Here are the most powerful families in Milan And how do they manage inheritance and succession

Milan is synonymous with business and entrepreneurs, but even within the city’s largest companies there are stories of family, emotional bonds and transfers that have influenced the course of every business, from the nineteenth century to today. After the unification of Italy, Milan witnessed the birth of some of the most important Italian empires in manufacturing, mechanics, and textiles, with the creation of Pirelli in 1872, Edison in 1884, Mondadori in 1907, Alfa Romeo in 1910, and also Prada (leather goods) in 1913. From the entrepreneurial development of the early twentieth century to the economic boom of the 1960s, the city saw the rise of families that today could be considered true dynasties.

Prada-Bertelli

The first surnames that come to mind when talking about Milanese entrepreneurship can only be Prada and Bertelli. Starting with Prada, a brand born in 1913 from Miuccia Prada’s parents and transformed by the designer from luxury leather goods into a true brand, the two entrepreneurs built the Prada Group, which today also includes Miu Miu, Church’s, Car Shoe, Marchesi 1824, Luna Rossa, Prada Foundation and now also Versace. The Group is now worth billions of dollars, but even though Andrea Guerra is currently in charge, both Miuccia Prada and Patrizio Bertelli continue to work in the company – and to receive a hefty salary, since according to Sole 24 Ore’s ranking of the highest paid managers in Italy, the couple ranks third.

Bertelli and Prada, who have two children, recently announced that Lorenzo Bertelli, the elder of the two and already involved in the Group’s projects as Head of Corporate Social Responsibility, will be the company’s next CEO (with Guerra gradually stepping down over the years). The younger son, Giulio, has instead decided to work independently: in addition to being a great athlete like his brother (the first passionate about rally racing, the second a professional sailor), he has started a freeze-dried food company and worked as a director. His film Agon, which follows three Olympic athletes, debuted at Venice82. A possible successor to Miuccia Prada at the helm of Prada and Miu Miu has not been discussed, but Bertelli has repeatedly emphasized that the co-creative direction of Raf Simons has been over the years a great strength of the group, both in fashion and financial terms.

Rizzoli

Also somehow connected to fashion, albeit to a lesser extent, is the name Rizzoli. Before becoming a company that owned the Corriere della Sera (acquired in the 1970s) and being sold entirely to Mondadori in 2016, Rizzoli took its first steps in the late nineteenth century thanks to Angelo, a young man raised in an orphanage who, after working as a goldsmith, decided to venture into the field of printing.

Rizzoli, launched in 1927, saw several descendants of the founder join the company, such as his son Andrea (also president of A.C. Milan from 1954 to 1963) and his grandson Angelo. The latter entered the company by working in all sectors, from production to distribution, from periodicals to advertising – a real apprenticeship usually spared to nepo babies. After the sale to Mondadori in 2016, several changes followed at Rizzoli, now led by editorial director Federica Magro and general director Massimo Turchetta.

Mondadori

The story of Mondadori does not begin in Milan but in the province of Mantua, yet it is in the Milanese city that its headquarters are still located. Arnaldo Mondadori, nicknamed “snake charmer” for his ability to “sweet-talk” people, launched the company in 1912 soon establishing himself as one of Italy’s most important publishers. From textbooks to encyclopedias, from essays to magazine series at newsstands, Mondadori conquered the sector year after year, even in the face of wars that hindered its progress. All of Mondadori’s children were publishers, but in 1991 the company was sold to Silvio Berlusconi’s Fininvest. In 1979, Arnoldo Mondadori’s grandchildren launched the Mondadori Foundation, to honor the founder and preserve his legacy. Among the direct heirs are Sebastiano Mondadori, a writer, and Arnaldo Mosca Mondadori, a philosopher and poet who has launched philanthropic initiatives.

Berlusconi

The Berlusconi family is another of the most powerful families in Milan. It all began with Silvio Berlusconi, who in 1975 started a construction business, the holding Fininvest, and in 1993 Mediaset. With Fininvest, the Berlusconi empire came to own 30% of Banca Mediolanum, the majority of Mondadori as mentioned earlier, the Manzoni Theater, AC Monza, and until 2017 also AC Milan. In 2023, the year of his death, Berlusconi was the third richest man in Italy and the 352nd in the world.

Today, the eldest daughter Marina Berlusconi is president of Fininvest and the Mondadori Group, the second son Pier Silvio Berlusconi is CEO of Mediaset, the third daughter Barbara Berlusconi is a board member of Fininvest like her sister, Eleonora Berlusconi. Luigi Berlusconi, the youngest, joined the board of Mediolanum at 19 and today, at 37, has a fortune of 1.2 billion euros.

Moratti

Another of the most popular and powerful surnames in Milan has been Moratti. It all started with Saras, a petroleum refining group founded by Angelo Moratti, but fame arrived with the management of Inter by his son Massimo from 1995. The father had already been president of the team in the 1950s and 1960s, while in 2013 a majority of the club was sold to Indonesian investors. Saras, which had been run by Massimo Moratti’s brother, Gian Marco Moratti, until his death in 2018, was partly sold last year to Vitol, a Swiss-Dutch group. The sale led all descendants of the Moratti family (two children of Massimo and two children of Gian Marco) to leave the company. Today, some of them have started their own businesses, such as the Maawi app by Gabriele Moratti, which, however, was not very successful, and Carlotta Moratti’s work in cinema.

Pirelli - Tronchetti Provera

We conclude the list of Milan’s richest families with Pirelli, founded in 1870 by the visionary Giovanni Battista Pirelli. The history of the tire company is very long and includes strategic diversification and branching, from electric cables to pipes and carpets, from household items to communication and culture (the Pirelli calendar remains a pop icon of its era). Since the 1980s, the name Pirelli has been associated with Marco Tronchetti Provera, who was first a partner, then CEO, and today executive chairman of the company, as well as one of Italy’s richest managers. He had three children with Cecilia Pirelli, all involved in Pirelli or the Silvio Tronchetti Provera Foundation.