Profile

Piaggio in the world

7 factories:                       

• 3 in Italy (Pontedera, Mandello del Lario and Scorzè)
• 1 in India, in Baramati (in the state of Maharashtra)
• 1 in Vietnam, in Vinh Phuc
• 1 in China, in partnership with the Foshan company
• 1 in America, in Boston
• It is also building a new factory in Indonesia

7 R&D centres:                

• Pontedera
• Noale, home to the Aprilia Racing Team
• Piaggio Group Advanced Design Center in Pasadena, California
• Piaggio Fast Forward (PFF) in Boston
• 1 in India, in Baramati
• 1 in Vietnam, in Vinh Phuc
• 1 in China

Present in 100 countries, through:       

• more than 4,000 dealers (two-wheelers, commercial vehicles)
• more than 800 Motoplex stores

The Piaggio Group has seven factories: in Italy in Pontedera (Pisa), where its largest production plant is located, which produces Piaggio, Vespa and Gilera vehicles, light commercial vehicles for the European market and engines for scooters and motorcycles; Scorzè (Venice), where Aprilia two-wheelers are produced;
Mandello del Lario (Lecco), which has built Moto Guzzi motorcycles since 1921, and is currently implementing a major preservation and restructuring project (involving both the factory and the museum), commissioned from star architect Greg Lynn, with the official opening scheduled for 2025; in India in Baramati (in the state of Maharashtra); and in Vietnam in Vinh Phuc. The Group also has four R&D centres: one in Pontedera; one in Noale, home to the Aprilia Racing Team; the Piaggio Group Advanced Design Center in Pasadena, California; and Piaggio Fast Forward (PFF), in Boston. The Pontedera site also houses the Piaggio Museum, whose renovation has increased the annual average number of visitors to more than 60,000.
In the last few years, the Piaggio Group has been implementing an intensive international expansion program, which has established it as a world-class player in its field today.
In June 2009 it entered the Vietnamese market, and in March 2012 it opened a production facility in Hanoi, regarded as an international example of best-practice quality and excellence. In five years, the Hanoi factory has produced more than 600,000 vehicles.

In April 2012, a plant was inaugurated in Baramati (in the state of Maharashtra) for the production of twowheeled vehicles, initially of the Vespa brand (for the local market) which was later joined by Aprilia scooters (including the award-winning Aprilia SR 150 and the Aprilia SR 125 and Storm 125). In Baramati, the Piaggio Group was already present with an industrial complex for the production of light commercial vehicles for the transport of goods and people, as well as diesel and turbo-diesel engines and, in 2019, also made its entry into the electric commercial vehicle segment, with the launch on the Indian market of Ape e-city, a green version of the iconic three-wheeler.
The Piaggio Group also operates through a joint venture company in China owned 45% by Piaggio. A development plan is planned for the area, as announced by Chairman Roberto Colaninno.

In order to further strengthen its presence in the Asian Far East, Piaggio is currently developing a new factory in Jakarta, Indonesia (a market of growing importance for the Group), which is scheduled to open by 2022 and will occupy an area of approximately 55,000 square meters.

Across the Atlantic, the Group operates through Piaggio Group Americas, a subsidiary headquartered in New York, and on the west coast, in Pasadena, California, through an R&D centre, the Piaggio Group Advanced Design Center.

Also, in the USA, Piaggio Fast Forward Inc. (PFF), a Piaggio subsidiary headed by Michele Colaninno, was established in Boston in 2015 to conduct research into innovative mobility and transport solutions and technologies (see below).

To celebrate its 130th anniversary, the Piaggio Group published (for Rizzoli) “FuturPiaggio, - 6 lezioni italiane sulla mobilità e sulla vita” by Jeffrey Schnapp, who looks back at the Group’s history through a futuristic lens and outlines the philosophy and future of the company and its brands.

Capex

In the last 10 years, the Group has made investments totalling more than 1,291.8 million euro.

The Pontedera factory is regarded as the “crown jewel” of the Italian motorcycle and scooter industry.

Since 2003 it has been the object of an important development and innovation program:

• New two-wheeler production lines
• A new spare parts warehouse
• A new cataphoresis paint shop
• Refurbishment and enlargement of the Piaggio Museum, now one of Europe’s most important two-wheeler museums
• Continuous innovation, with the focus on technological transition and entry into electric motors. Creation of the E-Mobility department in Pontedera
• A new commercial vehicle line for the production of the new Porter NP6

Safety and environment

Maximum attention is paid to workplace safety and the environment: in 2020 Piaggio was one of the international industry’s sustainability leaders with the attainment for the 6th consecutive year of the “AA” rating of Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) Research, one of the world’s top ESG rating agencies.

The MSCI rating, together with the “B“ rating (climate change) assigned by CDP (Carbon Disclosure Project), reflect the mid-term path followed by the Group all over the world to make a tangible contribution to the attainment of the UN SDGs.

Two-wheelers

The Piaggio Group product range comprises scooters, motorcycles and mopeds with displacements from 50 to 1,400cc for the Piaggio, Vespa, Aprilia, Moto Guzzi, Gilera, Derbi, and Scarabeo brands. The Piaggio Group brand portfolio includes some of the most prestigious and historic names in motorcycling: from Gilera (established in 1909), to Moto Guzzi (1921), Derbi (1922) and Aprilia, which in just over twenty years has established itself as one of the most successful manufacturer brands in the world Speed and Superbike championships. In scooters, the extraordinary Vespa brand has been a byword for individual mobility on two wheels since 1946 and – with more than 19 million scooters sold to date – an incredibly long-lived commercial success and one of the world's most famous icons of Italian style and technology.

VESPA: more than 19 million Vespa scooters sold worldwide since 1946

ELECTRIC WORLD

The Piaggio electric motor tradition dates back to the mid-1970s and the Group launched the first and bestselling hybrid scooter, the Piaggio Mp3 Hybrid. In November 2018, it launched the Vespa Elettrica, a contemporary icon of Italian technology in the world: the scooter stands for advanced connectivity, silent operation, personalisation, accessibility, respect for the environment and unique style, values that have always distinguished Vespa and in the Vespa Elettrica once again find full expression, confirming Vespa as a market brand that has always been ahead of its time.
The Vespa Elettrica power unit delivers a top power of 4 kW to outperform a traditional 50 cc scooter, and has a maximum range of 100 km, with no significant difference between urban and non-urban settings, thanks to a modern lithium ion battery and an efficient kinetic energy recovery system, which recharges the battery during deceleration. A complete recharge normally takes 4 hours.
In July 2021, the Group presented an innovative electric scooter, Piaggio 1, with removable batteries.
In 2021, the E-Mobility department which develops core components for 2-, 3- and 4-wheel electric vehicles was enlarged. New offices and labs will be built at Pontedera and the organisational structure will be augmented with approximately 40 electronic, mechanical and electro-technical engineers.

THE MOTOPLEX STORES

In December 2014, the Group launched a program to strengthen its worldwide distribution network with the introduction of the Motoplex store concept and the opening of the first store.
The Motoplex stores offer the Group's full range of quality brands (Piaggio, Vespa, Aprilia and Moto Guzzi) and represent an innovative model of a multibrand flagship store, consistent with the new global in-store experience strategy being developed by the Group in key metropolitan areas around the world. Today, Motoplex stores operate in Europe, America, Asia, India and Oceania, flanking the traditional dealer network. The largest Asian Motoplex was opened in 2017, in Bangkok. The event marked the Piaggio Group’s entry on to the Thai motorcycle market, extending its already strong presence on the local scooter market. Recent openings included the Motoplex stores in Hong Kong and in Bangalore.

Activities in sport

The Group has achieved outstanding results in sport: 104 world championship titles with Aprilia, Moto Guzzi,Gilera  and Derbi.
A relative youngster in sport, Aprilia has become one of the most successful names in motorcycle racing history, with no fewer than 54 world championship titles (28 since its acquisition by the Piaggio Group). Its most recent victories were in 2015, in the Superstock 1000 FIM Cup, when it secured the Riders and Manufacturers titles.
In 2015 Aprilia Racing made a return to the top world motorcycle racing class, MotoGP.
Since then, Aprilia Racing has significantly strengthened its team and commitment to MotoGP. In 2019, Massimo Rivola was appointed as the new team CEO, alongside Technical Manager Romano Albesiano. In 2021, Aprilia Racing renewed its five-year agreement with Dorna Sports, to take part in MotoGP until 2026, with the move to a factory team as from 2022. In the 2022 season, its RS GP riders will be Maverick Viñales, who signed an annual contract in 2021 with an option for renewal, and Aleix Espargarò.
From the Innovation perspective, the German Quality and Finance Institute named Aprilia as the top Italian innovative company in the motorcycle and scooter sector.

Commercial vehicles

The Piaggio Group is a player of growing importance on the market for 3- and 4-wheel light commercial vehicles for the transportation of passengers and goods. The Group brands in this sector include 4-wheel Porter and the iconic and versatile 3-wheel Ape, which celebrated its 70th anniversary in 2018. Since 1999 the Ape has also been produced in India, at the factory of Piaggio Vehicles Private Limited (PVPL, owned 100% by the Group) in Baramati, in the state of Maharashtra. The Group has implemented an important international development program for commercial vehicles, which began with the recent strengthening of its presence in the high-potential markets of Latin America, Africa and Asia and the extension of the distribution network to 23 countries.
At the end of January 2021, the Piaggio Group presented a new range of 4-wheel light commercial vehicles, the Porter NP6, equipped with eco-friendly petrol/LPG or petrol/methane engines. The new Porter NP6 range is produced in the Piaggio Group’s Pontedera factory in Italy and distributed in the main European countries through a dealer network specialised in the sale and support of commercial vehicles, focused on maximum customer satisfaction.

Piaggio Fast Forward

Piaggio Fast Forward (PFF) is the Piaggio Group company based in Boston responsible for Group research into mobility of the future.

In November 2019 PFF launched its first innovative project, gita®, on the market. Gita is a unique cargocarrying robot with a payload of up to 20 kg, which follows the user in indoor and outdoor environment. It moves at a top speed of 10 km/h and has a battery life of 4 hours. In September 2021, PFF also unveiled gitamini®, a new robot that packs the technology and functionality of its revolutionary "big brother" gita® into a lighter, more compact design. gita® and gitamini® are manufactured at Piaggio Fast Forward's plant located in Boston's Charlestown neighborhood, and marketing will include an initial phase dedicated to the U.S. market, where the movement of robots on city streets is already regulated.

PFF has received a number of important acknowledgements for its work in robotics, including the Disruptive Genius – Company award at the 2017 MITX Awards for distinction in “unconventional innovative thinking, being the first to explore new frontiers and promoting the innovation economy through its operations”; inclusion in the Top 100 Most Innovative and Disruptive Construction Companies in the Robotics category by Disruptor Daily, a prestigious international online daily, thanks to “the strong technological capabilities of Gita”; the prestigious GOOD DESIGN® AWARDS 2017 in the Robotics category with Gita, “considered a revolutionary and visionary project”. In 2020, at the Red Dot Awards – Product Design 2020, one of the world’s leading product design awards, Gita received the Red Dot quality mark for its unique and disruptive design, and the top award, the BEST OF THE BEST, in the category of innovative products.

The Chair of Piaggio Fast Forward is Michele Colaninno; Greg Lynn is Chief Executive Officer and Jeffrey Schnapp is Chief Visionary Officer.
The members of the PFF Advisory Board are Roberto Colaninno (Chair and CEO of the Piaggio Group), John Hoke (Vice President Global Design at Nike), Doug Brent (Vice President Technology Innovation at Trimble), Jeff Linnell (former Director of Robotics at Google) and Daniela Rus (Director of the Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory at the MIT in Boston).

Summary of 2021 financial results

Piaggio Group Chair and CEO Roberto Colaninno: “The results approved today by the Piaggio Group Board of Directors reflect a clear improvement in all the key business and financial indicators, confirming the strength of the Group’s strategy and its ability to respond effectively to the challenging situation. Net sales rose by 27% from 2020 and by 9.7% from 2019, while net debt at 31 December 2021 was down by approximately 43.3 million euro from 2020 and approximately 49.4 million euro from 2019.”

*As of 31.12.2021

In 2021, the Piaggio Group reported consolidated net sales of 1,668.7 million euro, EBITDA of 240.6 million euro with an EBITDA margin of 14.4%. The industrial gross margin was 462.5 million euro with a return on net sales of 27.7%. Net profit was 31.3 million euro.

During 2021, the Piaggio Group sold 536,000 vehicles worldwide.

In the two-wheeler sector, Piaggio sold 449,700 vehicles worldwide, generating net sales of 1,369 million euro. In Europe, the Piaggio Group confirmed its leadership in the scooter segment with a share of 22.7% and further strengthened its positioning on the North American scooter market, with a share of 35% (28.2% at 31 December 2020). Performance was also very positive in the motorcycle sector, and both the Aprilia and the Moto Guzzi brands closed the year with record revenues.

In the commercial vehicles sector, the Group sold 86,300 vehicles, for net sales of 299.7 million euro. PVPL, the Indian subsidiary, sold 51,200 three-wheel vehicles on the Indian market.