Floriano Pellegrino

Born in 1990 outside the town of Scorrano, in the southern region of Salento (Italy’s ‘heel’). Alongside his two brothers, he grew up immersed in the daily routine of the family farm, respecting the importance of the work involved in producing sustainable, quality produce. This was the place that nurtured his early enthusiasm for ingredients and cooking, and he revelled in the process of preparing family meals in the farmhouse kitchen. 
Unsurprisingly, this led to a course at the local hotel management school, Istituto Alberghiero Columella, in the main city of Lecce, where he trained to be a chef. Eager to improve and learn as much as he could, he spent his free time on weekends and throughout the busy summer months working in local hotels. 
This was also the period when his appreciation for rugby began. Unlike many of his peer group, he opted for what was a relatively unrepresented sport in his region. The regular focus on training instilled in him a sense of purpose in life and the discipline and mental focus required to be part of a successful team.

Isabella Poti

Born in Rome in 1995 and is one of Italy's preeminent female chefs. Her parents  - her father is Italian and her mother is Polish—relocated the family to Lecce when Isabella was still a baby.
Growing up surrounded by nature and hyper-local ingredients, such as daily fresh milk from a neighbour’s cow herd and wild strawberries from her grandmother’s garden, her culinary journey was marked by an early passion for cooking. She studied at the Istituto Alberghiero Columella in Lecce, and after graduation in 2013, her ambition drew her to London and the Michelin kitchen of Chef Claude Bosi at the 2-starred Hibiscus in Mayfair. 
In the year that she spent there, she reconnected with a chef colleague and friend from her home town in Lecce, Floriano Pelligrino.  The pair would soon become partners in business as well as in life.