The Messina native said goodbye to Sicily 15 years ago, going first to the United Kingdom and then returning to Italy. Now he has started his own agency
MILAN – A classic story of emigration, from Fiumedinisi to the United Kingdom. Then the return to Italy, but in Milan, where he has now launched his own personal project. Davide Todaro is a Messina native who, like many before and after him, left Sicily to land in London. At the beginning of 2024, now back in Italy, he decided to found his own digital communications and marketing agency, Avocado Digital.
The trip to London 15 years ago
“I founded the agency a few months ago,” Davide Todaro told Tempostretto. “We deal with marketing and digital strategies for companies and influencers. I left Fiumedinisi and the Ionian area 15 years ago, when I moved to London where I studied the digital aspect with a Google master’s degree. There I specialized and started working in media centers and advertising companies. For example, I managed the Italian, Spanish and Portuguese markets for Avis. Then I decided to return to Italy and worked for several agencies and ended up working in the field of influencer marketing, collaborating with people like Bruno Barbieri and Benedetta Parodi, profiles in the food world who are also very important on a social level.”
The birth of Avocado Digital and “VIP” customers
Davide has also worked for companies in Messina: “Yes, I also commuted to Milan several times. Until the end of 2023 when the idea of founding the Avocado Digital agency was born, which came to fruition at the beginning of 2024. I launched the project and some clients followed me. One of these is Davide Campagna, so to speak ‘Cotto al Dente’, but also the former tennis player Sara Ventura, now a personal trainer. Many ask me why Avocado Digital. The avocado is a resilient plant that can grow even in adverse temperatures. And in entrepreneurship, knowing how to grow even in adversity is fundamental, you always have to move forward”.
Farewell to Messina: “Here’s why”
The Messina native left Sicily about 15 years ago: “I did it for two reasons. First of all, my partner, now my wife, was about to move to England for her doctorate and I obviously decided to follow her. I had already had previous experiences in London and wanted to explore new opportunities. This is a piece of advice I give to all young people: have a training experience outside of your own context, because it will help you a lot to develop characteristics that are useful for achieving your goals. When I moved to London to follow my wife, I had in mind to deepen my training in marketing and communication. So I did these masters, including the one with Google, and then I started working with various companies. In the end, I also ended up in international agencies”.
“In the future I would like to create something down there”
Now, however, it’s time for the personal project. But why Milan? Is it complicated to do the same thing in Sicily? Davide explained: “I just closed an agreement with a company in Catania, but it’s obvious that working in Milan or London guarantees you a much larger catchment area. This does not mean that investing in digital marketing could be fundamental for our area, even for those young people who are looking for a working identity. I do not hide the fact that in the near future I would like to create a parallel reality to this one in Milan to have something similar in our area. You must never forget where you start from”.
And again: “When you leave, you often think about returning home, right? I think about it, even though I am one of the lucky ones who can return to Sicily six or seven times a year. But it is still early for the agency. One of the goals could be to create a parallel reality, but the foot on the accelerator today wants to make us push for results here in Lombardy. It is not certain that sooner or later there will not be a return to our territory. The dream? To be able to give job prospects to young people who want to learn. University, masters, specialized courses give you the basics, but you also learn on the job”.