Words by Difford's Guide
Profession: Export Manager
Matteo Luxardo joined the family business in 1999. After a year working in the factory learning about the production process, he began travelling the world, using his passion and knowledge of Luxardo history and heritage to spread the word outside of his home country of Italy.
Matteo's journey towards joining his long established family business was rich in varied experiences. Born in 1974, he grew up in the Italian countryside until the age of 10. After graduating from high school as a graphic designer he changed direction and went to university to study Japanese and Chinese. However, after six months of student life and partying hard he found it difficult to keep pace with the demands of his course and he left university.
The next part of his journey saw Matteo join the navy for 18 months, before he finally ended up in the industry he was always destined for, and which his family were happy to welcome him into. After some time in the UK and Spain working for a cognac brand and in bars his father called him and asked if he was ready to join the family business. This was in 1999 and now Matteo is the Export Manager of the Luxardo company, a shareholder in the business and he feels proud of the way in which he teaches people all around the world about Luxardo history and products.
After nearly 200 years, the Luxardo family is still working hard, producing the Maraschino liqueur they are so well known for, using the same method that the founder Girolamo Luxardo invented. Now, the family are also producing a wide range of classic Italian liqueurs.
