I'm Guido, I was born and raised near Verona, Italy; I have been based in Los Angeles since May 2014. Prior to moving to Los Angeles, I lived in Sweden (Uppsala), the United States (Santa Barbara), India (New Delhi), United Kingdom (London).
I'm the Founder & CEO of Primal Wine – primalwine.com – an online retail store dedicated to selling wine made naturally from organic or biodynamic grapes. In 2020, Primal Wine was nominated by Wine Enthusiast among the 50 best retailers in the United States. In 2021 we consolidated our presence as one of the leaders in our niche, with mentions in Food&Wine, Vogue, The New York Magazine, The New York Times, and several other publications. In December 2021, we launched a London-based branch of Primal Wine to serve the UK market.
I started Primal Wine while I was in charge of the innovation and startup program at the Italian Trade Agency of Los Angeles, Trade Promotion Section of the Consulate General of Italy. I advised startup companies, networked with investors, and organized events.
My professional background is in government and international organizations – Italian Embassy in Stockholm, United Nations, Amnesty International IS – as well as in the private sector – market research, business analysis, business development, marketing strategy, digital marketing, e-commerce.
I have a Master's degree in International Relations from the University of Trento, School of International Studies. As part of the program, I was awarded a grant for a 6-month work period at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in New Delhi, India.
During my undergrad/graduate studies at the University of Padua, Italy, I was awarded two study abroad scholarships: Education Abroad Program (EAP) - a. y. 2006-2007, UCSB, United States; Erasmus Program - a. y. 2003-2004, Uppsala University, Sweden.
I hold a FISAR sommelier diploma, I have been playing drums for 20+ years, and when I'm not working on Primal I like to spend time with my family.
I've been married to my wife Kelly for ten years, we have two daughters, Yuna and Noemi, and my cat's name is Pablo – he is awesome.