As we close out 2025, one fact is clear to everyone: the competitive landscape has changed more in these twelve months than it did in much of the previous decade. For our SMEs, this represents a real turning point.
Looking back at the topics addressed this year, three key levers clearly emerge — levers that will shape growth strategies in 2026.
1️⃣ Collaborative Supply Chains
Throughout the year, we have often discussed supply chains as ecosystems, rather than linear value chains. And there are concrete examples showing that collaboration works.
One significant case is the robotics supply chain in Emilia:
👉 https://mech.clust-er.it/
SMEs, universities, and system integrators have built a model where skills and projects are closely interconnected, enabling them to compete with far more capital-intensive ecosystems. When knowledge, investments, and commercial relationships are shared, the value generated is greater than the sum of its individual parts.
These are not easy paths to follow — Italian entrepreneurs are traditionally very independent. However, with new generations increasingly leading companies, it may become easier to move in this direction.
2️⃣ Innovation, Digitalization, and Managerial Capital: the Real Multiplier
Robotics, systems that communicate with each other, industrial AI, new organizational models — these have been recurring themes. And this is not technology “for the few.”The cost of a humanoid robot, now around €70,000, shows that even SMEs can access tools that were once reserved for large corporations.
The real point, however, is not simply buying machines, but developing:
- new managerial skills
- faster and more agile processes
- a data-driven culture that enables quicker and more robust decision-making
3️⃣ Looking at Global Markets with a New Mindset
It is difficult to identify “one-size-fits-all” markets. Still, some underlying trends are clear and can guide SMEs in their choices:
- ASEAN, with strong growth and countries such as Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia becoming increasingly mature and accessible industrial markets
- India, now firmly among the world’s most dynamic economies, with strong demand in mechanical engineering, automotive, infrastructure, renewables, and manufacturing technologies
- The Gulf, where Saudi Arabia and the UAE are accelerating investments in energy, construction, foodtech, and infrastructure
- North America, especially relevant for mechanical engineering, automation, electronics, and technical solutions
- Sub-Saharan Africa, not for everyone, but with long-term opportunities in construction, energy, water, and agro-industry
- South America, particularly Brazil and Argentina, where a potential EU–Mercosur agreement could open new industrial and tariff opportunities
- Europe, which remains the most stable market and, for many SMEs, still the most natural path for growth
The real question for 2026 is not simply “Where do we sell?”, but how to build a sustainable path in the markets best suited to each company — whether acting independently or, where possible, leveraging one’s supply chain. Every company has its own history, resources, and timing. What matters is choosing markets where real growth opportunities exist, avoiding improvised approaches.
In Summary
2025 has challenged many assumptions, but it has also highlighted three clear directions:
- collaborate to compete
- innovate to survive
- expand with a strategy, not by trial and error
My wish for 2026 is that Italian SMEs start thinking less as isolated companies and more as industrial systems capable of moving together. That is where the real game will be played.
Thank you to everyone who has read, commented on, and shared this space throughout the year. See you in 2026, with new insights — and, above all, practical tools for growth.