Our history

A ground-breaking innovation for the entire sector with numerous benefits for professional operators: product quality guaranteed by the industrial process, reduction of costs and shorter delivery times.

The bar furnishing become modular to create customised solutions.

With Factotum by Ifi, the load-bearing structure of the modules was made of steel rather than wood against perforation corrosion to guarantee solidity and a long lifetime. Factotum is still the benchmark technology for the bar furnishing industry.

Pozzetti with ventilated refrigeration set a new standard in the tradition of gelato parlours.
The innovation was so successful that in the space of just 10 years, ventilated pozzetti counters became a sector-based reference for the more uniform distribution of cold, gelato scoopability and the health of the operators.

The first major innovation in the gelato world since the 1950s, Tonda defines a new way of preserving, displaying and serving gelato for the health of operators and protection of the environment.

Ifi invents anti-rotation system for tubs
This simple system, which nobody had thought of before, stops the tubs rotating when gelato is served, making it as easy and as ergonomic as possible for the gelato-maker to use the spatula.
Made initially of stainless steel and then, also of food-grade polyethylene.

The HCS (High-Performance Closure System) offered new benefits to gelato chefs. HCS allowed traditional display cases to reduce the number of defrost cycles based on actual use, thus preserving the quality of the gelato, improving hygiene and reducing electricity consumption.

Ifi reinvents the way gelato is preserved and displayed.
Panorama® pozzetti counters combines the perfect preservation of pozzetti and the typical visibility of flavours in display cases in a single solution.

Bar Sharing, designed by Giorgio Di Tullio. eliminates the traditional difference between the front and rear. The 1/2/3/4 metre modules, featuring identical depths and heights, eliminated this constraint allowing greater design and functional freedom.

Ifi presents the Start Up project (designed by Giorgio di Tullio and Raffaele Gerardi).

Defined as a social project as it was created to give young people aged 18 to 35 an opportunity to take up the profession of barista. The bar counter was turned into a basic double deck, tailor-made front and back and standard technology, which included everything needed for bar service. Accessibility and simplicity are the keys to the design of this innovative bar counter.

With Gelato Coolbox (designed by Marc Sadler), Ifi suggests new ideas and opportunities to artisan gelato-makers and chain stores to improve their business and revenues and promote their image.

With Gelato Coolbox, artisan gelato goes out of the gelato shops inside a professional suitcase. Gelato Coolbox guarantees perfect storage of the gelato for four hours, plus two hours of service without the use of electricity or batteries.

The Colonna display case features a vertical circular element, namely a column, with a technological heart, aimed at supporting and enhancing the display of pastry.

Colonna transforms the everyday actions of serving into one single movement. With an innovative and patented mechanical system, the display surface glides out like an extension of the actions of the pastry chef, who can work and bring the products on display closer while maintaining a relaxed posture.

The first compact, professional and autonomous gelato parlour. PopApp is a compact workstation that encompasses spaces for the production of artisan gelato for its preservation, display and sale in a single environment.Versatile and adaptable like a pop-up store, it can be easily disassembled to be reused in always different contexts.

Hybrid Cooling Technology iguarantees continuous cooling of gelato even during the delicate defrosting phases, protecting the quality of the food and the health of the operator and reducing electricity consumption.

Al volo, designed by MM Design, is Ifi's latest innovation to offer artisan gelato, pastry and pralines beyond the boundaries of traditional shops. Al volo is a mini refrigerated professional display case, which in a small space contains all the technological knowledge of Ifi.

Born to enhance Gelato, Pastry and Pralines, Pivot is the new benchmark for refrigerated vertical display cases.

With Pivot, Ifi raises quality, performance and design standards and guarantees refrigeration excellence even in extreme environmental conditions.

The advanced refrigeration system, the perfect distribution of cold and the exceptionally rapid recovery of the temperature after opening enhance the organoleptic qualities and appeal of products on display.

And also for the support of the shelves it avoids the racks, receptacle of unsanitary dirt.

The innovative refrigerated locker powered by Ifi, featuring an exclusive e-commerce site and integrated management platform. MyPick, Design Delineodesign, is part of the ADI Design Index 2022 selection.

The Tonda display case is awarded with Honorable Mention at the ADI 21st Edition of the Compasso d'Oro. Ifi thus became part of the permanent collection of this famous design prize, recognized by the Government as a Bene d'Interesse Nazionale (Asset of Nation Interest).

The Tonda gelato display case was selected to be part of the Farnesina Design Collection, set up by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs to promote our country’s artistic production in the design sector. As well as being permanently on display in the Sala dei Mappamondi of the Palazzo della Farnesina in Rome, Tonda travelled around various world capitals, becoming an ambassador of successful Italian design at international events.

The Lunette display case with HCS closure system is awarded with the Red Dot Design Honourable Mention in Essen (Germany) for the Product Design category.

The Lunette display case and the HCS closure system is awarded with the iF Product Design Award in Hannover for their highly innovative character.

On Ifi’s fiftieth anniversary, the President of the Italian Republic, Giorgio Napolitano, conferred his “medaglia di rappresentanza” (medal of recognition) to the company.

It is the first Compasso d’Oro awarded to a company in the sector.
Bellevue with Panorama technology, designed by Marc Sadler in partnership with Ifi, wins the first Compasso d’Oro in the history of the ADI awarded to the artisan gelato industry.

At the 1st edition of the ADI Compasso d’Oro International Award with a theme of “Design for Food and Nutrition”, Start Up (designed by Giorgio di Tullio and Raffaele Gerardi) received an Honourable Mention in the “Design for Food and Consumption” category.

At the 1st edition of the ADI Compasso d’Oro International Award with a theme of “Design for Food and Nutrition”, Bar Sharing (designed by Giorgio di Tullio) received an Honourable Mention in the “Design for Food and Consumption” category.

Ifi is awarded with the ADI Compasso d’Oro 2018 for the compact PopApp gelato parlour, designed by Ifi’s R&D department.

Colonna, the display case for pastry and pralines, designed by Giulio Iacchetti, receives the ADI Compasso d’Oro Honourable Mention.

Al volo, the mini refrigerated professional display case designed by MM Design, wins the iF Product Design Award.

With the goal of meeting people’s needs in food & beverage venues.

The brand (founded in 1956) is specialized in the production of seats and tables for indoor and outdoor collective spaces. In the same year, the Steelmobil and L&R brands are acquired, thus diversifying the range offer within the same product sector.

Ifi acquired the IRD company and brand (founded in 1964), specialised in the manufacture of turnkey furnishings for the Contract and Food & Beverage sectors. In the same year, Ifi also acquired the Rossi Dimension LAI brand, dedicated to the production of technology and furnishings for Food&Beverage on an industrial scale.

Ifi acquires the company and the Coletti brand (founded in 1957), specialized in turnkey furnishings for Contract and Food & Beverage sectors in the German market.

There is a hippotherapy centre in Pesaro for the equestrian re-education of people of all ages with motor and cognitive difficulties, such as emotional, relational and sensory development. The centre was built thanks to the support of private companies, including Ifi.

For three days a week, the Pesaro-based newspaper “Il Resto del Carlino” published an entire page of articles by secondary school students from the province, supervised by their teachers.

Ifi entered basketball in 2005 taking an active role in setting up the Pesaro Basketball Consortium, to keep alive what could be considered the greatest legacy of the Pesaro sporting community: the Vuelle. First member of the consortium, then a member and sponsor, in 2010, Ifi acquired 20% of the share capital.

Ifi was one of the founding members of the Foundation for the fight against cardiac arrest.

Ifi entrusted the graphics expert, Michele Provinciali, with the communication image of Tonda. In 2008, Provinciali received the ADI Compasso d’Oro Career Award. In the same year, Francesco Pellizzari’s book “The Image Poet and the Tonda” was published which tells the story of Michele Provinciali, and Tonda, bringing together the graphic images.

Ifi has partnered with education institutes through projects aimed at bringing together the world of education and employment. The institutes involved: Istao, Polytechnic of Milano (PoliDesign), NABA, University of Camerino, University of Urbino, IED.

Ifi was the first company in its sector to become part of the ADI (Association for Industrial Design).

Ifi contributed to the creation and promotion of the archaeological site of Colombarone, dating back to the early-Christian era.

To celebrate the 100th birthday of Umberto Cardinali Ifi announced that it would donate a pedestrian and cycling path to the city. The Umberto Cardinali pedestrian and cycling path was planned to be implemented in 3 stages, from 2011 to 2014, for a total length of 7.5 Km.

Ifi took an active part in the recognition of the European Day of Artisan Gelato at the sites of the European Parliament in Strasbourg and Brussels.

Ifi was one of the companies that launched the GWT path (merged into the Gelato Festival from 2018), a traveling global event to take and develop the culture of Artisan Gelato all over the world.

For Ifi, this was an operation that strengthened its presence in the North American market. Ifi America Corporation will manage product storage activities, logistics, customer care and support service. In addition, it will host dedicated events and have a showroom in which to exhibit its technology and design solutions for the furnishing of food & beverage venues.