There is a thin red thread that unites Turin to Cassino. And it’s not (just) a matter of rhyme. There are roads that intertwine, after long parallel paths. And they discover that they have many characteristics in common.
The news in these hours is that Stellantis (formerly FCA and formerly Fiat, in the path that led to mergers and marriages) has put up for sale the historic building of its headquarters in Cassino, in the province of Frosinone, in Lazio. Another family “jewel” that the (new) family chooses to give up. A surface area of 7000 square metres, but above all the setting and preservation of a long history when it comes to cars in Italy.
Goodbye to historic buildings
What was once the headquarters of the car manufacturer’s Strategic Center, in addition to hosting the management and high command, in 2020 it took its perhaps decisive blow: that of the pandemic, which emptied offices that were no longer filled. But the trend had been underway for some time. Modern times, in short. And cost cuts: the same ones that led – in Turin – to the sale of the building (also historic and with the same functions) in via Nizza, right in front of what is now the Lingotto Shopping Center and which hosts the activities of Reply.
Same agency that “places” the Maserati of Grugliasco
But the similarities with the city of Mole don’t end there. The person in charge of looking for a new owner for the building is the Turin branch of Ipi Agency. And here comes the third clue, the one that historically transforms the coincidence into proof: these are the same technicians who are also dealing with the sale of the Maserati warehouses in Grugliasco. Those who will stop their last activities in 2024 (they still hosted some bodywork operations, while the rest of the workers were moved to Mirafiori), effectively emptying the former Bertone which had been renamed the Giovanni Agnelli plant. Another fragment of history that fades and risks vanishing.
To close the circle, the last connection: in Cassino, in addition to the Alfa Romeo Giulia and Stelvio, a Maserati model is produced: the Grecale.