Erika Tessarolo

Hello, I am Erika Tessarolo: entrepreneur, artist, designer, creator, and CEO. Since 2006, I have been operating in the global market, determinedly carrying forward a life and business project that merges art, technology, and human values. In 2021, I received the Italian Excellence Award in the World between Rome and Washington D.C. — an acknowledgment that crowned years of sacrifices and successes. Born in Italy into a family with mixed roots, I grew up surrounded by creativity, resilience, and a spirit of initiative. My mother, Lorena, is a strong woman, a housewife, and the director of an association. My sister Greta is a graphic designer and the mother of two wonderful children. My father, Ugo – known to everyone as "Tex" – is an entrepreneur and inventor in the entertainment sector. It was he who, through his example, showed me what it means to fight for one's ideas, never giving up. By observing him, I learned not just a trade, but a life philosophy: that of someone who chooses to go their own way, even against the wind. Since I was a child, I felt a fire inside me. I wanted to realize my dreams, overcome every limit imposed by a culture that often stifles talent, especially if you're a little girl, and even more so if you're a woman. School was not easy. I was humiliated, ridiculed, judged for my family situation and social class. The words of teachers, often sharp and destructive, aimed to extinguish every dream: "You will never be anyone," "You are like animals," "You will be failures." I still remember the art teacher belittling my abilities, pushing me to give up one of my deepest talents. Another professor called me "ignorant," asking me with a sneering tone: "Where do you think you're going?" But something inside me rebelled. Despite everything, despite everyone, I didn’t give up. On the day of my graduation exam, I made a decision that would change my life: to leave school. That piece of paper would not define who I was, nor who I would become. I had to choose myself, my future, and above all, save what my father had built with effort and love: our company. At 17, I left home. I chose the harder path, but also the truest one: independence. I found myself in an almost entirely male-dominated sector, where respect was not a right, but a conquest. I became the reference point in a company that was at risk of disappearing. I began working on the front lines, learning every technical detail: welding, resin coating, sewing, electronics, and design. Every day was a challenge, but also an opportunity to grow, improve, and refine my art. I faced fraudsters, people who wanted to take advantage of my ideas and my kindness. I learned that not everyone deserves your energy, and that protecting yourself is the first step to truly succeeding. At that moment, one word existed in my mind: save. Save my father, his vision, the dream of a lifetime. Even at the cost of my youth, my time, my desires. Turning my father's company into something new was not just a practical gesture: it was a work of art. I combined electronics with mechanics, design with craftsmanship, recycling with sustainability. I took materials that no one wanted, such as foam rubber or fiberglass, and transformed them into unique, beautiful, safe, and sustainable pieces. Every project became an extension of me, a dialogue between technology and soul. It was no longer just "work." It had become my creative expression, my redemption, my art. I opened the company’s YouTube channel to show the entire creative process and to help the world understand that even a technological product can be a piece of art, with a story and a soul. This led to a change in professional relationships: I lost some clients tied to old logics, but gained others who believe in my same values. My goal was never mass production, but production with meaning. Every piece contains a part of me, and every client is part of my vision. I don’t work with “numbers,” but with people. My sector is predom