2025 Family Businesses in Italy Trek

During spring break 2025 (March 29– April 5) the Smith Family Business will be leading a student trek to Italy to explore many significant family businesses, Italian history, and culture.

Important Registation Dates:
Residential MBA Registration opens: January 17th at 9 am
General Registration opens: January 20th at 9 am
Registration closes: Monday, January 27th by 5 pm

Why Italy?
In Italy, there are estimated to be around 784,000 family businesses – more than 85% of the total number of businesses – constituting around 70% of employment. Italian family businesses are also set apart by their longevity: of the world's 100 oldest businesses, 15 are Italian and, of these, 5 – Fonderie Pontificie Marinelli (founded in 1000), Barone Ricasoli (1141), Barovier & Toso (1295), Torrini (1369) and Marchesi Antinori (1385) – are among the top ten oldest family businesses still active today.
Source: http://www.aidaf.it/en/aidaf-3/1650-2/.

Dates
• Saturday, March 29-Saturday, April 5, 2025

Transportation
• Participants will be responsible for their departing and returning transportation 
• In country, the trek will coordinate all transportation
 

Lodging
• Saturday, March 29 – Saturday, April 5 currently included (7 nights); 2 nights in double rooms and 5 nights in single rooms.

Meals
• Some meals are included

Approximate cost
• $3500 – $4000 USD, excluding your own arrival and departure travel – details still being finalized

Matthew Unger MBA '23 Fellowship for Experiential Learning

The Matthew Unger MBA '23 Fellowship for Experiential Learning provides financial support of up to $5,000 for up to two students to participate in the Family Businesses in Italy Trek (March 29-April 5, 2025), led by the Smith Family Business Initiative (SFBI) at the SC Johnson College of Business. Generously established by recent alumnus Matthew Unger, ‘MBA ’23, this fellowship is open to all graduate students at Cornell University, and its objective is to eliminate potential participation barriers for persons of color and other underrepresented groups, ensuring equal access among all students to this transformative experiential learning opportunity. There are two spots available for this fellowship program this year. We are seeking applicants who would greatly benefit from this unique opportunity to explore family businesses through the Italy trek. Selection will be based on a combination of merit and financial need. Ideal candidates will demonstrate not only strong academic and leadership potential but also a willingness to support the SFBI team and contribute to the success of the trek by fostering a collaborative and positive group experience. Email Susan Hu at yh789@cornell.edu with any questions.

Apply here: https://johnson.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_9KtXagCfHMPCt38

DEADLINE: Jan. 8, 2025, 11:59pm ET

Credit
• This is a 1.5 credit course (NBA-5920-FLD-802)

If you missed the Info Session on December 4th, the recording can be found at this link! 

Smith Family Business Initiative | Website | View More Events

Contact the organizers