The food company Pastas Gallo, born in Rubí in 1946, is the paradigmatic example of a complicated family succession. With a widely recognized brand, innovation as its hallmark, and consolidated results, the disagreements among the five children of the founder, José Espona, led the heirs to divest their majority stake in 2019 and sell it to the Madrid private equity fund Proa Capital. Although three of the five brothers later returned to the group – albeit with lower participation than initially – the company lost part of its essence. Two years after the operation, Pastas Gallo moved the production of dry pasta from Granollers to Córdoba, and during the last two available financial years – with the asterisk of having faced investments of more than 50 million euros – it has registered losses that have exceeded six million euros.

Wine is such a passion that it inspires generational succession, but making it a reality isn't always easy. Barcelona Wine Week (BWW), the professional trade fair for Spanish wine, which celebrated its sixth edition this week, explored in depth how wineries and winemakers manage to persevere through the decades. Almost everyone wants their wines to have their own character, something that might not be so easy when it comes to a family-owned winery. That's why some have projects outside the family business to make wine with greater freedom.

Laia de Nadal (Barcelona, ​​​​1972) has been president of the Catalan Association of Public Universities (ACUP) since the beginning of the year. She has been rector of Pompeu Fabra University for almost two years. As a professor of medicine and life sciences, she co-directed the Cell Signaling Research Group, affiliated with the Barcelona Biomedical Research Institute.