One of the best things about paintball - is the people you meet, and the friends you make - some of whom become lasting friends for decades.
I've been lucky enough to meet so many great individuals in my time, and Richmond Italia is one of those.
He's been responsible for several multi-million pound deals in his tenure at Procaps and Gi - And if you ever met him, you'd never guess in a million years that he's a high-roller in the paintball industry, and has been for many years.
Richmond Italia is one of our industry's top entrepreneurs who's been responsible for so much innovation in this wonderful world of paintball we all inhabit.
He created X-Ball, the NXL, Procaps, Gi and a lot more besides.
His last position was as the CEO of Gi, the biggest and baddest of all the behemoth's in our industry - he's steered GI through some turbulent times, and on the way has created the largest paintball company in the world before eventually vacating his CEO seat for what seemed like a premature retirement in the sunny climes of Florida.
However, not even for a minute, nor a second, did I believe he could keep out of our sport/industry for good … paintball is in his DNA.
Whilst it looked like Rich had settled for paintball retirement fishing in Florida, some hot-shot trouble-shooter called Ken D’Arcy took over from Richmond at Gi.
However, things didn't turn out as planned - for one reason or another, Mr D'Arcy ended up vacating his CEO chair at Gi before signing up for a $1 million plus contract deal with Remington Arms.
All of this was speculation but I needed to find out what was really going on, and seeing as Rich has been a friend for over 20 years, I got in touch, and asked him WTF was going on:-
Richmond Italia ….. CEO of Gi Sports.
Robbo: Rich, firstly, thanks for taking a time-out in your day for this interview, it's always appreciated but let's get straight to it, who the fuhuk is this Ken D’Arcy guy who took the CEO seat when you went off to sunnier climes in Florida??
Richmond: Pete, I'm glad to see you haven't lost your subtle touch when it comes to answering delicate questions .... but I'll attempt to answer anyway - he's an industry trouble-shooter who goes from company to company endeavouring to sort out any problems being experienced.
As to why he left prematurely?
He might have felt out of his depth with Gi but not for what is commonly understood as 'out of one’s depth'.
In this case, his 'depth' relates to the big corporations and Gi just isn't in that big of a league, and so it was little surprise to me that he didn't see his time out at Gi.
It may have all seemed a bit foreign for him in the sense that normally practiced business principles don't always apply up and down the scale of companies.
What works for a big conglomerate doesn't necessarily work for a smaller concern - he may have fell victim to that, I don't for sure, Pete.
I think he's headed off to a company called Remington Arms with a $1 million plus contract being waved in his face, and as far as I know, he'll be taking over the CEO spot at Remington's.
Robbo: From what I’ve heard on the grapevine Rich, he was unable to grasp the political and commercial landscapes that paintball functions within, and so any plans/financial strategies he may have had for bolstering up the finances would likely have fallen at the first fence - Obviously, I don't know for sure but it feels like this could be the case.
As it stands, from the outside, it looks more like he jumped ship because he knew damned well he couldn’t turn Gi back around in the time-frame he was allotted for the job.
As soon as the powers-that-be realised this shortfall in his capacity, the sooner they realised they needed to get you back in the hot-seat, if only to steady the ship.
I don’t know the guy Rich but I do know you, and maybe the anonymous suits knew their stabilising strategy was doomed to fail and did exactly what I’d do and that was to bring you back.
Is there any truth in that or am I talking out my ass?
Rich: Pete, you've made a career out of talking out your ass but I don’t really want to speculate too much, and so I’m going to plead the fifth and just put my head down and get on with the job in hand which is to run Gi to the best of my ability.
Once I’ve achieved that, we’ll see what the powers-that-be want to do afterwards.
It’s true to say that Gi hasn’t been performing as we’d like but it’s a challenging market-place out there now as you know - we have to adapt just like any other commercial concern in this financial environment, the problem is though, the bigger the company, the harder it is to change direction.
Therefore, it comes as no surprise the higher-ups might have pulled the plug before it got any worse.
As for Gi?
Pete, you know a lot of the people who’ve worked for me originally at ProCaps and then Gi – I know that Billy Ceranski, my right-hand man, is a close friend of yours, he and a lot of the others at Gi were firstly friends of mine on the pro circuit in the US as indeed were you, a lot of the guys who eventually worked with me came straight off the paintball field and ended up with me at Procaps/Gi.
These guys really know their stuff and I’m absolutely sure I can change things around for the benefit of Gi, with their help.
You’ve known me for a long time; like yourself Paintball has been my life - stabilising the company is my primary concern, then it's a matter of setting a corporate direction that encourages growth and investment but it's easier said than done ….. but I do know this much, I've got the right people around me.
Robbo: Out of all the guys in the paintball industry who've worked their way up the commercial ladder, Billy Ceranski has impressed me the most.
I would never have guess he'd make it that far up the corporate structure - if he's your right-hand man then I think Gi is in safe hands.
OK, there's been a lot of speculation concerning people being laid off - I've heard that 50 people have been made redundant recently, is there any truth in that?
Rich: You know what it's like in paintball, the rumour mill once speculated you were a great paintball player and so you just can't rely on the rumour mill to give you an accurate view on things.
Robbo: If that was an example of Canadian humour can you please remind me to laugh next time?
Rich: Actually, five people were laid off which is pretty consistent when you consider that the rumour mill tends to exaggerate ten-fold, the majority of those laid off were hired by the previous CEO anyway.
Robbo: So, what's the deal, have you agreed to take over the hot-seat at Gi on any permanent basis - WTF's going on?
Richmond - back in the hot-seat where he belongs, along with his brother !!
Rich: I'm just helping out Pete, we need authentic paintball people working at Gi and so in future, we'll be promoting people from within our ranks - and I'll stay in the chair for as long as I'm wanted.
We've both been in the game for a long time and you know very well what it's like, this sport of ours is in your blood as it is in mine, and so I'll always be knocking around somewhere.
Robbo: But as for you eventually retiring?
Rich, I just can't see you fishing your life away down in Florida FFS, you've always got something going on somewhere just in case ….. ?
Rich: Yes, it's true, I have made some recent investments in a few pharmaceutical companies and seeing as they've legalised cannabis in Canada, part of the new business will be encapsulating CBD and THC pills.
And all this is done on the same machine that make paintballs …. it's a pretty nice fit if you think about it.
Robbo: You're encapsulating THC and CBD???
Oh My Lord !!!
Do you need anybody to help you with quality-control Rich ?
I mean, Rich, com'mon mate, surely there must be a vacancy for me in your new company?
I'll even work in my dinner hours testing the product … in fact, I don't even need to be paid, mate?
Rich: Pete, this is paintball, or have you forgotten?
As soon as word got out I might be investing in THC and CBD oil encapsulation, I had a sack-full of job requests and a bulging inbox all from dedicated paintballers who wanted to be in our quality control department just like you - put it this way, I'll get back to you on that one but one piece of advice, please don't hold your breath.
Mind you, if I did employ any ballers in the quality control departments assessing THC and CBD output, at least you won't get them bitching and whining at events anymore, they'll have a smile from ear to ear even when they get their ass handed to them when playing - that'll make for a refreshing change.
Robbo: OK, as always, many thanks for taking a time out to help me [and p8ntballer.com] out - it's always appreciated. I wish you all the best for your reinstatement at Gi - good luck Rich !
Rich: Thanks Pete.
I've been lucky enough to meet so many great individuals in my time, and Richmond Italia is one of those.
He's been responsible for several multi-million pound deals in his tenure at Procaps and Gi - And if you ever met him, you'd never guess in a million years that he's a high-roller in the paintball industry, and has been for many years.
Richmond Italia is one of our industry's top entrepreneurs who's been responsible for so much innovation in this wonderful world of paintball we all inhabit.
He created X-Ball, the NXL, Procaps, Gi and a lot more besides.
His last position was as the CEO of Gi, the biggest and baddest of all the behemoth's in our industry - he's steered GI through some turbulent times, and on the way has created the largest paintball company in the world before eventually vacating his CEO seat for what seemed like a premature retirement in the sunny climes of Florida.
However, not even for a minute, nor a second, did I believe he could keep out of our sport/industry for good … paintball is in his DNA.
Whilst it looked like Rich had settled for paintball retirement fishing in Florida, some hot-shot trouble-shooter called Ken D’Arcy took over from Richmond at Gi.
However, things didn't turn out as planned - for one reason or another, Mr D'Arcy ended up vacating his CEO chair at Gi before signing up for a $1 million plus contract deal with Remington Arms.
All of this was speculation but I needed to find out what was really going on, and seeing as Rich has been a friend for over 20 years, I got in touch, and asked him WTF was going on:-
Richmond Italia ….. CEO of Gi Sports.
Robbo: Rich, firstly, thanks for taking a time-out in your day for this interview, it's always appreciated but let's get straight to it, who the fuhuk is this Ken D’Arcy guy who took the CEO seat when you went off to sunnier climes in Florida??
Richmond: Pete, I'm glad to see you haven't lost your subtle touch when it comes to answering delicate questions .... but I'll attempt to answer anyway - he's an industry trouble-shooter who goes from company to company endeavouring to sort out any problems being experienced.
As to why he left prematurely?
He might have felt out of his depth with Gi but not for what is commonly understood as 'out of one’s depth'.
In this case, his 'depth' relates to the big corporations and Gi just isn't in that big of a league, and so it was little surprise to me that he didn't see his time out at Gi.
It may have all seemed a bit foreign for him in the sense that normally practiced business principles don't always apply up and down the scale of companies.
What works for a big conglomerate doesn't necessarily work for a smaller concern - he may have fell victim to that, I don't for sure, Pete.
I think he's headed off to a company called Remington Arms with a $1 million plus contract being waved in his face, and as far as I know, he'll be taking over the CEO spot at Remington's.
Robbo: From what I’ve heard on the grapevine Rich, he was unable to grasp the political and commercial landscapes that paintball functions within, and so any plans/financial strategies he may have had for bolstering up the finances would likely have fallen at the first fence - Obviously, I don't know for sure but it feels like this could be the case.
As it stands, from the outside, it looks more like he jumped ship because he knew damned well he couldn’t turn Gi back around in the time-frame he was allotted for the job.
As soon as the powers-that-be realised this shortfall in his capacity, the sooner they realised they needed to get you back in the hot-seat, if only to steady the ship.
I don’t know the guy Rich but I do know you, and maybe the anonymous suits knew their stabilising strategy was doomed to fail and did exactly what I’d do and that was to bring you back.
Is there any truth in that or am I talking out my ass?
Rich: Pete, you've made a career out of talking out your ass but I don’t really want to speculate too much, and so I’m going to plead the fifth and just put my head down and get on with the job in hand which is to run Gi to the best of my ability.
Once I’ve achieved that, we’ll see what the powers-that-be want to do afterwards.
It’s true to say that Gi hasn’t been performing as we’d like but it’s a challenging market-place out there now as you know - we have to adapt just like any other commercial concern in this financial environment, the problem is though, the bigger the company, the harder it is to change direction.
Therefore, it comes as no surprise the higher-ups might have pulled the plug before it got any worse.
As for Gi?
Pete, you know a lot of the people who’ve worked for me originally at ProCaps and then Gi – I know that Billy Ceranski, my right-hand man, is a close friend of yours, he and a lot of the others at Gi were firstly friends of mine on the pro circuit in the US as indeed were you, a lot of the guys who eventually worked with me came straight off the paintball field and ended up with me at Procaps/Gi.
These guys really know their stuff and I’m absolutely sure I can change things around for the benefit of Gi, with their help.
You’ve known me for a long time; like yourself Paintball has been my life - stabilising the company is my primary concern, then it's a matter of setting a corporate direction that encourages growth and investment but it's easier said than done ….. but I do know this much, I've got the right people around me.
Robbo: Out of all the guys in the paintball industry who've worked their way up the commercial ladder, Billy Ceranski has impressed me the most.
I would never have guess he'd make it that far up the corporate structure - if he's your right-hand man then I think Gi is in safe hands.
OK, there's been a lot of speculation concerning people being laid off - I've heard that 50 people have been made redundant recently, is there any truth in that?
Rich: You know what it's like in paintball, the rumour mill once speculated you were a great paintball player and so you just can't rely on the rumour mill to give you an accurate view on things.
Robbo: If that was an example of Canadian humour can you please remind me to laugh next time?
Rich: Actually, five people were laid off which is pretty consistent when you consider that the rumour mill tends to exaggerate ten-fold, the majority of those laid off were hired by the previous CEO anyway.
Robbo: So, what's the deal, have you agreed to take over the hot-seat at Gi on any permanent basis - WTF's going on?
Richmond - back in the hot-seat where he belongs, along with his brother !!
Rich: I'm just helping out Pete, we need authentic paintball people working at Gi and so in future, we'll be promoting people from within our ranks - and I'll stay in the chair for as long as I'm wanted.
We've both been in the game for a long time and you know very well what it's like, this sport of ours is in your blood as it is in mine, and so I'll always be knocking around somewhere.
Robbo: But as for you eventually retiring?
Rich, I just can't see you fishing your life away down in Florida FFS, you've always got something going on somewhere just in case ….. ?
Rich: Yes, it's true, I have made some recent investments in a few pharmaceutical companies and seeing as they've legalised cannabis in Canada, part of the new business will be encapsulating CBD and THC pills.
And all this is done on the same machine that make paintballs …. it's a pretty nice fit if you think about it.
Robbo: You're encapsulating THC and CBD???
Oh My Lord !!!
Do you need anybody to help you with quality-control Rich ?
I mean, Rich, com'mon mate, surely there must be a vacancy for me in your new company?
I'll even work in my dinner hours testing the product … in fact, I don't even need to be paid, mate?
Rich: Pete, this is paintball, or have you forgotten?
As soon as word got out I might be investing in THC and CBD oil encapsulation, I had a sack-full of job requests and a bulging inbox all from dedicated paintballers who wanted to be in our quality control department just like you - put it this way, I'll get back to you on that one but one piece of advice, please don't hold your breath.
Mind you, if I did employ any ballers in the quality control departments assessing THC and CBD output, at least you won't get them bitching and whining at events anymore, they'll have a smile from ear to ear even when they get their ass handed to them when playing - that'll make for a refreshing change.
Robbo: OK, as always, many thanks for taking a time out to help me [and p8ntballer.com] out - it's always appreciated. I wish you all the best for your reinstatement at Gi - good luck Rich !
Rich: Thanks Pete.
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