Collaboration

This conviction gives rise to the key word for the 2026 edition: COLLABORATION.

This choice stands in stark contrast to a vision based on constant competition or the frantic pursuit of visibility. The Mercatino is not merely an event: it is a place for meeting, exchange and the shared construction of meaning.

Today, a new concept of thinking through practice is emerging, in which “being together” becomes something deeper and more generative than simply “doing together”. Because collaboration is not merely a working method: it is a form of collective intelligence.

There are moments, in the long history of an event such as the Mercatino del Gusto, when continuing to think as we always have is no longer enough. Moments when the world accelerates, changes shape, and calls into question certainties and achievements that seemed set in stone.

It is precisely during these transitions that collaboration reveals its full power.

We believe in connections, not in isolation. We believe that value arises from the coming together of different skills, sensibilities, experiences and visions. Collaboration is not a courtesy, nor is it mere cooperation: it is a strategic choice.

It transforms differences into opportunities. It generates value through circular relationships. It regenerates whatever it encounters, improves processes and strengthens communities. It nurtures local areas, makes hospitality more authentic, and ensures food is more accessible, contemporary and capable of speaking to everyone.

Collaboration is a cultural act. It is a statement of intent regarding the world we wish to inhabit.

It is not a compromise that settles for less, but a vision that fosters dialogue, trust and the capacity to act. It means moving beyond short-term thinking to build lasting prospects, steering change rather than merely enduring it.

The world is changing. Puglia is changing.

The question we ask ourselves is simple yet crucial: will we, too, be able to change? (Giacomo Mojoli – Designer of ideas) *August 2026