Giovanni Festa

Born in Naples in 1964, Giovanni Festa, still very young, founded in Naples in 1990 da_Galeno Officine Cosmetiche s.r.l. cosmetic industry, historically the first business related to this sector started in the capital of the Campania region. Characterized by a strong export vocation, less than three years after its launch it would consolidate international trade relationships in its network, from India to the United States. In 2009, the new plant was inaugurated in the industrial area ASI of Nola, with cutting-edge technologies that further oriented its production principles toward a path of research and development, carried out in collaboration with universities and research institutes. Innovative scientific formulas, the quality of raw materials, always chosen with an eye toward ethically impeccable sustainability, and careful product research, immediately place the Galeno company in the main Italian and international markets, turning it into a point of reference for avant-garde cosmetics. The love for beauty and the concretization of ideas lead Giovanni Festa to explore the world of essences. The opportunity to travel and visit faraway places, intrinsic to export activity, offers him a new starting point to bring with him not only “interior” travel notes, but above all olfactory experiences that translate into the acquisition of very valuable natural essences and oils with rare availability, which he develops in sophisticated projects for the luxury niche fragrance market. Indeed, along with classic patchouli, amber, vetiver, in the perfumes of the Neapolitan nose it is possible to appreciate notes of Papyrus (Cyperus Papyrus), with surprising sweetness, saltiness, with touches of rye bread and leather, which can evoke, for example, Cleopatra of Egypt with the intention of sealing the fate of Marcantonio on parchment; or the woody, sweet and incense-like notes of Nardo oil (Nardostachys Jatamansi) as precious as it is told in the Gospel, where Mary of Magdala pours an entire pound over the feet of Jesus, then dries them with her hair. A gesture considered senseless and crazy due to the great value of the ointment, corresponding to the earnings from a year of hard work. From these experiences he makes a passion, but also a business activity by founding Aulentissima in 2017, a brand which he then extends by opening true perfume workshops. The first is inaugurated in April 2019, in Naples, on via Calabritto, and soon other offices open in Italy and abroad. In 2018 with Osang he is among the finalists of the prestigious Art and Olfaction Awards, a prize established by the famous Institute for Art and Olfaction in Los Angeles. Giovanni Festa’s perfumes want to tell stories—stories of travel, life experiences, stories that from time to time also take inspiration from literature, philosophy, the visual arts—stories with a solid and structured narrative plot, methodical, with olfactory registers meticulously studied. Each of his collections (the first from 2019, the second from May 2020 with the creation of a total of 32 fragrances) is the blank page of a new book, where you can write down thoughts and tune in essences, where you can quickly slide your hand toward an unpredictable and always-open ending.