Now is the time

It was 2011 when Matteo and I set aside the careers we had prepared for over the years—his in literature and mine as a photojournalist—to move to Milan and try to “work on the web.” It was a moment of youthful folly. 

By the beginning of the following year, Moze was a company.

It was 2013 when Sergio agreed to leave his managerial path within a large corporate group to join us. To our creative natures and auto-didactic attitudes, he added the solidity of a technical background and the experience of working in complex environments. It was a moment of vision.

At that moment, precisely, we planted the seed of what Moze is today: a studio capable of guiding top innovators in creating excellent digital products, a team of selected professionals able to bring beauty and simplicity to a chaotic and complex world.

It was 2018 when I shared with Sergio and Matteo my idea of gathering into one place—at that time I envisioned a rural hamlet in the countryside outside Milan—a group of people, especially young families, interested in spiritually and materially renewing their lives by taking inspiration from the Benedictine monastic life, well known to me since childhood.

I remember Sergio’s quick comment. We were at a café having coffee, about to visit a client. He said, “It will take you years, but you’ll succeed.” I felt a bit disheartened: I was am used to doing things quickly. Sergio, however, took me seriously and showed great foresight.

It was 2020 when the Covid-19 period unexpectedly offered me the opportunity to make a significant decision: to settle with my wife and our children in Norcia, in the region of Umbria, an area of central Italy that is beautiful, but had been wounded a few years earlier by devastating earthquakes. There, we found a real, living, young, traditional, and international monastery: a place where something akin to what we had long imagined could truly come to fruition.

It was a challenging decision not only for my family, but also for Moze. In the same spirit of mutual support and collaboration with which we have always done everything, Sergio and Matteo supported me even then, simply saying: “Let’s try; let’s see how it goes.”

It went well (though not without struggles) for my family, which has now put down roots in Norcia. We have bought a house, seen several friends move here as well, and we are expecting others to arrive.

It went well (though not without struggles) for Moze too. The solidity of everything we had built over time, internally and with our clients, has allowed us in recent years to work well, create beautiful things, and achieve significant milestones.

Now the time is ripe for a change…

A change for Moze, which will continue to accomplish great things under the guidance of Sergio and Matteo; it is time for our studio to continue capturing and generating momentum and energy from those who can provide it daily, not only through operational commitment, but also by upholding and growing our enduring vision. Last summer, we began the handover process that allowed them to enter into control of the commercial and administrative areas, which had been historically mostly in my domain.

A change for me, as I will begin a new phase of my professional journey; it is time for my work to follow the life choices that I made some time ago.

It has been a wonderful journey. Thank you, truly, to all my fellow travellers.

Now is the time.

– Giovanni

PS This article is an adapted version of what I said to our amazing team two months ago, raising several glasses of wine among the hills of the Sienese Chianti.