Biography

Marco Boglione was born in Turin on May 9, 1956. After a rapid career at Maglificio Calzificio Torinese, where he became commercial and marketing director at 25, he founded two start-ups in the mid-1980s: Mototaxi, which he sold to Poste Italiane in 1999, and Football Sport Merchandise, which in 1994 won the auction for the bankrupt Maglificio Calzificio Torinese and its brands Kappa, Robe di Kappa, and Jesus Jeans. After the acquisition, Marco Boglione renamed the company BasicNet and revolutionized its business model, creating the first marketplace in the history of sportswear and casual wear. In 1999, BasicNet was listed on the Italian Stock Exchange. Over the years, the brands K-Way, Superga, Briko, and Sebago were added to its portfolio. Today, the BasicNet Group’s branded products are present in over 140 markets worldwide, with aggregate sales of 1.2 billion euros (source: 2024 financial statement). On June 2, 2011, the President of the Republic, Giorgio Napolitano, appointed Marco Boglione Knight of Labor, of whose Piedmontese Group he has been President since 2019. On May 5, 2016, he received the Guido Carli Award at Montecitorio, dedicated to Italian excellence. Since 2020, Marco Boglione has been president of the Camillo Cavour Foundation in Santena (Turin). On June 2, 2024, he was awarded the title of Commander of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic by the Head of State Sergio Mattarella. Starting from 2018, Marco Boglione has progressively handed over the operational responsibilities of BasicNet to his sons Lorenzo and Alessandro and to the top management, while retaining the position of Chairman.