Mission

Founded in 1994 by Mauro Micheli and Sergio Beretta, Officina Italiana Design has been traditionally and exclusively linked to the iconic Riva yard and its boats.

In fact, Riva’s entire range was designed by Officina Italiana Design which crafts both their exterior lines and the interior design.

What we offer

Officina Italiana Design has thirty years of experience in the nautical design and planning sector.

The studio offers solutions of all kinds, thanks to leading-edge 3D software and constantly updated rendering programmes.

Its work also extends to interior and industrial design, both areas in which it produces custom projects tailored to the suit the needs of each client. It is involved in every stage of the projects, from the creative idea to prototype making.
The studio also has a solid background in refit design: Officina Italiana Design has left its creative stamp on veteran yacht restoration projects as well as restyling more recent craft.

The team
the Italian design workshop team
Mauro Micheli
_ Chief designer

Mauro Micheli was born in Adrara San Martino, Bergamo, in 1959. He graduated from the High School for the Arts in Bergamo and then attended the prestigious Brera Art Academy in Milan. After winning a Riva competition, he was taken on by the yard as an assistant in the technical office in 1984. A decade later, Micheli began consultancy work, co-founding his own design studio, Officina Italiana Design, with Sergio Beretta.
Micheli cites his main sources of inspiration as classical and contemporary art.

Sergio Beretta
_ Chief executive

Born in 1968, Sergio Beretta grew up in Brescia in the North of Italy. He holds a degree in business and marketing and in 1994 was also awarded a Master’s in European Law. He began his career in the aeronautical sector as the station manager in various European airports.
In 1994, he co-founded Officina Italiana Design with Mauro Micheli with whom he shares a passion for contemporary art and design.

Andrea Catucci
_ Exterior designer

Andrea graduated in Industrial Design from the Milan Politecnico in 2001. He has joined the nautical field in 2003, working for several renowned Italian shipyards. He has been working with Officina Italiana Design since 2018

Alberto Stella
_ Chief interior designer

Born in Vicenza, Alberto previously worked in various architectural studios but now heads Officina Italiana Design’s interior design and décor department.
He has been with the studio since 1997.

Francesca Romana Orio
_ Interior designer

Francesca graduated in Industrial Design from the La Sapienza University in Rome in 2010. She has been working with Officina Italiana Design since 2012.

Gabriele Ghirlandetti
_ Exterior designer

After being awarded a degree in Industrial Product Design by the Politecnico di Milano in 2018, he continued his studies in Integrated Product Design, graduating in 2021. He has been collaborating with Officina Italiana Design since 2022.

Claudio Zazza
_ Exterior designer

Born in Rome in 1999, he graduated with a degree in Industrial Design from Rome’s Università La Sapienza in 2020. In 2022, he was awarded a degree in Naval and Nautical Design by the Polo Universitario di La Spezia.
He has been working with Officina Italiana Design since 2022.

Valentina Varinelli
_ Executive assistant

Valentina was awarded a degree in Communications in 2006 which she followed up with a degree in Multimedia Communications and Publishing from the University of Bergamo in 2008.
She has been working with Officina Italiana Design since 2010.