The origins of Naturalia-BAU and the bet on green building
Roberto Sacchi: Helga and Roland, 25 years ago talking about green building and natural insulation meant moving into an Italian market still to be built, despite Naturalia-BAU already existing as a recognized reality in Alto Adige and in some other regions. If you were to go back to those early days, what was the biggest challenge you faced and what intuition convinced you that this was truly the right path?
Helga and Roland: The challenges were many. On the one hand, we were still very young at the time, in an industry traditionally dominated by experienced figures, this was quite unusual. Added to this was the fact that we were a mixed couple. Above all, a woman in a management role in the construction industry was far from a given at the time. The start with the banks was particularly difficult. They didn’t believe in our project and welcomed our idea with great skepticism and this certainly didn’t make the creation of the company easier. However, what gave us the confidence to consistently continue on this path was our profound passion and conviction for natural construction. We were convinced that sustainable and healthy construction was the future; combined with a “little” of talent and, above all, a fantastic team, this belief has given us the strength to remain faithful to our vision, even in difficult times. Looking back, this belief was our main motivation and it turned out to be the right path.
The challenges that have marked the company’s path
Roberto Sacchi: In these 25 years you have gone through profound changes: the evolution of regulations, market fluctuations, moments of growth and more complex ones. What were the decisive turning points that marked the history of the company and what did they teach you, both as entrepreneurs and as green building enthusiasts?
Helga and Roland: The first ten years of our own business were, from every point of view, a period of great success, both from an economic and personal point of view. This phase laid the foundations that allowed us to overcome subsequent challenges. A decisive turning point was the acquisition of our then main supplier by a multinational group, which thereby became a shareholder of Naturalia-BAU. Liquidating this stake without suffering financial losses was a huge challenge and, in hindsight, a real feat. It was precisely these difficult phases, however, that made us grow as entrepreneurs and showed us how important independence, foresight and perseverance are, values that also play a central role in ecological construction.
Look to the future without losing your values
Roberto Sacchi: Today the issues of sustainability, energy efficiency and the ecology of construction materials are finally at the center of the debate, but you can easily define yourself among the few pioneers who have pushed the knowledge of natural materials, included in construction systems that you have tested, disseminating them with independent technical training, aimed above all at designers. Looking to the future, what role do you imagine for your company in the evolution of Italian construction and what legacy would you like to leave to the sector?
Helga and Roland: Ultimately, it will be up to others to judge what footprint we leave as a company. For us, however, it has always been fundamental to build a company that is unique, coherent and sustainable in the long term. This means today investing consistently in standardization and digitalisation, without losing sight of our fundamental values: natural and renewable raw materials, as the basis for high-quality building materials and healthy buildings. We are convinced that in Italy we have already earned a high degree of notoriety and, above all, a very positive reputation. We therefore wish to consistently continue along this path in the future, thus providing a sustainable contribution to the development of the Italian construction sector.
