Giuseppe Caprotti and his book: ‘Le Ossa dei Caprotti’
Presented in the L’Astemia Pentita winery, the tale of the family that changed Italians
29 May 2025 Culture, First Floor Accessible version
Giuseppe Caprotti presents “Le Ossa dei Caprotti” in Barolo
by Pierangelo Vacchetto
BAROLO – Presented on 29 May at the headquarters of the L’Astemia Pentita winery, the book written by Giuseppe Caprotti and entitled: “Le Ossa dei Caprotti“.
At the centre of the narration, the Caprotti family’s vicissitudes starting from the textile business at the beginning of the 19th century, up to the birth and development of Esselunga, debunking myths and legends.
“A story,” writes the author, “that I have spoken about, but never in a unified way and never fully told; in many ways, an adventurous read”.
A saga spanning three centuries
“Lombardy, first half of the 19th century. The Caprottis, landowners, enter the cotton industry and, with the wealth they soon accumulate, make their way into the society of the time.
They were among the financiers of the Expedition of the Thousand, they went as far as South America and supported the explorers who ventured into the Arabian Peninsula and the Horn of Africa. The cradle of their business was small Albiate, in Brianza, where the textile factory was only a few hundred metres from the family home, but the sphere of their interests grew wider and wider.
They nurtured political ambitions and joined the Republican Party, a choice that could cost them dearly in the Kingdom of Italy.
From Brianza to Rockefeller
Between successes and failures, the turning point for the family came in the late 1950s with Rockefeller and the first chain of supermarkets in Italy, which for the Americans was an economic adventure but also a formidable weapon of anti-communist propaganda.
In the first supermarket in Milan, Rockefeller offered shark fins, as a newspaper of the time headlined: the abundance of products and exotic delicacies on sale fascinated the Italians. It is an extraordinary success and consolidates the fortune of the Caprotti family, which in the meantime has acquired a majority share in the company.
A personal and collective story
Giuseppe Caprotti reconstructs the story of a family that has spanned more than three centuries. He gives the reader portraits of women and men with intense feelings, moving from the Italy of fascism to that of the economic boom.
But he also recounts the adolescence spent in a Swiss boarding school, far from a violent Milan and the risks of kidnapping, and the grudges that poisoned the souls between relatives and forever overwhelmed the dream of remaining united “like Dumas’ musketeers”, until the break-up and the ruinous events that followed, narrated here through unpublished testimonies and documents.
Families and businesses, the Italian knot
It is a universal story, that of relations between fathers and sons, in business. Especially in Italy, where the backbone of the economy rests – more than ninety per cent – on family businesses.
Giuseppe Caprotti
The author
After graduating in History from the Sorbonne, Giuseppe Caprotti worked in large-scale distribution for more than thirty years.
He has been a warehouseman, cashier, manager, entrepreneur and consultant. Today he is dedicated to the Guido Venosta Foundation.
He is the author of Alto Adige or Sudtirol?, Franco Angeli editore, and Le Ossa dei Caprotti, published by Feltrinelli.
An unexpected success: there were 150 people waiting for me!
Thanks to :
Sandra Vezza and Marcello Pasquero, with me in the photo below
Roberta Liberale for the presence and photos
Chi ha partecipato.
