I am the international communication director of Ruffino – Constellation Brands. I lead all the global communication of Ruffino, its brands and its wines, setting the messages, the stories, the most appropriate media and the budget. In this role, I have created, managed and implemented highly successful creative platforms over the years, including Vivere di Gusto (2020-2022), developed from the brand manifesto to the advertising campaign to the brand-magazine, up to all the communication tools and the hospitality area, which is a coherent reflection of it. “Vivere di Gusto” has resonated in harmony with the values of Ruffino, its wines and its history, offering customers an engaging and aspirational world in which to identify. I also manage the events and the public-relation activities. Over the years I have developed a deep expertise in designing and implementing events, approaching them from every angle, including h&s, and held in every corner of the world, whether it was a vineyard dinner or a DJ set on a rooftop overseas. Sustainability and responsible drinking are strongly tied with my vision over wine and with my creative and strategic thinking: in 2018 I ideated and developed a project, named “Ruffino Cares”, with the idea to promote responsible drinking by recreating the atmospheres Italians have always consumed wine: with others, with food and with meaningful connections. In this vision, environmental sustainability, biodiversity and diversity+inclusion are also embraced in “Ruffino Cares”. In 2020 “Ruffino Cares” was awarded in Confindustria as the most engaging CSR communication platform, while in 2022 it won the Gavi Prize in Milano as “Best communication platform”. I also travel regularly around the world as a brand ambassador of the company, presenting its iconic red wines and the heritage of Tuscany and Italy. For my communication’s achievements in Ruffino, I was named in 2016 “Communicator of the Year” by the Italian magazine “Civiltà del Bere”.

I created from scratch and led all the implementations (architecture, design, choice of chefs and managers, brand architectures, logos), of the new agritourism Poggio Casciano - Ruffino, composed by the restaurant "Le Tre Rane", a wine shop, a hotel and T&T, managing a team of over 40 professionals. In 3 years I have nearly doubled the net sales, with constant double-digit growth and results above all expectations in terms of attendance and awareness.“Le Tre Rane”, located inside the Poggio Casciano di Ruffino estate, is my intuition that takes up the extraordinary Leonardo story of Le Tre Rane of Florence in the Renaissance and contemporizes it in the timeless Tuscan taste capable of celebrating the pleasure of being together. I created the concept, devised the name and the story-telling, and finally conceived the gastronomic and architectural propositions, consistent with Ruffino's values, in addition to the general management of the entire team, obtaining significant economic and image results in years of pandemic, also rewarded by journalists, critics and restaurant guides.In 2021 and 2022 I created and organized the summer kermesse “Sotto le Stelle” (cinema, concerts, DJ sets, talks), with the highlight of the concert of the international music band Subsonica. All the evenings exceeded the attendance and budget targets and the quality of the performances.I was also in charge of health&safety, in a hospitality center during Pandemic, with a professional training as a safety manager on laws 231 (corporate criminal liability), 81 (safety at work), 30 (regulation of agritourism activities) and HACCP. An experience of extraordinary human and professional growth, where I managed and kept motivated a work team between continuous openings and closings, safety plans, risk analysis, implementation of decrees (masks, reductions in seats, distances), obtaining ISO 14001 and 45001, always guaranteeing quality of service, respect of agriturism rules, absence of accidents.

In 2011, I followed Ruffino's transition from a family business to a multinational, personally dealing with interactions between the parties, relations with the press and public and political institutions, communications to employees and external communications. I thus experienced precepts of crisis-communication, M&A, corporate climate, financial communication. Over the following years, I led Ruffino's communications, relating to the company's global teams, in a challenging and meritocratic glocal context that allowed me to grow, structure myself as an international manager and become director in 2019.

When I arrived at Ruffino in 2007, the communications department did not exist and the corporate image was deteriorated and inappropriate. So I set up a new function from scratch that led to growth in brand perception, ongoing relationships with the press and KOLs, and participation in consumer events.

Acqua degli Dei (acquadeglidei.it) is an eau de parfum brand inspired by the ancestral beauty and the scents of south of Italy, founded in 2015. My main activities are strategic communication, brand repositioning, new products development (I also deal with olfactory definitions), ESG projects such as the recovery of a semi-abandoned park of endemic Calabrian botanicals overlooking the sea, “Il Giardino degli Dei”.

Words (written, spoken, read) are an essential part to me. Stories have always helped humanity in its never-ending search of beauty, answers and togetherness, especially in its darkest hours. This assumption is the basis of my work as an author and creative writer.“The Pillar of Civilization” (2023), is a script that tells the journey of wine, starting from the very first wine cellars in the ancient Colchis, passing from Mesopotamia, than Etruscans, Greeks and arriving up to Modern Times, where the wine is observed with a twofold angle: wine is an alcoholic beverage and when consumed properly, with others, for the taste of being together, has always elevated humanity in very refined way of aggregations, while, if consumed in excesses and in solitude, can be a brutal demon and sometimes dangerous. “La Toscana di Ruffino” (Cucchiaio di Argento / Phaedon 2016) is a book that celebrates the pleasure of staying together in Tuscany and all the stories tied with wine and togetherness. The book has had 2 reprints and has won the national prize “Quarta di Copertina” in 2018. I curated a lifestyle-magazine named viveredigusto.it, (2020-2022) with hundreds of lifestyle and food and wine articles. Since 2016 I am running my personal blog francescosorelli.it, where I tell the never-ending story of the renovation of my ancient country-house from XIII century, that is slowly back to life after years of abandon and now is my place in the world. I have also a specific attitude and professional expertise in copywriting, advertising writing and naming, with almost every verbiage and story of Ruffino having been curated by me.

Strictly connected with my activity as an author and copywriter is my storyteller and public speaker activity. I have presented my works, especially "The Pillar of Civilization", in prestigious universities and gatherings, such as Business School Il Sole 24 Ore, the Symposium of Master of Wine in Germany, the University Sant’Anna di Pisa, the Master in Sustainable Viticulture of Piacenza and in numerous cities of the world, such as Paris, London, Berlin, Milan, Montreal, Taipei, Toronto, Pontassieve (my hometown, where the emotion is greatest), Bangkok, Florence, Stockholm, just to name a few places. . In parallel with this, comes my project “Wine Talks” – conversation around a glass, where I recreate small convivia, interacting with important person skilled in different sciences (medicians, war journalists, priests, writers, artists) and talking with a glass of wine in our hands, once again stating the role of wine in crafting beauty and civilization.

Certified sommelier (FISAR and WSET III with merit), enthusiast and expert taster and frequent wine traveller – with a specific focus over Italian wines and a passion for the 3 grape kings of Italy (Sangiovese with Nebbiolo and Aglianico), matured in over 20 years of experience – I guide several wine tastings and seminars throughout the world. My wine lessons usually imply also the cultural and historical role of wine and the importance of a responsible drinking, factors that side the wine education and tasting part. I also usually lead lessons and classes over wine communication and hospitality.

My fundamental kick off, where I had the chance of growing in a context internationally linked and open minded and becoming a passionate wine communicator, getting also in touch with industry professionals, wineries, wine institutions and press that have been important up today.