It is always rather curious to get to know the faces behind a project that does not live, precisely, on the faces of the founders. This is the case of Milano da Scrocco, like so many others, the page set up in 2018 to promote open and free events in and around Milan to a growing community.
It is a Friday morning and when I switch on the cam it is Giada who greets me. Modenese by origin and Milanese by adoption, she is co-founder of Milano da Scrocco together with Alessio, a young up-and-comer from Brianza. Both are united by a contagious enthusiasm and an air of unconventionality that makes them still unconventionally pure in a market that feeds on quite different characteristics.
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Let's get started, hi guys, how did you meet?
Hi Giulietta! Alessio and I both attended the Brera Academy of Fine Arts, specifically the New Technologies of Art faculty. We met during a course that included a creative mapping of Milan as a final exam.
From that moment on, we began to realise that there were a lot of free events. Talking about scrounging, the idea was born to go there together and involve as many people as possible to enjoy the same privilege. Thus, the Milano da Scrocco Facebook page was born.
The concept of “scroccone” does not have a positive meaning, in Milan being a necessity?
The term Milano da Scrocco comes from Milano da Bere. The idea was to exorcise the term scrounger, so much so that our followers are called scroungers, not freeloaders.
In the beginning, the name created quite a few problems for us. The realities that we were promoting did not understand that it was not a mooch for its own sake: the mission was and still is to make mooching shareable.
When did you realise that the project was succeeding?
Right from the start. The potential of the project was very clear to our community but less so to the realities mentioned. To this day, those same realities pay us to be promoted on our channels.
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How do you earn a living? Do you just freeload in life?
We finished our studies and started working in communication agencies. In December 2021, we realised that we could start earning something from Milan as freeloaders and in January 2022, we opened a VAT number.
We marinate with projects with clubs or brands for promotional purposes.
Giada takes care of all the content in feeds, visuals and copy. Alessio works on the stories. He handles the art direction part of the project and also takes care of the strategy.
How the format was born“A scrocco con?”
Good question, we care a lot about this format. It started many years ago, the idea was to get famous people involved. But on TikTok we saw that the formats that worked the most were the ones that brought in normal people. That's how “A scrocco con” started.
From Milan, you moved on to Rome, Florence, Naples, Hamburg and so on. Is the project scalable?
Everyone asks us that. Before the pandemic, three students from Piedmont wanted to ground Turin from Scrocco. Over time, we realised that it is necessary to consolidate on Milan without getting too carried away. Once the structure is consolidated, we will think about how to expand.
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In case we propose for Rome da Scrocco...
Great idea!
The best and the worst thing that happened to you as a creator?
Ugliest: being abroad for a paid job with a fever of 40 and having to continue working with a takeover of the client's Instagram account while pretending nothing has happened.
Most beautiful: the events that give us a chance to breathe and touch the affection of the community we have built with so much effort.
A question you have never been asked and would like to be asked?
The question nobody asks us is “how are you?”. Right now, like a broken bicycle.
Image Milano da Scrocco
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