by Maddalena Baldini

An example of successfully handling the past year's crisis, thanks to a series of activities and new items included in the catalogue, many of which are in line with the growing market demand. This is Maikii, a company that succeeded in responding to social and customer changes by investing in modernity, live events scheduled throughout 2021, green items and partnerships. We explore this with Matteo Fabbrini, founder & CEO of Maikii.

How is Maikii operating in this difficult period?

"2020 has put everyone to the test, but I am happy to say that Maikii has been able not only to manage the difficulties, but also to create new business opportunities.

We made the difference with protective equipment, which we listed in the catalogue in record time to respond to the demand stemming from the pandemic. Economically, our marketing division closed a record year with a 250% year-on-year growth. The team, even working remotely much of the time, managed to stay cohesive to achieve our goals."

The company is organizing online events: What are the topics? What were the most popular ones?

"Most trade fairs have been cancelled or postponed: in early February we organized the Maikii Live event, a beautiful 3-day opportunity to meet customers, prospects and the press – both national and international – and to present the new products listed in the catalogue, the company values and how we faced the challenge imposed by Covid-19. We covered lots of topics, from 3.0 technology to products to sanitize personal protective equipment, from eco-friendly materials to technology items such as power banks and wireless chargers."

What are the most popular items and how is the market reacting?

“The market has been recovering, after a rather lukewarm start, and interest in our proposals is returning to standard levels. Some of the most popular items are products in ECO-materials – such as grain fibre, bamboo, recycled plastic – also available for immediate delivery (24-72 hours), a highly appreciated solution. Sets for smart working also recorded - and are continuing to record - a positive performance. Finally, the 100% custom projects are always appreciated and differentiate us from our competitors."

What were the new proposals?

"Last year we included in our catalogue a series of products linked to the pandemic crisis. I'm referring not only to masks (surgical, FFP2 and washable, all CE certified) but also to articles designed to sanitize through UV-C rays.

Thanks to the experience we have gained in many years of activity in the promotional field, we can apply technological innovations to useful and indispensable everyday products. For example, the MOBY and LUX proposals stand out for their multifunctionality: they are in fact alarm clock, 5W wireless charger and UV-C ray sterilizer."

What is Maikii doing in this 2021? What about future projects?

"The philosophy for 2021 is to look beyond and to continue to improve: one of our strengths is flexibility, we have always been pragmatic and ready to face the challenges.

The issue we are paying greater attention to at the moment is “green thinking”: as stated above, we are orienting ourselves to environmentally friendly materials such as grain fibre, cork (recently included in the catalogue), bamboo and recycled PET and their processing. Other areas of particular interest are the major innovations in the audio world that will be presented during the year, even more product and packaging customisation and the partnership with Gamindo, a company operating in the world of advergames, where we invested a lot in 2020."