profiles - a light-hearted look at industry personalities

No. 82 in a continuing series

Caricatures by

Assunta Fratocchi

Managing Director, Link srl

Assunta Fratocchi admits that she is a born networker. As Managing Director of Link srl in Italy, a company which specialises in high quality plugs, sockets and cables for the entertainment technology industry, you could say that international connections are Assunta's business too.

Now back home in Rome, wife to a well-known Roman (Fulvio Cotogni of ETC), and mother to a well-travelled Roman son, Assunta is an atypical daughter of that historic city: rather than setting out to conquer the world, she openly embraced it. During a busy career travelling and working within the lighting industry, including periods spent living with her family in the UK and Germany (where her energies were directed, temporarily, to the formative years of her son), Assunta studied varied business cultures, came to understand the machinations of international markets, and of course, absorbed the languages. She is now perfectly qualified for her role in charge of Link's export sales and international business strategy.

Link was founded in 1975 by two audio engineers, one of whom, Marco Piromalli, is still with the company and is Assunta's business partner, retaining primary responsibility for research and development. Link is now one of the world leaders in the design and production of professional cables, connectors and patch bays specifically tailored for the entertainment industry. Link established a new standard in connection products with its Eurocable and LK Connectors brands after it began using military-specification components and adapted them for the disparate and specialised markets of film, live entertainment and television. It keeps ahead of the game through its close association with the end-users, and is quick to reflect changing and emerging needs through its product range.

Link prides itself in being close to the market, offering simple, quick solutions and service to any connection problem. If standard products aren't quite right, Link will look at a custom solution. With dealers throughout the world, and a new ‘baby' in Florida - Link USA Inc - Assunta has proved that a personal understanding of the needs of varied entertainment markets, adopting international business practices, remembering the gastronomic preferences of foreigner business partners in Italian restaurants, together with a little female intuition, can conquer the world!

Look out for the next subject in our Profile series...

© 1999 - 2024 Entertainment Technology Press Limited News Stories