops the digital and social media charts but is also a growing key player in first-hand experiences, strengthening the bond between brand and audience through local events with high relational value.

MypersonalTrainer is Mondadori Media’s leading media brand in the world of health, wellness and healthy, functional sports nutrition, with a monthly reach of 13 million on social media and the Internet (source: Comscore 2025), as well as 6.6 million followers on social media (source: Comscore Shareablee and social insights April 2025). It has been active in the area for four years with live initiatives, including annual appointments at RiminiWellness and in Milan at the Arco della Pace with the Mondadori Media event, MypersonalTrainer Days.

Cross Cardio® is a functional training system founded in 2015 by Jairo Junior, a physiotherapist and fitness group trainer whom MypersonalTrainer has long collaborated with on initiatives and events.

Focus, the benchmark brand in science popularisation and entertainment, launches “Prisma, il perché delle cose“, a new podcast that responds to the thirst for knowledge of readers and users passionate about the whys of the world.

Every morning, from Monday to Friday, Prisma shares with its listeners a wealth of trivia: from science to politics, technology to current affairs to the basics of human behaviour.

The Focus Podcast is a valuable compass to better understand the world and answer questions such as: Why is the death of a Pope not verified by a doctor? What happens when a blackout occurs? How are we extending the lives of our immortal pets? How does the sequence plan of “Adolescence” work? What does an algorithm really think of you?
In the episodes of  ‘Prisma, il perché delle cose‘, every answer is provided with the scientific rigour, clarity and simplicity that distinguish the Mondadori Media brand.

The podcast is hosted by Giada Giorgi, a science journalist from Focus, who combines the more technical and academic aspects of the story with the curiosity and impact of the topics discussed in everyday life; Giada is joined by experts, technicians, scientists and colleagues.

Prisma makes itself available to its listeners, who can write to the Focus editorial team asking any questions they would like a podcast episode on.

On Focus’s website you can see the schedule with the episodes being released day by day on the main streaming platforms.

Advertising sales for “Prisma, il perché delle cose” are entrusted to the media platform Piemme, which, as the exclusive concessionaire of the Focus and Focus Junior system, will take care of the launch and development of communication projects linked to the new podcast.

The kitchens of Palazzo Farnese opened their doors yesterday for a festive meeting and cultural exchange, organised by the French Embassy in partnership with GialloZafferano, Italy’s number one food media brand, which promotes Italian cuisine throughout the world.

Participants from all over Italy arrived early in the morning at Palazzo Farnese in no particular order, as well as some chefs and members of the jury directly from France. The idea for the event came from Martin Briens, French Ambassador to Italy, a food and wine connoisseur and keen chef – who recently tried his hand at preparing the cacio e pepe recipe together with Nonna Silvi, the ‘Grandmother of Italy’ – and Andrea Santagata, CEO of Mondadori Media, publisher of GialloZafferano.

As part of the celebrations for the 150th anniversary of the establishment of the French Embassy in Rome, several teams of aspiring chefs, culinary masters under 35, and talents from the food world competed to offer a contemporary and multicultural reinterpretation of Sunday lunch.

The key concepts for the day hosted by the French Embassy were three: the transmission of knowledge, by training new generations of chefs and fostering dialogue and collaboration between schools and professionals from different nations; sharing, as the creation of synergies between young French and Italian chefs through cooking; and sustainability, seen as the promotion of the use of zero-kilometre products and limited budgets for each menu.

The program for the day at Palazzo Farnese

Gustofolie is a project – organised by the Institut Français Italia in collaboration with the Alliances Françaises d’Italia – aimed at students of Italian hotel schools, created with the aim of promoting Franco-Italian relations in the professional hotel training sector. The competition invited participants to reflect on topics such as Francophonie, eco-responsibility and creativity in the kitchen. During the first part of the day, the two finalist teams (each made up of three students, two Italians and one French from a partner school, Genoa-Dijon and Viareggio-Grenoble, under the guidance of a teacher) challenged each other on the theme of “Sunday Lunch” – always a symbol of togetherness and tradition – which was reinterpreted with a modern twist, maintaining a maximum spending limit of 25 euros. This limitation presented a stimulating challenge, encouraging reflection on the social importance of shared moments at the table and their sustainability, not only environmental but also economic.

The members of the jury and the chefs involved in this unforgettable cultural exchange initiative arrived yesterday morning at Palazzo Farnese from all over Italy and directly from France.

Alongside Ambassador Martin Briens, the jury included Luana Belmondo, the “favourite Italian cook of the French”, embassy chef Cyril Esneault, Ludovica – Lulù – Gargari, resident chef of GialloZafferano and part of the Zenzero Talent Agency roster, and Carla Parolari, headmistress of the IPSEOA Vincenzo Gioberti vocational high school in Rome. The prize is the creation of the winning recipe at the GialloZafferano production studios in Milan, with publication of the video online.

The Gustofolie final was an occasion for joyful cultural and culinary competition aimed at highlighting French and Italian cuisines and products, promoting new links in the field of food and wine and professional training.

In the afternoon session, the baton was passed to the young (under 35) chefs. The theme of their menus was also Sunday lunch, reinterpreted with a contemporary approach (with a maximum charge this time of 35 euros) to celebrate the meeting of French and Italian cuisine. The friendly challenge took place between the following pairs:

• Carla Ferrari, executive chef at Pizza Cosy, and Sabrina Macrì, executive chef at BistRo Aimo e Nadia. They cooked:
  • Appetizer – Emilian-style stuffed onion: whole onion steamed and glazed with chicken jus, stuffed like a tortellino, parmesan cream and mixed salad
  • First course – Pasta with potatoes d’a-mmare: mixed creamy pasta with potatoes, provola cheese and seafood ragù (mussels, clams and calamari), parsley cream, bisque and lemon zest
  • Dessert: Pastiera mon sciú: religieuse with two fillings, lemon curd and Neapolitan pastiera

• Alessandro Belmondo, chef at the Bistrot Gourmand Caillebotte, and Aurora Cavallo – Cooker Girl, chef, content creator at Zenzero Talent Agency and Ambassador of GialloZafferano Their menu was:
  • Appetizer – Warm, soft homemade focaccia to dip in a selection of pissaladière-inspired toppings: thyme-confit onions, anchovy and black olive cream, and sweet chili-confit cherry tomatoes. With the addition of sweet and sour red onion
  • First course – Large ravioli filled with shredded veal, fondant carrots and mushrooms, inspired by the classic blanquette. The ravioli is topped with a bright jus creamed with hazelnut butter. Accompanied by a small ramekin of lukewarm mousse with lemon cream and fresh herbs. Finish: lemon zest, chopped herbs, a touch of fleur de sel, toasted hazelnut
  • Dessert: Choux pastry with cocoa craquelin filled with whipped cream with Piedmont PGI hazelnut praline. Sour heart with lemon confit or wild blueberry for freshness.

• Umberto Rocca, chef de partie at Joia, and Apolline Soëte, chef at Le Clarisse de Apolline, who prepared:
  • Appetizer (recipe by Apolline Soëte) Oysters in jelly with their own water, vermouth, wild fennel and pink pepper. Tomato tartare with two consistencies, Ligurian herb oil.
  • First course (recipe by Umberto Rocca) Anima mundi, Vegetable risotto with young carrots, tasty mushrooms, cashew and saffron crescenza, salsa verde and fresh blueberries.
  • Dessert (Umberto Rocca and Apolline Soëte) Cuddles under a white blanket: a meeting between Normandy and Lombardy with soft milk bread mousse and stimulating surprises

The jury will once again be chaired by ambassador Martin Briens, Andrea Santagata, CEO of Mondadori Media Digital and MarTech area, Massimo Borgnis, Editor-in-Chief of CHI, here exceptionally in the role of host of the Food Network television series “Le Locande del cuore”, Sebastian Fitarau, resident chef at GialloZafferano and part of the Zenzero Talent Agency roster. A winning team was chosen for each course. The three couples will also cook for a gala dinner at the Embassy in the autumn, as the closing event of the 150th anniversary celebrations of the French Embassy in Rome.

The sponsor of this festive day was Julie Andrieu, a TV presenter and food critic, who announced the winners in the splendid setting of the Embassy’s Murano Gallery, with a buffet prepared and served by a Roman hotel school.

Celebrations for the 150th anniversary of the French Embassy in Rome

The celebrations for the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the establishment of the Embassy and the Ecole française de Rome at Palazzo Farnese opened on 3 December 2024 with a dinner “in the style of 1875”. The event on 21 May opens a new season full of culinary sharing between Italy and France with events that in 2026 will again involve young students and chefs to explore the themes of knowledge transmission, cultural sharing and sustainable creativity.

Statements

Martin Briens, French Ambassador to Italy, commented: “Since I have been living in Italy, I realise more and more, even when I travel in the various regions, that Italians and French share this passion for food. We are two peoples who place particular importance on food in our daily lives, but also importance on the sense of sharing that a meal with family or friends provides. I want young Italians and French people to always feel welcome in our countries. This is why hotel school students and young chefs met and cooked, and I hope they will meet again to cook together, which is the best way to have unforgettable experiences together.”

Andrea Santagata, CEO of Mondadori Media Digital and MarTech area: “We are deeply honoured to join the French Embassy and Ambassador Martin Briens in this project that celebrates the meeting of two extraordinary cultures through cuisine. GialloZafferano is increasingly a reference point for Italian cuisine worldwide, with over thirty million followers outside Italy. Participating in this initiative means supporting dialogue between young chefs, professionals and creators, providing space for new ideas and stimulating discussions. The greatest pleasure is to see how French and Italian culinary traditions meet, revealing not only deep affinities, but also an extraordinary ability to tell stories through flavors. Because, after all, cooking is a universal language that unites and enriches.”

A carbonara can express more than a recipe: it can communicate tradition and quality, as well as innovation, contemporary taste and brand choices. This is exactly whatTulip has done. This Danish brand, which boasts over a century of experience in meat processing, turned to AdKaora, the MarTech agency of the Mondadori Group, for a digital advertising campaign tailor-made to celebrate the latest edition of Carbonara Day.

A tailor-made format for an impactful experience

Goal: to communicate the two variants of its diced pancetta – sweet and smoked – in an engaging way through an immersive experience that speaks to the audience, combining brand storytelling, design and performance.

The heart of the campaign, running from 1 to 13 April, was a fully customised rich media format designed by AdKaora Creative Studio. The creativity took the form of a Product Carousel, designed to highlight the two variants of Pancetta Tulip through simple and engaging navigation.

The format, designed to stimulate user engagement and ensure complete product discovery, integrated high-impact visual elements and immediate call-to-actions, ensuring high visibility and memorability, while encouraging interaction to drive qualified user traffic to the site.

“The campaign created for Tulip best expresses our understanding of shared value: a tailor-made project, creativity built for the right channel and distribution capable of reaching the most receptive audience at the ideal time. What makes the difference is our Creative Studio, which allows us to develop truly tailor-made advertising formats in a very short time to market, designed to deliver fluid, engaging experiences that are perfectly integrated into the user journey. This combination of content, context and innovation yields concrete and lasting results,” commented Davide Tran, MarTech Director at Mondadori Media.

The power of distribution: valuable content in valuable contexts

The campaign found its ideal home in the AdKaora Value Network, a publishing ecosystem that today brings together 159 publishers and over 1,900 web domains and AMPs, reaching millions of passionate users in brand-safe and relevant environments. Thanks to the quality and vertical nature of the contexts on offer, Tulip conveyed its message through the main food properties, reaching highly profiled audiences

“The collaboration with AdKaora is a perfect fit in our multi-channel strategy, which integrates high-performance digital activities with a strong in-store presence. We developed a project that enhanced the product’s distinctiveness in qualified digital environments, generating not only excellent results in terms of engagement and conversions, but also a high and authentic level of attention from the public. Today, attention is a key indicator for measuring the real effectiveness of campaigns and confirms the solidity of our integrated approach, geared towards building value for the brand,” comments Daniele Moggia, Trade Marketing & Business Development Manager at Tulip Italia.

The natural integration of the advertising format within users’ digital habits, coupled with the strength of the tailor-made creativity developed by the AdKaora Creative Studio, led to excellent results: an engagement rate of 4.4% and a CTR of 2.8%, clear signs of genuine and spontaneous interest from the audience.

To coincide with the NYCxDesign Festival (15-21 May 2025), INTERNI is presenting an international issue and bringing to the Big Apple the second edition of Big Italy New York: a circuit of events conceived, curated and organised by the magazine edited by Gilda Bojardi, in partnership with NYCxDesign, ICFF (International Contemporary Furniture Faire) and ITA (Italian Trade Agency) that will take place from 13 to 21 May.

The May issue of INTERNI, published in English/Italian, contains a 30-page dossier dedicated to the events featuring the more than 50 showrooms, flagship stores and single-brand stores taking part in the initiative and showcasing the excellence of Italian Design around the world, along the NoMad route via Madison to SoHo.

The magazine also discuss thevirtuous relations that historically link Italy to New York – and more generally the US – through places, projects and personalities that in recent decades have shaped a history of cultural reciprocity between the two countries. Notable figures include Gaetano Pesce and the couple Lella and Massimo Vignelli. The fact that Americans know and appreciate Italian design is largely thanks to these Italian masterswho moved to New York. Other Italian designers chose to settle overseas where they succeeded in establishing their professional expertise. Two notable current figures include the architect and urban planner Carlo Ratti, director of the Senseable City Lab at the MIT in Boston, who this month is inaugurating the 19th International Architecture Exhibition of the Venice Biennale, of which he is curator, and Giorgia Lupi, an award-winning information designer and partner of the interdisciplinary design studio Pentagram, who designed the visual identity of the XXIV Milan Triennale.

New York City’s skyline is represented in the magazine through a selection of projects ranging from social housing to exclusive residences, offices and event spaces, resulting from targeted urban regeneration efforts. Leading names in international architecture are behind these projects, from Steven Holl to Daniel Libeskind, Bonetti/Kozerski, Gabellini Sheppard, LOT-EK, SOM, Tihany Design and Fuller/Overby. And the distinction of a strong linguistic identity, strikingly interweaving themes of historical memory, contemporary design, material experimentation, environmental sustainability and an unmistakable touch of Made in Italy.

Events

Big Italy New York will be inaugurated on Wednesday 14 May at 6 p.m. at ITA’s headquarters (33 E 67th St, New York) with a special meeting that will revolve around the project Casa Italiana x Italy on Madison, curated and conceived by Paola Navone (Studio Otto), who directs a narrative that interweaves entrepreneurship, craftsmanship and design. After greetings from Erica di Giovancarlo (director of ITA New York) and Gilda Bojardi (director of INTERNI), the talk entitled Where Design Meets History will begin. This will involve a form of cultural sparring between Paola Navone, a panel of international interior designers, including Duccio Grassi, Yabu Pushelberg, Enrico Bonetti, and Gabriele Chiave, and Italian entrepreneurs Rossella Bisazza, Giulio Cappellini, Bendis Ronchetti Illulian, and Daniele Busca/Scavolini USA.. An open exchange of visions and skills that conveys the image of an Italian House that can enhance tradition by projecting it into the contemporary. Decorated in the colours of the flag, the house is brought to life at ICE through objects united not only by chromatic harmony, but by a shared intent: to improve the quality of daily life through design.

This will continue on Friday 16 May with the ICFF Night Out, a series of widespread events and presentations focusing on design, culture and innovation. Finally, on Sunday 18 May at 12 noon at the ICFF headquarters at the Javits Center (429 11th Ave), the INTERNI Cre-Action Big Italy in New York debate will be held with Francesca Portesine, SOM (Skidmore, Owings & Merrill), in dialogue with Massimo Iosa Ghini. Two design visions compared, two different paths, but with a common goal: to create spaces and objects that improve people’s lives. From the concept to the choice of materials, every design gesture aims to improve the quality of inhabiting the world. Architecture, design and art become tools for reading the present and imagining new perspectives, working on different scales and contexts: from building to exhibiting, promoting and reinterpreting.

May’s edition of INTERNI will also enjoy special distribution in the most iconic showrooms and flagship stores on the NoMad, Madison Avenue and Soho circuit; inside ICFF; in New York City’s leading design studios, major schools of design and architecture, at Rizzoli Bookstore and in a select number of book and magazine stores.

GialloZafferano is bringing to TuttoFood – the prestigious B2B trade fair dedicated to the agrofood ecosystem – the successful formula that has made it the most popular food media brand among Italians: the pleasure of cooking together and the ability to communicate.

The tenth edition of TuttoFood, hosted by Fiere di Parma for the first time, is welcoming 4,700 companies in over 150,000 square metres spread over 10 stands, as well as thousands of professional visitors and top buyers from all over the world. GialloZafferano, a reference point for Italian cuisine – one in two Italians cooks with its recipes – is the media partner of the 2025 edition.

During the four days of the fair (5-8 May, Rho Fiera Milano), the GialloZafferano Lounge will host entrepreneurs, chefs, creators and opinion makers. In addition to the preparation of dishes and tastings that combine innovation and tradition, there will be discussions about ways to showcase cuisine in Italy and around the world, as well as opportunities for development in the dynamic agrifood market.

GialloZafferano Lounge with live kitchen

In the GialloZafferano Lounge, a 180 sq m stand in the centre of Corso Italia, the main street of TuttoFood 2025, every day begins with a coffee tasting followed by a showcooking session featuring chefs, GialloZafferano ambassadors and creators from the Zenzero Talent Agency, the agency that manages the best food creators in the Italian digital scene.

The heart of the GialloZafferano Lounge is the live kitchen where, every day, GialloZafferano resident chefs Sebastian Fitarau and Lulù Gargari, hosts Giovanni Castaldi and Manuel Saraceno, together with Chef Daniele Rossi, offer innovative ideas and suggestions in the kitchen, alternating with debates moderated by Federico Quaranta, one of the most authoritative voices in the food and wine world and in the media.

The program, which is packed with dishes and content, also addresses the theme of catering and hospitality with Rossella Cerea, general manager of Da Vittorio, and chefs Cesare Battisti of Ratanà, Raffaele Minghini and Sauro Ricci of Joia, Alessandro Pinton of Horto, Fabio Pisani of Il Luogo Aimo e Nadia, and Giovanni Ricciardella of Cascina Vittoria.

Finally, a business perspective is brought to the Lounge thanks to contributions from entrepreneurs and managers such as Anna Bardon, brand & digital marketing senior manager cheese – Gruppo Lactalis, Amanda Biasi, marketing manager – Rummo, Antimo Caputo CEO – Mulino Caputo, and Andrea Santagata, managing director of the Digital and MarTech area of ​​Mondadori Media.

Commenting on the occasion, Andrea Santagata remarks: “We are delighted to present the  GialloZafferano content and network in the physical setting of TuttoFood. With 50 guests including important chefs, content creators, entrepreneurs and managers of food companies, the GialloZafferano Lounge becomes a reference point for the guests of the Fair. We hope that these four days of discussion will shed even more light on the need for the media and companies to innovate and communicate more effectively against a backdrop full of critical issues, as well as opportunities for the Italian food sector: foreign markets, in particular the United States, the use of artificial intelligence, and new consumption habits.”

The GialloZafferano Lounge will also be animated with showcooking activities and tastings featuring Mulino Caputo flours, a selection of Leffe beers, Urbani truffle products and the aroma of Verzì coffee. The partnership activities have been developed together with Brand On Solutions, a project area of Mediamond.

GZ Lab and Italians’ well-being at the table

In the rich programme of meetings and showcooking sessions, a central role is dedicated to a discussion of the ways in which Italians’ consumption is changing, particularly the concept of well-being at the table. New data will be presented by GZ Lab, the first digital food observatory in Italy created with scientific support from the Sylla research institute, which, thanks to the GialloZafferano community, explains how Italians’ cooking habits and priorities are changing.

Here is a preview of some figures: 27% of Italians have increased the number of times they eat at home compared to last year. Moreover, as many as 98% of Italians associate the concept of healthy eating with home-cooked meals: this makes it possible to combine health, taste and high-quality ingredients, which, according to 39.5% of respondents, should ideally be locally sourced.
For 62%, well-being is also about having enough time to cook; ‘meal prep’, i.e. planning and preparing weekly meals in advance, is increasingly popular, with 58% of respondents practising it, and a further 25% interested in trying it out.
The recipe for eating well is a balance between health and taste (rating 8.9/10), which, according to 65% of respondents, is achieved by using fresh, seasonal ingredients

GialloZafferanois the leading food media brand in Italy: on the web, 1 in 2 Italians cooks with GialloZafferano, which reaches 23 million people every month (Comscore incremental reach, March 2025). With a fanbase of 72 million followers, it tops the world’s food media brand ranking on social media (source: Shareablee-Comscore and social insights). Offering recipes that are always easy to make and accessible to everyone, it is available to people at any time of day on all channels: from the web to social media, apps, smart devices, magazines, books and local events.