Manfrotto Founder Lino Manfrotto Dies at 80
Lino Manfrotto, the photojournalist who founded the eponymous Manfrotto line of tripods and camera accessories, died at his home in Bassano del Grappa, Italy, on Sunday, February 5th, 2017. He was 80.
After seeing his business boom and his products distributed to photographers in countries all over the world, Manfrotto sold his company to the British multinational company Vitec Group. In addition to Manfrotto, Vitec currently owns brands such as Gitzo and Lastolite.
Still based in Northern Italy with a international distribution network consisting of in-house companies and independent distributors, Manfrotto continues to be a dominant brand across a wide range of photo, film, theater, live entertainment, and video products.
Il Sole 24 ORE reports that Manfrotto now has two manufacturing plants and 9 branches around the world, 735 employees, double digit annual growth, a 95% export rate, and a 7% share in the global camera bag market, and a 30% share of the global tripod market.