Silvia Onofri on the Role of the CEO and the Future of Napapijri
The role of the CEO is changing and Napapijri's Silvia Onofri is up for the challenge. After cutting her teeth at Bally for 15 years, Onofri joined the pioneering outdoor brand in 2023 and in the last 18 months, has seen the brand grow and evolve, as her role in shaping the company has too.
"The role of a CEO is constantly evolving for everyone. Technical skills alone are no longer enough; more and more, a true introspection with the brand is required," she tells Hypebae. "This year and a half has been marked by so much energy, teamwork, the discovery of our archive, and the arrival of new profiles in the team. We've taken all the pieces of a puzzle and laid them out on the table, and now we are putting them together and the beauty of Napa is starting to take shape more and more clearly," Onofri adds.
During this season of Paris Fashion Week, Napapijri popped up in the city to debut its new Fall/Winter 2024 collection, offering guests an immersive experience and a tactile way to interact with the brand. Following the momentous event, we caught up with Onofri to find out more about the evolving role of the CEO and the future of Napa.
Read on for the full interview with Onofri.
Could you tell me a bit about your journey with Napapijri so far? How has the brand evolved since you first joined?
I celebrated my first 18 months at Napa and the arrival of the first collection -- Fall 24 and the Heritage capsule -- on the floor. This year and a half has been marked by so much energy, teamwork, the discovery of our archive, and the arrival of new profiles in the team. We've taken all the pieces of a puzzle and laid them out on the table, and now we are putting them together. The beauty of Napa is starting to take shape more and more clearly: a community that is rediscovering the brand or discovering it for the first time; campaign images with deep storytelling and soul, and a clear and sharp point of view from which the entire perspective is born.
How has your role evolved?
Today, I believe that the role of a CEO is constantly evolving for everyone. Technical skills alone are no longer enough; more and more, a true introspection with the brand is required. I am experiencing this very intensely: for years, I always thought it was only the creatives who had to embody the brand language they wanted to convey. Now more than ever, I am convinced that the role of the CEO must do the same, just from a different perspective. They must carry the essence of the brand with them and infuse their leadership, vision, direction, and what they love both inside and outside the work environment with it. While technicalities remain an important foundation, vision demands coherence and consistency, and it must also be shaped day by day.
The FW24 collection is presented as an immersive experience. What can you tell us about the inspiration behind this season?
Future Heritage is undoubtedly a collection with a strong emotional charge, connecting a new beginning with the past. The very choice of ambassadors, a mother and son portrayed beyond their celebrity status -- stands for the inheritance of memories projected into a future vision: the experience of the future, which as a concept sounds like a perfect oxymoron. Napa returns to exploration, to color, to materials with a strong personality, rediscovering its archive, the unexpected details, and the confident, recognizable shapes: if you know, you know.
How does collaboration play a part in your process?
They are key. Collaborations must be selective and unexpected, but they are a strategic part of the brand's evolution and journey. There must be alchemy. I don't agree with those who reduce collaborations to rational purposes: commercial, branding, communication and so on. It must first and foremost be credible, coherent, and authentic; alchemy is essential to achieve that.
I don't like forced collaborations, those planned around a table, the ones that are merely the result of market strategy. I love choices driven by storytelling, by complementarity, and often by the unexpected combination of two perspectives. I believe collaboration is the perfect way to tell an extraordinary story, where two realities amplify each other.
What are some of the pieces you're most excited by?
Anoraks, fleeces and color-block polos are the worlds that translate the brand's language into shapes and materials, reflecting its evolution with strong historical and cultural significance.
What are some of your plans for Napapijri in the future?
The project is about building a cultural narrative, rich in content and experiences that go far beyond the product. A brand that becomes part of everyday life, representing a choice tied to the language it embraces. It will be important to return to exploration, which is the spirit the brand was founded on: expanding into new geographies, and distribution channels, embracing gender fluidity across collections, integrating artificial intelligence into the brand experience, fostering unexpected collaborations and connections, with curiosity as a distinctive element of research.
There is also a strong commitment to becoming more sustainable, through both industrial and social solutions. Equally important is the goal of being a good leader: guiding the team through a repositioning journey that demands consistency and persistence, channeling energy into the right priorities, and fostering a daily sense of joy in being part of this project.