Maria Luisa Cosso

Descrizione

Maria Luisa Cosso, president of the Cosso Foundation, was born in Pinerolo in 1938.

And it is in Pinerolo, at number 332 of Corso Torino, that the former Corte &Cosso factory still stands. Established as a joint venture by the Corte and the Cosso families in 1925, the company originally manufactured shock absorbers for motor vehicles and motorcycles. In 1932, the company registered the Corteco trademark to brand all Corte &Cosso products. In 1957, it joined forces with the German firm Freudenberg to set up Corcos S.a.s., the exclusive manufacturer of Corteco oil seals for the Italian market.

Originally headquartered in Turin, the fallout of the Second World War led the company to move to Pinerolo, to the Corso Torino factory built by Lodovico Cosso, Maria Luisa’s father. Both Corte &Cosso and the newly established Corcos set up operations there, housing 90 employees.

In 1960, Lodovico Cosso and his son Mario were killed in a tragic road accident.

Maria Luisa Cosso was twenty-one years old when her father Ludovico and her brother Mario died. After studying to become a primary school teacher, she had gone abroad to study French and German, returning to Italy in the spring of 1959 to continue studying languages in Turin.

Stepping into her father’s shoes without any specific experience, at such a young age, and in a world so dominated by men was a courageous move, one supported most of all by the work force, who saw in her the promise of keeping the business going. Her initial reluctance was met with words of reassurance from the workers: “Don’t worry,” they said, “we’ll teach you everything you need to know.”

Maria Luisa Cosso spent her first year in the company on the shop floor, learning from the workers the tricks of the trade, the rhythms of production, and the importance of product quality and innovation.

Since then, for more than 45 years she has been the heart and soul at the helm of Corcos Industriale in Pinerolo.

The company today has grown from strength to strength on both the domestic and international markets to now employ over 1000 people, with operations now relocated to other, more technologically advanced production sites in Pinerolo, Luserna San Giovanni, and Castelli Caleppio (near Bergamo).

“Signora Cosso,” as everyone respectfully calls her—but she is always “mamma” for me—was invested, like her father, with the honorary title of Cavaliere del Lavoro on 2nd June 1998 and in 2007 she received an honorary degree in Business, bestowed by the Faculty of Economics of the University of Turin. In 2000 she received the “Bogianen” award from the Turin Chamber of Commerce, and in 2007 the “Pinarolium” award from the City of Pinerolo. She has been awarded honorary citizenship by the municipality of Luserna San Giovanni and by the municipality of San Secondo di Pinerolo.

She has been a member of the board and council of the Turin Industrial Council and member of the board of directors of the Teatro Regio di Torino Foundation. She has chaired the Croce Verde association of Pinerolo since 2003. She is a member of the AIDDA, an association for women in business, of which she was formerly president of the Piemonte delegation and a national representative, and where she was active in training nationwide for business women and female managers.

She is a founder and former chairperson of the public-private consortium for university-level business education in Pinerolo. From 1964 to 1974, she was councilor for demographic services and welfare in Pinerolo.

These roles and responsibilities all reflect the depth of my mother’s commitment and connection to the local community. A bond that led us in 2008 to establish the Cosso Foundation and choose Miradolo Castle as its home. And by doing so, restore to a cherished community an important historical landmark and piece of our cultural heritage that had been neglected for too long.