Digital Enablers FiloBlu, Diana Corp. Join Forces
MILAN — In a rapidly evolving digital scenario for the fashion and consumer goods industries, as worldwide e-commerce revenues are expected to hit 3.8 trillion euros in 2023, Italy-based digital and e-commerce enablers FiloBlu and Diana Corp. are linking under the Celeste name.
A multipurpose digital service provider geared toward helping companies scale their capabilities, from e-commerce and marketing to logistics and communications, Celeste dubs itself as an “Italian hub dedicated to digital business.”
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The two founding entities, which remain financially independent, are expected to generate combined revenues of 150 million euros in 2023, up 35 percent compared to last year.
“Today we’re facing changes across several aspects in e-commerce,” said Alberto Arcolin, chief executive officer of Diana Corp. and FiloBlu. “Just to name one, product segmentation is being overcome by AI. That’s why in the group we’re enabling AI tools so that, for example, after buying a handbag, marketing efforts are channeled towards offering that consumer a pair of shoes or a jacket to go with that bag, rather than another handbag,” he explained.
The executive also pointed to digital growth permeating adjacent functions, including, for example, communication and logistics requiring tech companies to evolve and become ecosystems with several capabilities.
“Celeste was born to gather different expertise across functions and leverage the business potential of the digital medium,” said Stefano Mocellini, who cofounded Diana Corp. in 2007 alongside Margherita Silvestri.
“Websites have become commodities and to leverage their business potential you have to enhance their aesthetics and features, including marketplace functions and smart and innovative tools,” Arcolin said.
“Today the first and most important flagship store is the e-commerce site,” he added. “Very often, new gen consumers check out online a product they like and perhaps have seen at a physical shop before eventually making a purchase.”
The pair explained that Celeste, which operates outposts in Italy, the U.K., China and the U.S., supports more than 200 clients overall, which include luxury fashion and beauty labels, as well as premium consumer goods brands. These include Acqua di Parma, Bikkembergs, Pinko, Sergio Rossi, Santoni, Diesel, Sease, Pasquale Bruni, Bionike and Collistar, to name a few.
Celeste recently struck a deal with the London-based Tomorrow fashion business accelerator to manage its house brands’ digital operations and is plotting a full-fledged relaunch of the e-commerce site for Milan-based multibrand retailer Antonia.
Each client can buy into Celeste’s digital package — which entails marketing, tech infrastructures, web design, communications, logistics and marketplace management — or just into some of its services.
Asked about it, Arcolin ruled out merging the two founding companies. On the contrary, Celeste is actively looking to acquire around four other digital firms active in similar spaces, one of which is likely to be revealed by the end of the year.
The FiloBlu consultancy and business accelerator was established by Christian Nucibella in 2009 to help companies leverage digital and high-tech solutions across business functions. In 2021 private equity firm Gradiente SGR acquired a 67 percent stake in the company.
Before joining forces and giving birth to Celeste, Diana Corp. was a self-financed venture, which last year registered a 46 percent uptick in sales compared to 2021.
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