Gregory Fea
Gregory C. Fea, President and CEO of illy caffè North America Inc., is a true brand builder. Greg ventured to illy in 1998 from Great Brands of Europe, Inc., where he more than doubled revenue for Evian in the highly competitive mineral water category while raising society’s awareness of brand name bottled water at the infancy stages of the boom in this category. In previous positions at Cadbury Schweppes, Inc., and the E.J. Gallo Wine Company, Greg was instrumental in building strong distribution partnerships and launching new products that resulted in major shifts in their categories such as Bartyles & James Wine Coolers. His passion for superiority and goal towards excellence in products has now transcended into his role at illy.
During Greg’s tenure with illy, he has focused on strengthening relationships with existing illy accounts and developing new partnerships and initiatives for the illy brand, in a quest to create an authentic Italian experience for connoisseurs and coffee lovers around the world. He has increased revenues by 300 percent while at the same time, staying abreast of the illy brand on its international landscape and always striving to ensure pleasure, consistency and fulfillment in every cup of illy.
In addition to his connection with consumers, Greg continues to heighten awareness of illy by working with the company’s hotel, restaurant, café and retail accounts that demand unsurpassed quality and believe in the true superior excellence of illy’s coffee products. Under his leadership, illy expanded its reach in the United States through innovative initiatives such as Galleria illy, an exhibition in SoHo that showcased illy’s unparalleled dedication to fine food, art, design and provocative discussion, and the company’s first free-standing space, and Beauty Has A Taste, an exhibit of art, culture and style at New York City’s Time Warner Center.
As President, Greg focuses on the illy brand in North America and continues to develop the illy Web site as a global medium and resource for restaurant and hotel partners, as well as consumers, around the country.
During his free time, Greg is an avid sports enthusiast and former ski instructor. He has twice run and finished the challenging New York City Marathon. He currently resides in Darien, Connecticut with his wife and daughter.