SUMMER GLOW: Swarovski has kicked off the summer season with a mood-boosting activation in Portofino.
The Wattens, Austria-based company has secured its own share of La Dolce Vita lifestyle and tapped into the Italian Riviera flair by taking over several spaces of acclaimed restaurant Cracco. This is the waterfront outpost of Italian chef Carlo Cracco’s luxury dining experience, which is also offered at his space in Milan’s landmark Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II shopping arcade.
Swarovski’s takeover of Cracco restaurant in Portofino.
Courtesy of Swarovski
With its unique position overlooking the famous Piazzetta and harbor, the location has been retooled with Swarovski’s vibrant color palette for summer. The focal point of the project is the terrace, which starting this week features seating and parasols in pastel shades of pink, yellow and light blue, as well as a branded octagon-shaped frame conceived for social media content.
As for the culinary counterpart, dishes will be served on porcelain sets hailing from the Swarovski x Rosenthal collections, designed by the brand’s global creative director Giovanna Engelbert. The menu, which includes savory and sweet delicacies enhancing locally grown ingredients and flavors of the region, will be enriched with a Swarovski cocktail and dessert Cracco created especially for this collaboration.
Swarovski’s takeover of Cracco restaurant in Portofino.
Courtesy of Swarovski
To be sure, this is not the first time the company ties up with the chef. The activation in Portofino builds on the success of the Swarovski Cafè staged at 18th century Palazzo Citterio in Milan during the “Masters of Light: From Vienna to Milan” exhibition last year.
Since at the time the show marked the first leg of the exhibition in Europe after its debut in Shanghai, Swarovski opted to enrich the experience by setting a garden café in the orangery and tasking Cracco to create a menu for the occasion.
Swarovski’s takeover of Cracco restaurant in Portofino.
Courtesy of Swarovski
“The collaboration with Swarovski has been ongoing for many years,” said the chef, mentioning also special editions of his classic Christmas panettone developed for the brand in the past. “What has always united us is a deep passion for craftsmanship, each in our own field,” said Cracco, who described the Portofino takeover as “the pinnacle of our collaboration.”
An architectural project conceived by Milanese Studio Peregalli, the Cracco Portofino restaurant opened in 2021 and has preserved the original charm of restaurant Pitosforo, a storied gem that previously stood in its place.
Swarovski’s takeover of Cracco restaurant in Portofino.
Courtesy of Swarovski
Swarovski’s Portofino activation builds both on the company’s celebrations for its 130th anniversary and Engelbert’s strategic revamp of the house codes. Since her arrival at Swarovski in 2020, she has worked to elevate the perception of the brand, further extending the collaborations — including a major cobranding with Kim Kardashian’s Skims or tapping Ariana Grande as brand ambassador and co-creator of a jewelry capsule — and developing the lab-grown diamonds collections, entering the luxury sphere. Engelbert drove Swarovski’s embrace of a bolder and more colorful aesthetic, attracted younger customers without betraying its loyal and established ones and refreshed the brand’s retail network with new stores and flagships in key global cities including Shanghai, Zurich, New York and Seoul, among others.
Swarovski’s takeover of Cracco restaurant in Portofino.
Courtesy of Swarovski
Today, Swarovski Crystal Business has 6,600 points of sale — 2,300 of which are owned stores — in more than 150 countries and employs 16,600 people. Together with its sister companies, Swarovski Optik (optical devices) and Tyrolit (abrasives), it forms the Swarovski Group.
