Mr. Milvio Riccardi, the owner of a beautiful farmhouse in Cetona, tells Great Estate about himself. The man with rich career who can share his life experience with each of us.
Good morning, Mr.Riccardi. Could you tell us about yourself? What did you do in your career?
Good morning. I am from Rome but I moved to Tuscany in 1992 and at once, appreciated the charm of this wonderful territory.
For many years, I worked for one London-based company in energy sector, that deals, in particular, with natural gas and oil.
Then, I entered another big Italian company that was involved in design and construction of railways, subways and road infrastructure.
I travelled a lot but Tuscany and Umbria remained in my heart from the first moment when I was lucky to discover them.
We know that before farmhouse “Felceto”, you were the owner of the farmhouse called “Vetrichina”. When and how did you come to know the area of San Casciano dei Bagni – Cetona?
I reached Tuscany after possessing another farmhouse in Orvieto for some period of time, in 1992: till now I remember that cold day of March with deep emotions, when I arrived to that village, hitherto unknown to me, and at first sight fell in live with that rose-coloured house, immersed in lush greenery of the landscape that is enchanting, to say the least. It was “Vetrichina”, located in the municipality of San Casciano dei Bagni.
I remember my daughter who said: “Daddy, it is a small village, where they make a great ice cream!”
Later, after deciding to sell it because its maintenance was too big and demanding, I bought another farmhouse in the town of Cetona, “Felceto” to say precisely.
When did you come to know Great Estate, by whom or through which mean did you find them?
I know Stefano Petri when Great Estate did not exist yet.
One English friend of mine had a necessity to restore his farmhouse and through the company dealing with this aspect, I had a pleasant opportunity to meet this young enterprising, positive, purposeful guy, determined in implementing large projects, aware of the importance of technology and its added value in the real estate.
Therefore, I saw how Great Estate was born in San Casciano dei Bagni, and I witnessed its tremendous development, its growth and the personal growth of Stefano.
He always tries to be in step with the time and even to anticipate it.
These years, you were a witness of changes within Great Estate, as in role of a buyer, as in role of a seller? What do you think about them?
Till now, I have never had an opportunity to sell and to buy with Great Estate. I am aware of a fact that national and international communication offered by the Group is on the highest level and there is nothing to envy International Real Estate giants that were unreachable a few decades ago. The growth of Great Estate and the undisputed capacity to manage national and international clients have led to this great success of the Group.
As for you, what are the differences between the Group and other agencies? What are the advantages of it?
As I have already said, the structure of Great Estate and its services are always advanced and it is obvious comparing with other real estate agencies present in this area.
Stefano Petri always tries to be one step ahead, trying to improve what is already good enough in the Group.
Could you give us more details about the history and the quality of your property?
Felceto is a farmhouse immersed in greenery, in the municipality of Cetona, that I bought in 2011. It was completely restored: the works took about one year. When the restoration was completed, Felceto was used as a rental structure (for weekly tourist rentals) and was appreciated by numerous European tourists (Danish, French, Belgian, Norwegian and others) who decided to stay there.
The property was very profitable: we have many clients now who every year, thanks to a strong “word of mouth”, keep coming on vacation to Felceto.
With my return to the capital, because I decided to dedicate some more time to my family, I put the property on sale. With the passage of time without any great results, on Stefano’s suggestion, I decided to remove the house from the estate circuits for some period, and then, to choose the right moment and to reintroduce it again. It was done to avoid the devaluation of the property and to give it the right value, thanks to an exclusive agreement, that would give more adequate and effective visibility to such a prestigious property.
Do you think the services offered by Great Estate are effective?
Yes, I do, absolutely. I could notice this during recent period.
The only thing, maybe, I would complain is the waiting for the Stefano’s answer: the turnover of Great Estate is enormous, it’s obvious, as to talk with him you need to have a good dose of patience!
