Giapo Grazioli moved to New Zealand 16 years ago after falling in love with the country on holiday. Originally from Italy, gelato was always something that had fascinated him. Years back, in London, Grazioli had his first experience in the kitchen where he learned about the most popular Italian desserts. After moving to Palermo, in Sicily, he started to dive into the gelato world more and more.
Grazioli’s gelato-based brainchild, Giapo, was founded around 12 years ago, after a brief stint as a pastry shop. With a unique approach to the way in which gelato is experienced, Giapo offers customers the complete experience. “Giapo is an opportunity to see that change is possible,” said Grazioli.
Known for its ingenious creativity, and its innovative design, a gelato encounter at Giapo is not for the faint of heart. “We are more for people that embrace freedom and see the world in a different way,” said Grazioli. “We hope to make it special by ‘seeing’ the people that come to visit us and anticipating their unspoken desire.”
Grazioli believes that for the perfect dessert experience, it has to be fun, delicious, and make you think. Grazioli has undertaken studies in which he strived to find the relationship between music and dessert. He found that certain ice creams or gelatos worked better with music than others and that people’s hedonistic preferences became clear when ice cream and music interact.
“Ice cream is the medium my wife and I have chosen to express our art. We are crystal clear on what we are trying to achieve with Giapo: we want to change how people experience ice cream.”
As Giapo continues to push the boundaries between dessert and experiential dining, Grazioli said that he only wants to continue getting better.
Ice cream and gelato are special—but the Giapo experience redefines special.
