Scheduled · annual September edition
For Italian and international publishers, sponsors, foundations, literary agencies, museums and cultural institutions participating in Festivaletteratura — held each September across the historic centre of Mantova — that need branded reader kits, author welcome objects, sponsor hospitality folders, branded editions and Palazzo Ducale / Teatro Bibiena foyer accessories with the Lombardia logistics network.
Festivaletteratura is the international literature festival of Mantova, held each year in early September across the historic centre of the Lombardia city. Founded in 1997, it is promoted by the Fondazione Festivaletteratura with the support of the Comune di Mantova, the Camera di Commercio di Mantova, the Provincia di Mantova, the Fondazione Cariplo, the Fondazione Banca Agricola Mantovana and the Ministry of Culture, and has grown into one of Europe's reference literary gatherings. Over five days the festival hosts a programme of author encounters, readings, conversations and editorial presentations that brings together Italian and international writers, publishers, translators, literary agents, festival programmers, bookshops, libraries and a public that travels to Mantova specifically for the festival. The festival unfolds across the city's historic spaces — Palazzo Ducale (the Gonzaga residence, a UNESCO World Heritage site), the Teatro Scientifico Antonio Bibiena, Piazza Sordello, Piazza delle Erbe, the Rotonda di San Lorenzo, Palazzo Te and a network of bookshops and libraries — turning Mantova into a five-day literary city.
The audience is highly profiled: Italian and international publishers (Giulio Einaudi editore, Adelphi, Feltrinelli, Mondadori, Rizzoli, Marsilio, Laterza, minimum fax, Sellerio, Fandango Libri, Iperborea, SUR, NN Editore, L'Orma, e/o, Ponte alle Grazie, La nave di Teseo, Garzanti, Bompiani, Salani, De Agostini, Touring Club Italiano, RCS, Corriere della Sera and La Stampa editorial groups, plus international publishers such as Suhrkamp, Gallimard, Seix Barral, Anagrama, Faber & Faber, Hanser, Dalkey Archive, New Directions, Grove Atlantic), translators, literary agencies, festival programmers, libraries (the Biblioteca Teresiana, the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana, the British Library, the BnF), bookshops (Libreria Antiquaria Bertocchi, Mondadori Bookstore Mantova, Feltrinelli Point Mantova), cultural foundations, sponsors and specialised press.
Corp-Merch.IT works with the publishers, sponsors and cultural institutions that participate in Festivaletteratura, providing bespoke programmes for the September week in Mantova and supporting parallel initiatives across the year (publishing-house presentations in Milan, Rome and Turin, festival tour events, school and youth programmes). The Italian production districts we draw on include Florence, Scandicci and the Tuscan book-district for editorial and book-binding work, Como for refined textiles, Maniago for steel and metalwork on limited editions, Murano for art glass for special editions, Faenza for ceramics on premium editions, plus the Emilia-Romagna book chain for printing and bound editions. For programmes and editorial materials we work with FSC-certified papers and low-impact printing methods aligned with the editorial positioning the festival has built over almost three decades.
For Italian VAT-registered buyers the invoice is issued in EUR with 22% VAT through the Italian Sistema di Interscambio (SdI) of the Agenzia delle Entrate, delivered to the buyer's Codice Destinatario or PEC; reduced 10% VAT applies to books and editorial catalogues, 5% to art books under current Italian VAT rules. Reverse charge for intra-EU buyers with valid VIES registration, split payment for public-sector sponsors (Comune di Mantova, Provincia di Mantova, Ministry of Culture), self-invoicing for public entities that request it, in line with art. 17 of DPR 633/72. For sponsors and foundations subject to non-financial reporting (D.Lgs. 125/2024 — CSRD, transposing Directive (EU) 2022/2464) we provide a sustainability data sheet per PO with Scope 3 CO₂e estimates under the GHG Protocol on the Italian legs and on the named districts, aligned with ESRS E1 (Climate Change), E5 (Resource Use) and S2 (Workers in the Value Chain).
Hard-cover programmes and reader booklets printed on FSC-certified paper, bound notebooks in the editorial tradition of the festival, fabric tote bags and small leather goods for the public programme, author welcome kits for the international writers arriving for the encounters, with coordinated typography across the publishing-house presentations.
Hospitality kits for sponsor delegates, leather or fabric folders for institutional guests, donor recognition objects for the foundations that support the festival, premium packaging with coordinated sponsor marks on limited-edition items. Reserved handling for partners that have their own brand book and require strict spacing of marks alongside the festival's institutional identity.
FSC-certified programmes with the festival's editorial design, gift-shop products in keeping with the festival's positioning (literary-themed paper goods, refined small leather goods, silk scarves, art-glass editions), and audience accessories that translate the festival's typography into the public space of Palazzo Ducale, Teatro Bibiena, Piazza Sordello and Piazza delle Erbe.
Coordinated materials for the Festivaletteratura OFF programme in librerie and biblioteche, special-edition bookmarks and reading accessories, presentation objects for the publishing-house launches across the week, and editorial accessories for the bookshops that host encounters during the festival.
For a five-day festival where publishers and cultural institutions arrive from across Europe with delicate materials, production and logistics need careful planning. Confirmation of artwork, sponsor lists, donor marks and recipient labelling is the first step, followed by sample production and Pantone checks on all printed materials. The Italian production districts we work with include Florence, Scandicci and the Tuscan book-district for editorial work, Como for refined textiles, Maniago for steel and metalwork on limited editions, Murano for art glass on special editions, Faenza for ceramics on premium editions, the Emilia-Romagna book chain for printing and bound editions, with EU hubs (Austria, Germany, Slovenia) reserved for high-volume base processing when the brief requires it. For limited editions and bound presentations distributed during the festival, specific packing rules apply: single-piece glassine wrapping, label per recipient, dedicated packing list and, on request, climate-controlled transport so that books and presentation objects keep their condition through the temporary-warehouse stages.
Logistics relies on the Lombardia corridor: Mantova is connected to the A4 Milan–Venice motorway (exit Mantova Sud or Mantova Nord), the A22 Brenner motorway, the Mantova railway station on the Milan–Venice line with direct trains from Milan Centrale (about 1 hour 30 minutes), Verona Porta Nuova (about 40 minutes) and Bologna Centrale (about 1 hour 15 minutes). International publishing delegations typically arrive via Milan Linate, Milan Malpensa, Verona Villafranca or Bologna Marconi airports. From the Milan hub, shipments are consolidated and forwarded with BRT, SDA, GLS or DHL Express Italy on 24-hour windows for most Italian postcodes. Direct deliveries to Palazzo Ducale, Teatro Bibiena and the satellite venues must be coordinated with Fondazione Festivaletteratura and the ZTL of the historic centre of Mantova; for publishing delegations staying at Hotel Casa Poli, Hotel Rechigi, Hotel dei Gonzaga or other festival hotels, we organise split deliveries with dedicated express couriers and on-site reception. International publishing delegations are typically welcomed with kits delivered to the hotel or directly to the festival's editorial lounge.
Invoicing follows the standard Italian regime: 22% VAT through the Sistema di Interscambio (SdI) of the Agenzia delle Entrate, EUR invoice ex-VAT for intra-EU buyers in reverse charge. For clients subject to CSRD reporting (D.Lgs. 125/2024) we integrate a Scope 3 CO₂e data sheet per GHG Protocol. The certifications most requested on these programmes are OEKO-TEX Standard 100 on skin-contact textiles, GOTS on organic cotton, GRS on recycled materials, FSC on paper and cardboard (with chain-of-custody verifiable), REACH SVHC declaration on plastics and metals, Made in Italy per D.Lgs. 135/2009 when required by the brief. For premium leather items we also evaluate the manufacturer's ISO 9001 and leather supply-chain traceability (LWG — Leather Working Group). On tier pricing: starter 50-249 pieces per code, standard 250-999, enterprise 1,000-4,999, corporate 5,000+; standard payment terms 30 days from invoice date, 10% deposit on first order, improved terms after 90 days of trading history.
Twelve to fourteen weeks is the safest window for reader kits, sponsor materials and programmes. Eight to ten weeks works for programmes on stock already available or for standardised kits that do not require complex customisation. For limited editions and bound presentations distributed during the festival, the production window should be confirmed with the maker before final brief sign-off.
Yes, only after Fondazione Festivaletteratura has confirmed the build-up window, the loading lane and the named consignee (surname, role, mobile). For the historic centre of Mantova we work with ZTL-compliant delivery partners and confirm windows in advance with the festival's operational secretariat.
Yes. Reader kits, sponsor recognition materials, author welcome objects, audience programmes and bookshop / library materials can be packed and labelled as separate lots, with different consignees (Palazzo Ducale, Teatro Bibiena, sponsor lounge, hotel, bookshop) and coordinated delivery windows aligned with the festival calendar.
No. Corp-Merch.IT is an external and independent B2B supplier that helps participating publishers, sponsors and cultural institutions prepare their own merch. It does not organise, sponsor or represent Fondazione Festivaletteratura, Palazzo Ducale, Teatro Bibiena or the public supporters of the festival.
Corp-Merch.IT is an external and independent B2B supplier to participating publishers, sponsors and cultural institutions. This page helps teams prepare their own merch for Festivaletteratura in Mantova. It does not represent Fondazione Festivaletteratura, Palazzo Ducale, Teatro Bibiena, the Comune di Mantova or any other public or private supporter of the festival.