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Living for motorcycles: Giuseppe Visenzi the founder of GIVI

Living+for+motorcycles%3A+Giuseppe+Visenzi+the+founder+of+GIVI
11
Mar
2020

GIVI is well known among motorcycle enthusiasts, and by others, but not everyone knows the fascinating story of how and why GIVI was created, or rather, who created it.
 
GIVI’s founder, Giuseppe Visenzi, successfully turned his passion into one of the greatest motorcycle accessory companies, with branches all over the world. Recently, the head of GIVI was interviewed for Slick Magazine, a motorsport magazine, just so he could tell the incredible story of his life and his company.
 
Giuseppe Visenzi began his career as a rider, introducing himself as a “mechanic”, at a time when it was unthinkable for someone of little means to make a living on racing alone. He competed in his first race, an Italian championship qualifier in Modena, with a Lavedra 75, on loan from a friend. His second bike, a Mondial, came after no small sacrifice, and, despite its competitive limitations, allowed him to participate in the next races. However, it was with his third motorcycle, a Ducati, that he achieved so much success and became known as a champion racer.
 
One night, around 11:00, on the way home from a race in Piedmont, frustrated because the Mondial experienced a technical failure for the umpteenth time, he stopped to buy his first Ducati from a private seller. He spent the rest of that night in his workshop getting the bike ready for the next race, only one week away. It was thanks to this motorcycle that he began the career of his dreams, filled with passion and motorcycle racing, and became an internationally ranked rider for 11 years.
 
In 1969, everything changed. During the Finland Grand Prix qualifiers, a terrible accident caused Visenzi to break his pelvis and he was forced to put the brakes on his dream. After a long convalescence, he began racing again, starting with the Yugoslavia World Championship 350. However, difficulties in supporting the weight of the motorcycle caused him to have a second accident, which drove him to resign permanently from racing, taking home third place in the world championship for the 350 class.
 
And so it happened that, in 1970, Visenzi bid farewell to his 11-year racing career and opened his first store in Brescia, a motorcycle dealership. Ten years later he designed his first top case, creating the famous GIVI that we all know today.
 
In 2018, the company turned 40 and, although it has always been connected to its homeland, Visenzi has built a decidedly international reputation for his business. As it was conceived for exporting right from the start, today there are branches on every continent, the first being established in the US and then South Africa. With the new millennium, new investments saw involvement in Asia, reaching Malaysia, India, China and beyond.
 
Of course, Visenzi has never lost his passion for motorcycle racing, which is why he has continued to sponsor teams over the years, putting the GIVI name on the LCR team Hondas and the official Ducatis of the MotoGP.
 
During the interview, two things became clear by looking into Giuseppe Visenzi’s eyes. He no longer remembers how many races he’s won or lost or how he placed, but he has other memories from those years. What he has is nostalgia for the past, when friendly competition on the track was paired with a strong sense of solidarity among the riders, and the passion, as much for motorcycles as for life, and the dreams which allowed him to live.
 
Explore. Enjoy. With GIVI
Givi is well known among motorcycle enthusiasts, and by others, but not everyone knows the fascinating story of how and why Givi was created, or rather, who created it.
 
Givi’s founder, Giuseppe Visenzi, successfully turned his passion into one of the greatest motorcycle accessory companies, with branches all over the world. Recently, the head of GIVI was interviewed for Slick Magazine, a motorsport magazine, just so he could tell the incredible story of his life and his company.
 
Giuseppe Visenzi began his career as a rider, introducing himself as a “mechanic”, at a time when it was unthinkable for someone of little means to make a living on racing alone. He competed in his first race, an Italian championship qualifier in Modena, with a Lavedra 75, on loan from a friend. His second bike, a Mondial, came after no small sacrifice, and, despite its competitive limitations, allowed him to participate in the next races. However, it was with his third motorcycle, a Ducati, that he achieved so much success and became known as a champion racer.
 
One night, around 11:00, on the way home from a race in Piedmont, frustrated because the Mondial experienced a technical failure for the umpteenth time, he stopped to buy his first Ducati from a private seller. He spent the rest of that night in his workshop getting the bike ready for the next race, only one week away. It was thanks to this motorcycle that he began the career of his dreams, filled with passion and motorcycle racing, and became an internationally ranked rider for 11 years.
 
In 1969, everything changed. During the Finland Grand Prix qualifiers, a terrible accident caused Visenzi to break his pelvis and he was forced to put the brakes on his dream. After a long convalescence, he began racing again, starting with the Yugoslavia World Championship 350. However, difficulties in supporting the weight of the motorcycle caused him to have a second accident, which drove him to resign permanently from racing, taking home third place in the world championship for the 350 class.
 
And so it happened that, in 1970, Visenzi bid farewell to his 11-year racing career and opened his first store in Brescia, a motorcycle dealership. Ten years later he designed his first top case, creating the famous Givi that we all know today.
 
In 2018, the company turned 40 and, although it has always been connected to its homeland, Visenzi has built a decidedly international reputation for his business. As it was conceived for exporting right from the start, today there are branches on every continent, the first being established in the US and then South Africa. With the new millennium, new investments saw involvement in Asia, reaching Malaysia, India, China and beyond.
 
Of course, Visenzi has never lost his passion for motorcycle racing, which is why he has continued to sponsor teams over the years, putting the GiVi name on the LCR team Hondas and the official Ducatis of the MotoGP.
 
During the interview, two things became clear by looking into Giuseppe Visenzi’s eyes. He no longer remembers how many races he’s won or lost or how he placed, but he has other memories from those years. What he has is nostalgia for the past, when friendly competition on the track was paired with a strong sense of solidarity among the riders, and the passion, as much for motorcycles as for life, and the dreams which allowed him to live.
 
Explore. Enjoy. With GIVI

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