Francesca Planeta, president of Planeta Estate, has received the prestigious “Compasso d’Oro for Lifetime Achievement” 2024

Her love for the Sicilian territory is as boundless as the sea that surrounds Sicily. Her vision is modern, innovative and “volcanic” like Etna, the other soul of the Island. Her passion and pioneering spirit are reminiscent of her father’s, Diego Planeta. She is one of the architects of the “Renaissance” of Sicilian wine, together with her cousins Alessio and Santi Planeta, her family and all the people who work with them, in a strong team spirit. She has ferried the family business to new heights, maintaining a deep respect for local traditions, making them the stars of a unique and attractive visual narrative, and a symbol of excellence in the Italian as well as the International wine world. This is Francesca Planeta, president of Planeta Estate. She recently received, at the ADI Design Museum in Milan, the prestigious “Compasso d’Oro for Lifetime Achievement”, the oldest and most accredited design award in the world, created 70 years ago, in 1954 by Gio Ponti, acknowledging excellence in design and production, for her professional career and the significant contribution she has offered to "designing" the Made in Italy food design sector. It is a sign that design is a powerful tool for narrating and enhancing the culture and history of a territory.
The “Compasso d’Oro ADI” awards 2024, 28th edition, were assigned by Luciano Galimberti, president of ADI and Umberto Cabini, president of the ADI Collezione Compasso d’Oro Foundation, Attilio Fontana, president of the Lombardy Region, and Giuseppe Sala, mayor of Milan, with the patronage of the Ministries of Business and Made in Italy, Foreign Affairs and Culture. The awards were given to 20 products, while the “Compassi d’Oro for Lifetime Achievement” awards were given to 9 Italian and 2 International personalities, top figures of the design world such as Paola Antonelli, Umberto Cassina, Anna Ferrino, Roberto Gavazzi, Piero Lissoni, Maurizio Riva, Paola Rizzatto, Roberto Ziliani, Tadao Ando and Rei Kawakubo, and 3 long-selling products, design hits that have been on the market for more than ten years. In addition, 39 Honorable Mentions were awarded to products chosen for their qualities. Plus, the Targa Giovani award was given to projects by students of Italian design Universities, and 311 other products were included in the catalogue. The products awarded will become part of the “Compasso d’Oro” Collection, in the permanent exhibition at the ADI Design Museum.
“My vision of design is deeply linked to Sicily’s beauty, an inexhaustible source of inspiration, due to its cultural wealth and natural resources”, Francesca Planeta explained, “the nuances of the landscapes are reflected in the shapes and colors, here, creating an innate bond with the territory. Artisan tradition is combined to contemporary creativity, creating places to tell stories of life and genuineness, where every detail is a tribute to the rich heritage of the Island, narrating a story of beauty and passion”. She descends from a family that has a long tradition in Sicilian agriculture. She is the daughter of art and heir to one of the “noble fathers” of Italian wine, Diego Planeta. She has earned two Masters in Corporate Communication in London, and Milan, and in 1995 she entered the family winery. She contributed to internationalizing Sicilian wines and building a hospitality system and an itinerary in Sicily between the family cellars and resorts. As president of Planeta Estate, she has led the development of the real estate and hospitality assets, inaugurating La Foresteria in Menfi (Agrigento) in 2009, and converting part of the family palace in Palermo into a residence open to the public, in 2017. She opened the Insula Beach Club in Menfi in 2023 and the La Segreta Country House residence in 2024. She is a member of the Board of Directors of the Leonardo Committee, as well as of the Boards of Directors of UIV-Unione Italiana Vino and Le Soste di Ulisse. She received this award just a few days after the Michelin Italy Guide awarded the “key” to La Foresteria Planeta, which celebrates structures that offer the most extraordinary stays. “Her career follows in the footsteps of those who preceded her - coherence and prospective vision come together in experience in a historically traditionalist sector. The path pursued is the confirmation of the best principles of Made in Italy food design”, reads the motivation of the jury, composed of Maria Cristina Didero, independent author and curator, Luciano Galimberti, Francisco Gómez Paz, designer, Renata Cristina Mazzantini, director of the National Gallery of Modern and Contemp. Artoranea in Rome, and Toshiyuki Kita, designer and Ambassador of the Italian Pavilion at Expo 2025 Osaka, who awarded her the Lifetime Achievement Award.