Pininfarina is delighted to make its Middle Eastern debut, supported by the Italian Chamber of Commerce. On the 25th of May, on the occasion of the 14th Annual General Assembly of the “Italian Industry and Commerce Office in the U.A.E.” Paolo Pininfarina, Chairman of the Pininfarina Group, has been elected member of the Board of Directors.

The legendary Italian design house was established by Battista Pinin Farina in 1930, who became the most acclaimed car designer of his time and started the collaboration with Ferrari that lasts since 1951. In 1986, the third generation of the Pininfarina family created Pininfarina Extra to extend the design capabilities of the company outside of the automotive sector. Over the past 30 years, Pininfarina Extra has developed more than 600 projects under the direction of its President and Chief Executive Officer, Paolo Pininfarina (now Chairman of the Pininfarina Group).

The first Pininfarina large-scale project in Dubai

Pininfarina’s arrival in the Middle East underlines the family’s commitment to exploring dynamic new markets, and is part of a strategy to build a long-term base in the region. The first Pininfarina large-scale project in Dubai is the interior design of the Innovation Center in the Sustainable City (awarded the first sustainable city in Mena), a modern application of social, economic and environmental sustainability developed by Diamond Developers. Pininfarina’s unique architectural style is contributing to the development of the first operational Net Zero Energy city in Dubai, conceived to become an international showcase for sustainable living, work, education and recreation. Other active projects in the Middle Eastern area are in the field of private architecture and offices.

“We are delighted to expand our global reach into the Middle East, a region that truly represents what significant design achievements can be realised in a short space of time, given ambition, vision, passion and technical skill. We are looking forward to making a lasting contribution to the region’s architecture and design footprint and announcing significant new projects in the months ahead. Key to our work will be in the field of Architecture: bringing movement and dynamism to buildings.” says Paolo Pininfarina, Chairman of the Group.