G&G Rigging, for 40 years specializing in the production of rigging

On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Journal of Sailing, the great excellences of the sailing world tell their stories and reveal their projects. In this column, discover all the companies and people who have made important contributions to the multifaceted world of sailing, which enables us all to go to sea in all forms and contexts.

In this installment, we take you on a tour of the history and news of G&G Rigging, a company that has specialized in the production of rigging for more than 40 years.

G&G Rigging ‘s adventure officially began on January 1, 1986, at the behest of its founder Walter Giovanelli, who at the age of 27, after gaining experience for 7 years in the stainless steel ropes department of Trafilerie e Corderie Italiane, decided to strike out on his own and open his own company. Walter’s experience in boating, however, must be traced back to 1980, when, after some changes in the management of Trafilerie, he decided to try to understand what he was selling and what was being produced in the factory for, and began to tour boatyards, a completely new environment for him. The first shipyard he came into contact with was Cantiere del Pardo, which was based in Crespellano (BO) at the time and for which the rigging for Finot’s Grand Soleil 34 was produced. Walter’s humble approach with the shipyard and the helpfulness of the Crespellano-based staff, who were able to pass on experience and passion to him, created fertile ground for his professional growth, to the point that, after further changes occurred in the management of the company where he was employed, Walter realized that by pursuing the new management’s corporate policies, the risk was that he would no longer be able to follow the shipyards as he would have wanted and should, since in a field like boating it is essential to support sales with a solid technical base, given the nature of the products handled. Having matured the idea of embarking on an autonomous path, Walter visited Cantiere del Pardo and Cantiere Serigi, expressing his disagreements and disparity of views with the new management of his company, which “wanted to sell steel cables as if they were a consumer good.” Driven by the conviction that the value of quality should prevail over the logic of quantity and mass consumption, Walter embarked on his entrepreneurial path. The two Shipyards recognized and shared this vision, choosing to support it and confirming their faith in a model based on excellence. A choice that found continuity over time, so much so that Cantiere del Pardo, as well as the Serigi shipyards, now Solaris, are still counted among G&G Rigging‘s clientele.

A new adventure

Obviously at 27 years of age you have everything in front of you for possibilities, Walter threw himself heart and soul into the new venture and paraphrasing the great British riggers named the enterprise G&G Rigging. The second G was supposed to represent his father who, however, while providing a great deal of practical help, being nearing retirement as a teacher did not want to leave. Therefore, despite the fact that there was “only one Giovanelli,” the name was now chosen and G&G Rigging made its debut in the Italian boating scene, “after all, for the first years I was doing the hours of two people, so it was right to have two Gs,” Walter jokingly confides to us. However, to be fair, his father never failed to help, and his experience as a turner came in handy a thousand times to recover or replicate components now unavailable on the market. For the first two years, the business was carried out in a space provided by a cousin, where shrouds were made exclusively from rope, using accessories from the French company Acmo, still the company’s supplier. Initially, Walter carried out everything himself, sales, purchasing, production, accounting, and deliveries. The response from customers was positive, and by the third year they began hiring staff and thinking about changing locations. In 1990 they moved and began to produce rod shrouds and import Kevlar shrouds. From that year on, there were important collaborations with famous foreign brands starting with Reckmann, and by then, what had started as an adventure had turned into an established reality.

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Building reliability day by day

The story of G&G Rigging, is based on the seriousness that Walter Giovanelli and his staff have shown over these 40 years. “Especially to work with foreign countries and in particular with Northern Europe,” Walter tells us, “I had realized that one had to be twice as precise, both in payments and in actual relations, because of a certain prejudice that was then held against us Italians.” Walter and G&G Rigging ‘s work is distinguished by a humble and collaborative approach, which is one of the company’s greatest strengths. Walter has always sought to build a relationship of mutual exchange and support, putting his experience to use but also welcoming with openness the knowledge and skills of those around him. It is this ability to continuously listen and learn, combined with a deep passion for his work, that has enabled Walter and his team to offer reliable, innovative technical solutions perfectly tailored to the real needs of shipowners and shipyards, keeping quality high so as not to sacrifice it in the name of quantity. Recognizing the value of each contribution helps to create strong relationships, where technical confrontation becomes an opportunity for everyone to grow. Walter also had among his “masters” the great Gianni Cariboni: it was he who taught him, in the evenings after work, how to make rigging calculations from drawings and surveys. In the early days there was no shortage of mistakes, which nevertheless proved to be valuable opportunities for growth. A key lesson emerged from those experiences: before even establishing responsibility, it is essential to take prompt action to solve the problem and ensure that the customer has an immediate solution. Only after solving the problem do we proceed to analyze the causes and assign responsibility. This approach, combined with a willingness to get involved in the first person when necessary, has been a hallmark of the company’s way of operating from the very beginning.

The brands and products distributed

Among the brands working with G&G Rigging are some of the most famous names in the global nautical scene. There is Acmo, the first supplier who gave exclusive distribution of its products in 1986, also exclusive since 1990 has been joined by Reckmann for furling systems, still exclusive since 2000 enters the French mast manufacturer Sparcraft which now also has the Axxon brand for carbon masts. Danish boom furling manufacturer Mainfurl has also relied on G&G Rigging giving exclusive distribution of its booms. The selection of quality rigging accessories are the focus of the manufacturing and distribution business, such as the Danish accessories from Blue Wave and BSI and the British company Petersen. The sale of masts and booms and the production of rigging is complemented by the presence in G&G Rigging‘s catalog of some broader spectrum products. This is the case, for example, with hydrogenerators from Watt&Sea, a company based in La Rochelle, France, and inflatable fenders (also French) from Fendertex. It is understood that G&G Rigging ‘s core business is the production of rigging, and this is done on two basic fronts: on the one hand it works closely with shipyards for the supply and installation of rigging and deck equipment on new boats, and on the other hand it caters to the vast refitting market for the maintenance and replacement of rigging on seagoing boats. Over the years, the company has built a vast database that collects measurements, data and specifications of many boats, making it possible to provide fast and accurate service. Since 2005, thanks to the introduction of a unique tracking system for each rigging, G&G Rigging has been able to trace the original configuration of each specific boat with certainty. Throughout its 40-year history, the company has thus evolved both by increasing its production capacity, being able to make rigging for boats up to 100 feet, and from a technological point of view, in methods and tools, as it should be in order to stay abreast of the times, without, however, abandoning the dimension of craftsmanship that is synonymous with quality, in this type of work. G&G Rigging ‘s activity is not limited to the receipt of the order and the delivery of the finished material; the technical analysis, the constant support for the choice, for the correct maintenance and for the eventual type of refit is the real added value that can benefit those who rely on their expertise and experience gained in the field over these 40 years. A small look at the numbers that tell the story of G&G Rigging from 1986 to the present: more than 1,800,000 meters of cable sold, more than 51,00 rigging made, more than 5,000 customers.

Info on www.gegrigging.it and www.youtube.com/@geg-rigging

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50 years of the GdV: an opportunity not to be missed. Also for your brand

To celebrate its 50th anniversary, Il Giornale della Vela is organizing the largest communication campaign in its history, which will reach a total audience of 2,000,000 “sea lovers” interested in the world of sailing.

How? Deploying all its communication channels: magazine (paper+digital), websites, E-mail marketing, social (facebook/instagram). The certainty is that 2 million interested people will be reached to whom you can tell your company’s story.

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