Michele Pignatti Morano, Director of the Ferrari Museums of Modena and Maranello, Italy. Photography © Ferrari S.p.A.
1.What are your museums about and what is your work there?
In order to live, explain and understand the complete Ferrari history we have two museums. One in Modena, where you can find the original birth house of Enzo Ferrari surrounded by a modern structure that host an exhibitions dedicated to our GT cars and engines.
Our second museum is just 20 minutes’ drive, in Maranello adjacent to the Ferrari factory. Here you can find the exhibitions dedicated to our Hypercars and our long lasting racing history. The highlight is the “Sala delle Vittorie” where you can find on display some of our numerous Formula 1 winning trophies and World Championship cars.
As director of the museums, my role is to make sure that our over 600.000 guests that visit our museums each year, leave satisfied and take home positive memory of their experience. For this I am lucky to have a great team that supports me 363 day a year.
2.How is your museums dealing with the coronavirus crisis?
The coronavirus has forced us to think out of the box and reconsider the museum visit. We have opened since the first day after the first lock-down, because we wanted to show to the community and all our supporters that we were in the front line and happy to welcome all in a completely safe environment.
We have taken all the precautions needed, working in tight collaboration with the Ferrari “emergency team” and implementing the company “Back on Track” concept. We have considering the customer journey starting from the online ticketing where you book your slot, making sure that the visit is a moment of pleasure and passion.
We have built temporary structures that welcome the guest, implemented all “safety checks” and changed the flow in order to allow that each visitors can enjoy in the best way possible the cars on display.
3.What is the impact on your digital activity? Do you have tips to share with your colleagues?
Because of the nature of our museums the digital content is limited, because the protagonist of our exhibitions are the cars. We have transformed as much as possible all paper materials into digital formats and we give the possibility of downloading the exhibition content on the mobile devices in order to avoid any assemblage.
Nevertheless, we are constantly working on our social media channels in order to get always in touch with our fanbase with engaging contents even with special editorial activities done especially during the closing time. For example, in June we have joined the Motor Valley Fest done this year in a new full digital way, creating a virtual tour at the exbitions setted in our two museums.
4.Are you preparing yourself for the reopening or you are already opened? Tell us in what way.
As mentioned, following the first lock-down we have opened our doors from the first day, but given the latest restrictions we have been forced to close again. We are ready for reopening again as soon as the restrictions will allow us, because we have taken all precautions to welcome our guests in complete safety and allow them to enjoy the visit taking also advantage of the accessory services.
For us remaining close is a great suffering, because as a museum normally we are open each day of the year, closing only for Christmas and New Year.
Interview by Fabio Pariante, journalist
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Michele Pignatti Morano (South Africa, 1966) has a degree in economics and has been working for Ferrari since 2004, over the years he has held various roles in new business, sponsorship and marketing. From 2007 to 2016 he was part of the Scuderia Ferrari in the sponsor team, which he has directed in recent years. Since 2005 he has also been responsible for the New Business Department for the Ferrari Theme Park projects, and then for Ferrari World Abu Dhabi in 2010 and for Ferrari Land PortAventura World in Spain, the only park in Europe dedicated to the Formula 1 team inaugurated in 2017. Pignatti Morano has been in charge of the Enzo Ferrari Museum in Modena and the Ferrari Museum in Maranello since 2016.
Ferrari is one of the most famous Italian brands in the world and the logo has a very interesting history: the black prancing horse refers to the one used during the First World War by the Italian aviator Francesco Baracca, who died on Mount Montello. His mother, Countess Paolina, gave the logo as a lucky charm to Enzo Ferrari in 1923 when he won his first race at the Circuito del Savio. In addition to the tricolor band, the yellow color of the logo was chosen by Enzo Ferrari because it is the same as the emblem of the city of Modena. Instead, the horse breed seems to be that of the persano, a precious and rare breed that represents strength and elegance at the same time, which the Bourbons bred in their Royal Site of Persano in Campania, Italy.
There are two versions of the Ferrari logos: a rectangular one to indicate the brand of the car manufacturer of the cars built in Maranello and the second, in the shape of a shield with the letters “S” and “F” of Scuderia Ferrari is used for F1 racing.
