story

A brand that has revolutionized the car care industry to the point of becoming synonymous with excellence in the cleaning and sanitizing products market as well. The story of MA-FRA could be summarized like this: the story of a family that, thanks to great expertise in formulations and continuous innovation, has made MA-FRA a leading brand in the international car care and cleaning market.

For the Car Care industry, the 1960s were marked by a real revolution, triggered precisely by the insights of Franco Mattioli, the founder of MA-FRA. It all began in 1965, when Franco Mattioli decided to devote himself to his great passion, chemistry. The bath tub was his first laboratory where he experimented with new formulations: the real innovation was to bring the ideas and principles of women's and men's cosmetics back to a completely new field, that of cars.

Seeing the long lines that were forming at specialized car wash centers, caused by the slow drying process, Franco Mattioli had a brilliant idea: create a product to eliminate the manual drying of cars. This is how the self-dryer was born, a highly successful product that marked the beginning of MA-FRA's history.

From there, in fact, the innovative self-drying product is joined by wax removers and polishes, thus creating a full-fledged range of cosmetic products for the car. And when the slogan "Cosmetics for your Car" first appears, it is genuine "Revolution."

After revolutionizing the market with the concept of "cosmetics for the car," it was time for consolidation and development of the company. This is how Franco Mattioli bought the first real estate in Limbiate, the company's headquarters until 2003.

In the 1970s, the company was awarded the prestigious "Golden Apollo," the Oscar dedicated to business activities. It also grows its product offerings with the introduction of the first dashboard polish: Diamant Plast, also a first. Now the range ranges from solutions for car exterior care to interior cleaning, thanks to which the company presents itself to the market as a point of reference not only for professional use but also for do-it-yourself. The first catalogs were born and an initial diversification towards the motorcycle and boat sectors also began, with the creation of some multifunctional products.

The company fine-tunes its extensive dealer network, with exclusive area exclusivity, still the strong point of MA-FRA's sales policy, with more than 100 single-dealer dealers.

The 1980s represent another turning point for the company, which, thanks to its collaboration with Peugeot, takes another big step forward. The first personalized MA-FRA - Peugeot catalogs for the supply of all professional and "do-it-yourself" products are born. This important collaboration marks the affirmation of MA-FRA as a major partner also for the world of dealerships and, after the experience with Peugeot, and the cvolta of other important collaborations: Toyota Italy and Daewoo Motors Italy.

Thanks to the quality of products and continuous innovation, over the years, MA-FRA has become an official partner of several car manufacturers, such as Alfa Romeo, Lamborghini and Maserati.

The constant activity of the Research & Development laboratory, a true flagship of the company, enables MA-FRA to enrich its range and address an ever-widening audience: no longer just products for the automobile but also for motorcycles, industrial vehicles, boats, inflatable boats and any means of transportation.

The company is also enriched with a new laboratory specializing inwastewater testing andanalysis, a factor that gives further impetus to the search for environmentally friendly products, eliminating alkylphenols from detergents. Chlorine-fluorocarbon-free aerosols, biodegradable de-waxer and the environmentally friendly "Eco Spray" line , featuring a spray can refillable with compressed air, are born.

The production of the ecological line "Ecomaf" is the synthesis of innovation, technology and the environment. These revolutionary products contain only natural surfactants of plant origin and are able to ensure maximum biodegradability for less environmental impact.

In the 1990s, MA-FRA began to look beyond the boundaries of the Italian market and began to establish itself in the rest of the world. The internationalization process begins with Eastern European markets and participation in the most important trade fairs in the sector.

Today MA-FRA is present in more than 60 countries, with 40 official importers, and manufacturing plants in Italy, India and Kazakhstan.

With the new millennium, the company's headquarters moved from Limbiate to the prestigious new plant in Baranzate, on the outskirts of Milan, still the Group's headquarters today.

Production makes use of increasingly modern equipment, until today it boasts 6 fully automatic lines and 3 semi-automatic lines. MA-FRA also begins to obtain important certifications that attest to its quality: the first is ISO 9001 Certification, related to design control; this is followed by the prestigious ISO 14001 Environmental Certification, which makes MA-FRA the first company in Italy, in the car care chemicals sector, to have achieved it.

In the carwash industry come "Vendors," vending machines for car care products. Here, too, MA-FRA is a pioneer: the company begins to produce and market the "Shopping Car" vending machine for car care products and the "Deo Shop"perfume vending machine .
Thanks to these products, MA-FRA further strengthens its presence in Car Wash Centers.

During these years, specific product lines for the Boating, Motorcycle, Camper and Hardware sectors were also created and expanded.

Important advertising campaigns see MA-FRA starring in the main national media but also in stadiums, racetracks and on cars participating in rallies. The brand gets a makeover with a three-dimensional graphic restyling and bold colors, making it even more appealing, modern and recognizable.

MA-FRA strengthens its image both in terms of communication-through a series of initiatives that lead the brand to be the best known and most appreciated in its sector-and professionally, reinforcing and pursuing the values of absolute quality and respect for the environment, things and people.

With the advent of new modern communication channels, MA-FRA also becomes a protagonist in the World of Social, tying its name to important influencers who become Brand Ambassadors of the company, ensuring considerable visibility for the Group's brand and products.

2016 saw the triumphant entry of #Labocosmetica, the first Italian line dedicated to Car Detailing, the new frontier for car care that can make a car shine like new again. The great experience in formulations and specific solutions for car detailing lead MA-FRA to inaugurate the Detailing School , a special training school for new professionals in this sector.

Thanks also to special marketing initiatives and presence at the most important international events dedicated to Car Detailing, once again, MA-FRA is a pioneer in spreading the culture of detailing in the Car Care market.

MA-FRA also continues to innovate in the carwash industry: in the same years, it also debuts Unika Line , the high-performance, environmentally friendly product line dedicated to carwash professionals. Hyper-compatible products, which can be recombined with each other in endless variations, to adapt to every situation and every feature of the system, whether automatic or box self-service.

The pandemic of COVID-19 prompted MA-FRA to develop a wide range of products for cleaning and sanitizing objects, surfaces and environments.

Again, the ability to respond effectively and quickly to market demands has proven to be a strength of the company. This has resulted in products such as Kilvir, a multi-surface sanitizer; Odorbact Out Green Forrest, a disinfectant spray (PMC) that can sanitize and sanitize the car interior; and Ogni Volta, the broad-spectrum dry sanitizing spray.

The story continues and, as always, MA-FRA is ready to meet the demands of its Customers and face new market challenges...

MAFRA GROUP Srl
Via Manfredo Camperio, 9 - 20123 Milano
C.F. and P.IVA 10457930963