History
1921
Three generations of the Zappettini family have their roots in San Francisco and the floriculture business. William A. Zappettini, Sr. emigrated from Genoa, Italy during the First World War. He then founded the William Zappettini Company in San Francisco, which became a leading national wholesale florist with branches across the United States.
1954
William Sr. purchased property at the corner of 6th and Brannan Streets in San Francisco and was instrumental in attracting the local flower grower cooperatives to purchase the adjacent sites to relocate the San Francisco Flower Mart with the Zappettinis as a major shareholder.
1970s
William Sr.’s sons, Bill and Reno, expanded the wholesale flower operations to include nurseries in Half Moon Bay and Watsonville. The family diversified into real estate and purchased 40 acres in Mountain View, developed that parcel into the Mountain View Industrial Park, and built 17 commercial buildings for Silicon Valley manufacturing companies and the wholesale operations of Zappettini.
1980s-90s
After the passing of William Sr., Bill and his wife Paula launched Brannan Wholesale Florist at the San Francisco Flower Mart. In addition to offering locally grown flowers and plants, Brannan Street became known for importing flowers from around the world. Bill and Paula’s son, John, played a major role in transforming the European flower-by-wire operator, EuroFlorist, into one of the leading operators throughout the European Union.
2000s
John, the third generation, established the Zappettini Family Office for direct real estate and private equity investments and the Zappettini Family Foundation for philanthropy.
Principals
John Zappettini
Investments
John manages our family office and oversees the Investment Committee. He manages the family’s diversified investment portfolio in real estate, private equity, and alternative investments. John has over 30 years of experience in investment banking, private equity, and commercial real estate. He has led or advised on over $5 billion of transactions in the United States and Europe.
Anna Zappettini
Philanthropy
Anna oversees the philanthropic efforts of the Family Office through the Zappettini Family Foundation. To all her charitable endeavors she brings an accomplished 25 year marketing career with stints at the corporate offices of Macy’s department stores and then as a senior executive at Apple where she was on the original team that launched the first 50 Apple retail stores worldwide.
William Zappettini, Jr.
Chairman Emeritus
Bill spent his 50 year career working in the flower business. He served in various positions including President of the national wholesale florist, William Zappettini Company. In the mid 1980s, he founded Brannan Street Wholesale Florist which became the largest wholesaler at the San Francisco Flower Mart. Bill has been actively involved with the family’s real estate portfolio of investments and philanthropic activities.