Quality rhymes with passion

Fifty years of activity in the name of passion and quality. This is the goal that in 2007 cuts Lairt, a bolognese plastic molding company based in via Emilia Ponente. A family-run company that in this half century has always managed to grow despite the ups and downs of the economy.

“Yes, we certainly can’t complain. Valeria, wife of the owner of the company, Paolo Belelli, is satisfied. This period is good for us: things are going well and the premises give us hope that this is also true for the future . ” The history of Lairt has its roots in the mid-twentieth century, when Athos Belelli, a pastry chef who found himself with many free hours during the day, instead of devoting himself to deserved rest, began to spend his free time printing plastic material with a small manual press . “He did little things, in a completely artisanal way,” recalls Valeria Belelli. It was 1957.”My father-in-law began this way, out of sheer fun – he continues – but things began to go well to the point of deciding to resign from the bakery and dedicate himself completely to the new activity”. Then in 1962 Athos Belelli was joined by his son Paolo. The boy at the time was not yet 17 and being a minor he could not in all respects be a member of his father. However, Athos Belelli, having great faith in his son, wanted him on an equal footing: he decided to go to the court and demand emancipation. He got it and so it was that father and son started their commercial adventure. Five years later, in 1967, Valeria, Paolo’s fiancée, also joined the company. The first products that Lairt is able to sell are simple “ciappetti”, the clothes pegs, but over time the company expands and specializes in work for third parties: things are going well and reaches 55 employees.«At the beginning we did three rounds in a continuous cycle for the big productions, destined mainly to Giordani, a historic wheelchair company. We were a bit like the Chinese now – jokes Mrs. Belelli – the productive mass was enormous, while the quality was not yet so important ” . Then, as happened with many other Italian companies, specialization and attention to detail are the secret not only of survival, but also of success. «In the eighties we expanded our business: from packaging to assembly, from services to packaging and construction of molds, starting to produce mainly for the motorcycle sector. The 14 current employees are enough for the only day shift that we have and that allows us to produce everything with the accuracy needed today »says the entrepreneur. Lairt prepares herself to face, in her small way, the challenges of the new millennium, while in the field, for fifteen years, she has fallen with so much passion and with a decisive swerve on quality and technology, even the third generation (the daughters Daniela and Emanuela). “They, with a little luck, we hope will be able to celebrate the next 50 years of activity – concludes Valeria Belelli – And for the future the goal is to maintain the high quality of our production and service, with the enthusiasm of always » .