Shopping on line can be easy, simple and save you lots of money. It can also take a lot of your time, frustrate you, and result in unwanted purchases. Now the same can be said for regular high street shopping, but with the vast opportunity presented by the Internet it will pay you to spend a few minutes reading this and understanding how to better optimize your Piaggio shopping experience:

1. Compare - without doubt the biggest advantage that the Piaggio offers shoppers today is the ability to compare thousands of Piaggio at a time. This is a great thing, but not necessarily all the time! Too much can be daunting at times so take advantage of the great comparison sites and where possible let them do the hard work for you.

2. Research - if it has been said it will be on the internet. Ignorance is no longer a justifiable reason for buying the wrong thing. Take the time to research in detail everything that you could possible want to know about

3. Testimonials - don't know anybody that has bought a Piaggio? Wrong! If the Piaggio is good the internet will let you know. Use the Internet as a friend and get testimonials before you buy.

4. Questions - Got a question about Piaggio then search the Forums, FAQ's, Blogs etc. Don't be afraid to ask .....

5. Reputation - Never heard of the company selling Piaggio? Don't worry, no reason why you should know every company in the world, but you know someone that does! Use the internet to find out what people are saying about Piaggio and build up a picture of their reputation for sales, returns, customer service, delivery etc.

6. Returns - still worried that even after all of the above your Piaggio wont be what you want? Check out the returns policy. There is so much competition now that someone, somewhere is bound to offer the terms that you are comfortable with.

7. Feedback - happy with your Piaggio then let people know, after all you are depending on others people input in your buying decision, so why not give a little back.

8. Security - check for the yellow padlock on the Piaggio site before you buy, and the s after http:/ /i.e. https:// = a secure site

9. Contact - got a question about Piaggio, or want to leave a comment then check out the sites contact page. Reputable companies have them and respond.

10. Payment - ready to pay for your Piaggio, then use your credit card or PayPal! Be aware of companies that don't accept them, there may be genuine reasons but given the huge amount of choice you have when buying online there is no reason at all not to buy via credit card or PayPal.

{{Infobox_Company|company_name = Piaggio & Co. SpA |company_logo = ] |company_type = Public company ([Borsa_Italiana:[http://www.borsaitaliana.it/bitApp/scheda.bit?target=StrumentoMTA&isin=IT0003073266&lang=en PIA) |company_slogan = |foundation = |location = {{flagicon|Italy--> [Pontedera, [Pisa, [Italy |key_people = [Roberto Colaninno chairman |num_employees = |industry = [Motorcycle |products = [Aprilia
[Derbi
[Gilera
[Ligier
[Moto Guzzi
'''Piaggio'''
[Vespa |revenue = |net_income = |homepage = http://www.piaggio.com Piaggio.com -->Piaggio based in Pontedera, Italy, encompasses seven brands producing scooters and motorcycles. As the fourth largest producer of scooters and motorcycles in the world, Piaggio produces more than 600,000 vehicles annually, with 5 Research and development centers, more than 6,700 employees and operations in over 50 countries.

History Founded by Rinaldo Piaggio in 1884, Piaggio initially produced locomotives and railway carriages. During World War I the company focused on producing airplanes.

During World War II the company produced fighter planes, but Piaggio emerged from the conflict with its Pontedera plant completely demolished by bombing. Italy's crippled economy and the disastrous state of the roads did not assist in the re-development of the automobile markets. Enrico Piaggio, the son of Piaggio's founder Rinaldo Piaggio, decided to leave the aeronautical field in order to address Italy's urgent need for a modern and affordable mode of transportation. The idea was to design an inexpensive vehicle for the masses.

:For the full story, see separate article on Vespa

Aeronautical engineer Corradino D'Ascanio, responsible for the design and construction of the first modern helicopter by Agusta, was given the job of designing a simple, robust and affordable vehicle by Enrico Piaggio. The vehicle had to be easy to drive for both men and women, be able to carry a passenger, and not get its driver's clothes dirty. Consequently, in 1946 Piaggio launched the Vespa (Italian for "wasp") scooter, and within 10 years over a million units had been produced.

Development Piaggio had a strong cash flow emanating from the success of the Vespa, and decided to develop other products. In 1957 they produced the Vespa 400, a tiny passenger car.

In 1959, Piaggio came under the control of the Agnelli family, the owners of car maker Fiat. Resultantly, as the wider ownership of Fiat in Italian industry, in the 1964 the two divisions (aeronautical and motorcycle) split to become two independent companies; the aeronautical division was named IAM Rinaldo Piaggio. Today the airplane-company Piaggio Aero is controlled by the family of Piero Ferrari, who also still holds 10% of the famous car maker Ferrari.

In 1969 the motorcycle company purchased Gilera.

Under New Ownership In 1959, Piaggio came under the control of the Agnelli family, the owners of car maker Fiat. Vespa thrived, until 1992 when Giovanni Alberto Agnelli became CEO - but Agnelli was already suffering from cancer, and died in 1997. In 1999, Morgan Grenfell acquired Piaggio, but a quickly hoped for sale was dashed by a failed joint venture in China. In Italy, Piaggio invested 15 million euros ($19.4 million) in a new motorcycle but dropped it after building a prototype. By the end of 2002, the company had run up 577 million euros in debt on revenues of 945 million euros, and booked a loss of 129 million euros.

Then came Roberto Colaninno: A lot of people told me I was crazy. Piaggio wasn't dying. It just needed to be treated better. Piaggio's financial was in a bad shape, but its brand was still well known and its product were featuring in more Hollywood films thanks to the Vespa ET4. In 1995, Colaninno had pulled off what was then Europe's largest-ever hostile takeover when he took control of Telecom Italia SpA. In October 2003, Mr. Colaninno made an initial investment of 100 million euros through his holding company Immsi SpA in exchange for just under a third of Piaggio and the mandate to run it. Chief executive Rocco Sabelli, redesigned the factory to Japanese principles, and redesigned the factory so that every Piaggio scooter could be made on any assembly line.

Unlike the turnaround recipe applied at U.S. auto makers, Mr. Colaninno didn't fire a single worker - a move which helped seduce the company's skeptical unions. "Everyone in a company is part of the value chain," said Colaninno. All bonuses for blue-collar workers and management were based on the same criteria: profit margins and customer satisfaction; and air conditioning was installed in the factory. He also gave the company's engineers, who had been idled by the company's financial crisis, deadlines for projects - they rolled out two world firsts in 2004: a gas-electric hybrid scooter; a scooter with two wheels in front and one in back which grips the road better.

One of Piaggio's problems Mr. Colaninno couldn't fix from the inside was its scale. Even though Piaggio was the European market leader, it was dwarfed by rivals Honda and Yamaha Motor Company. A year after restoring Piaggio's health, Colaninno directed Piaggio's takeover of the Italian scooter and motorcycle manufacturer Aprilia, and with it the Aprilia-owned Moto Guzzi, storied Italian manufacturer of motorcycles.

In 2006, Piaggio floated on the Milan Stock Exchange, becoming a Public Company.

Brands and models Group brands

Piaggio Models pk 50/100/125

External links

{{Infobox_Company|company_name = Piaggio & Co. SpA |company_logo = ] |company_type = Public company ([Borsa_Italiana:[http://www.borsaitaliana.it/bitApp/scheda.bit?target=StrumentoMTA&isin=IT0003073266&lang=en PIA) |company_slogan = |foundation = |location = {{flagicon|Italy--> [Pontedera, [Pisa, [Italy |key_people = [Roberto Colaninno chairman |num_employees = |industry = [Motorcycle |products = [Aprilia
[Derbi
[Gilera
[Ligier
[Moto Guzzi
'''Piaggio'''
[Vespa |revenue = |net_income = |homepage = http://www.piaggio.com Piaggio.com -->Piaggio based in Pontedera, Italy, encompasses seven brands producing scooters and motorcycles. As the fourth largest producer of scooters and motorcycles in the world, Piaggio produces more than 600,000 vehicles annually, with 5 Research and development centers, more than 6,700 employees and operations in over 50 countries.

History Founded by Rinaldo Piaggio in 1884, Piaggio initially produced locomotives and railway carriages. During World War I the company focused on producing airplanes.

During World War II the company produced fighter planes, but Piaggio emerged from the conflict with its Pontedera plant completely demolished by bombing. Italy's crippled economy and the disastrous state of the roads did not assist in the re-development of the automobile markets. Enrico Piaggio, the son of Piaggio's founder Rinaldo Piaggio, decided to leave the aeronautical field in order to address Italy's urgent need for a modern and affordable mode of transportation. The idea was to design an inexpensive vehicle for the masses.

:For the full story, see separate article on Vespa

Aeronautical engineer Corradino D'Ascanio, responsible for the design and construction of the first modern helicopter by Agusta, was given the job of designing a simple, robust and affordable vehicle by Enrico Piaggio. The vehicle had to be easy to drive for both men and women, be able to carry a passenger, and not get its driver's clothes dirty. Consequently, in 1946 Piaggio launched the Vespa (Italian for "wasp") scooter, and within 10 years over a million units had been produced.

Development Piaggio had a strong cash flow emanating from the success of the Vespa, and decided to develop other products. In 1957 they produced the Vespa 400, a tiny passenger car.

In 1959, Piaggio came under the control of the Agnelli family, the owners of car maker Fiat. Resultantly, as the wider ownership of Fiat in Italian industry, in the 1964 the two divisions (aeronautical and motorcycle) split to become two independent companies; the aeronautical division was named IAM Rinaldo Piaggio. Today the airplane-company Piaggio Aero is controlled by the family of Piero Ferrari, who also still holds 10% of the famous car maker Ferrari.

In 1969 the motorcycle company purchased Gilera.

Under New Ownership In 1959, Piaggio came under the control of the Agnelli family, the owners of car maker Fiat. Vespa thrived, until 1992 when Giovanni Alberto Agnelli became CEO - but Agnelli was already suffering from cancer, and died in 1997. In 1999, Morgan Grenfell acquired Piaggio, but a quickly hoped for sale was dashed by a failed joint venture in China. In Italy, Piaggio invested 15 million euros ($19.4 million) in a new motorcycle but dropped it after building a prototype. By the end of 2002, the company had run up 577 million euros in debt on revenues of 945 million euros, and booked a loss of 129 million euros.

Then came Roberto Colaninno: A lot of people told me I was crazy. Piaggio wasn't dying. It just needed to be treated better. Piaggio's financial was in a bad shape, but its brand was still well known and its product were featuring in more Hollywood films thanks to the Vespa ET4. In 1995, Colaninno had pulled off what was then Europe's largest-ever hostile takeover when he took control of Telecom Italia SpA. In October 2003, Mr. Colaninno made an initial investment of 100 million euros through his holding company Immsi SpA in exchange for just under a third of Piaggio and the mandate to run it. Chief executive Rocco Sabelli, redesigned the factory to Japanese principles, and redesigned the factory so that every Piaggio scooter could be made on any assembly line.

Unlike the turnaround recipe applied at U.S. auto makers, Mr. Colaninno didn't fire a single worker - a move which helped seduce the company's skeptical unions. "Everyone in a company is part of the value chain," said Colaninno. All bonuses for blue-collar workers and management were based on the same criteria: profit margins and customer satisfaction; and air conditioning was installed in the factory. He also gave the company's engineers, who had been idled by the company's financial crisis, deadlines for projects - they rolled out two world firsts in 2004: a gas-electric hybrid scooter; a scooter with two wheels in front and one in back which grips the road better.

One of Piaggio's problems Mr. Colaninno couldn't fix from the inside was its scale. Even though Piaggio was the European market leader, it was dwarfed by rivals Honda and Yamaha Motor Company. A year after restoring Piaggio's health, Colaninno directed Piaggio's takeover of the Italian scooter and motorcycle manufacturer Aprilia, and with it the Aprilia-owned Moto Guzzi, storied Italian manufacturer of motorcycles.

In 2006, Piaggio floated on the Milan Stock Exchange, becoming a Public Company.

Brands and models Group brands

Piaggio Models pk 50/100/125

External links



 

Piaggio



 
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