Andrea Vimercati, the sales director of Pilot Italia, a Milan converter, has assumed the presidency of FINAT, Europe’s label association. He succeeds Jan Frederik Vink of Kolibri Labels in the Netherlands.

Vimercati is a member of the younger generation of label printers, and is a founder of FINAT’s Young Managers Club. He has been active in the organization for many years.

At his inauguration, during FINAT’s recent annual congress in Turkey, Vimercati said, “Growth could be considered a challenge, but its pursuit expresses the long-term vision we need for the future of our companies. Confronting this crisis and planning for the future must be the primary objective for us as entrepreneurs: It’s a challenge!

“We have to amend the way we approach innovation and change – overcome resistance from long-standing attitudes and habits. The complexity and speed of these times should not be seen as a threat, but rather as a chance and an opportunity we cannot miss.”

The new president says he has several goals to achieve during his two-year term, one being to develop greater networking between TLMI and FINAT.

A second objective is to introduce TLMI’s Project LIFE to the European label community. LIFE is a certification program for companies that establish environmentally sound practices. “We will have to choose the right approach,” Vimercati says, “because if you go to a converter member and propose a new certification, they will question how many certifications they will have to have to satisfy their customers. LIFE, in my view, gives business people the opportunity to be more responsible for what they do.”

A third goal is to maintain and expand the role of the Young Managers Club, “which is a good investment for an association at this time, especially when we see a lot of generation change. The club will help FINAT to change itself.

“Fourth, I would like to see FINAT promote an entrepreneurial culture. When our companies were founded, it was a first step. Now we need tools, which is what our fathers expect from us as sons after having sent us to the university. When we come back we must bring new ideas, management tools, like Lean Manufacturing.”