Lapo Elkann

“I love Winston Churchill; I think he had the grace of coming and the grace of leaving - when things were hard he was there, and when it was time to leave, he left.”

“A pocket square must always - always - be white and a bit wild. If it is too prepared, it is tacky.”

“I like my country, but I don't think like an Italian. It's a complex, complicated difficult country to make things happen in.”

“I try cars; I try them all. Cars need to be sexy, because we're not talking about biscuits here.”

“I have never let down Italy, and I never will. I love my country, and I owe a lot to my country, and in that sense, whatever I can and will be able to do for my country, I will do.”

“Italy's assets are her style, her beauty, her creativity, her passion, her energy, her technology; and these will be core brand values of all our cars. Fiat as a company has a long way to go and a steep road ahead.”

“I would say that Juventus is a myth not only in Italy, because it's the most loved team in Italy, but also around the world. And it has been in my family since birth.”

“Just because you're born in a privileged family and have money doesn't mean you're happy. Happiness you can't buy. Happiness is something you need to work for.”

“Real luxury is customization.”

“I love challenges, and I believe that the challenge of quality cinema should not be underestimated as an important part of the Italian cultural offer.”

“I drive girls crazy because I might call them 20 times in one day and then the next day not once.”

“I am lucky because I can - and I like to - mix the beautiful Caraceni jackets I inherited from my grandfather with a pair of Tsubi jeans or wear a favorite pin-striped suit from him for more formal occasions. I'm crazy about pinstripes and vintage fifties fabrics.”

“Tiles, the best furniture, fabrics, bath fixtures, bronze - just leaf through any design magazine and you immediately understand they're all 'Made in Italy.' We have the premier opera house in the world, La Scala, and behind the Nobel given to CERN is the research of many Italians.”

“I am an obsessive personality. And if you are an obsessive personality, you need to be aware of it and be able to drive it with success. There are moments in your life when you are driving it well, but you shift and you shift badly and you hurt yourself.”

“Even when it comes to zippers and buttons, Italy reigns supreme. The luxury market is ours, as demonstrated by the voracity with which various foreign conglomerates are buying up the jewels of our manufacturing sector.”

“I don't have an MBA, and I didn't go to Yale. I'm not an academic person and wasn't a good student. Instead, I've been taught by some of the most inspiring people in the world.”

“I do not follow the rules of fashion, and I don't like to be considered a man of the world of fashion. I like to call it the 'style industry' because we try to work on taste.”

“London is like a girlfriend I loved, then really fell out with.”

“I've learned that if one is arrogant and if something bad happens to him, people won't want him to succeed. They will make more of an effort to bring him down.”

“I'm inspired every day by the great captains of industry and enlightened entrepreneurs like my great-great-grandfather and founder of Fiat, Giovanni Agnelli, who personally knew all his workers and gave so much to this country, or Adriano Olivetti, unique and innovative in every way.”