Melbourne chilli brand Bippi has teamed up with Italian supermarket LaManna to unveil an immersive museum-style pop-up experience inspired by the charm, warmth and comfort of visiting Nonno and Nonna, complete with patterned wallpaper, homely decor, familiar flavours, scents and surroundings.
Casa della Nonna is a life-like Italian house that has been built right in the middle of LaManna’s Essendon Fields store in Melbourne, and is specifically designed to transport shoppers straight into a traditional nonna’s home.
Nonna’s house, which is part of the launch of Bippi’s new Italian Pretzels, will be in store at LaManna for six weeks until June 29.
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Speaking with SmartCompany, Bippi founder and CEO Ben Circosta says Casa della Nonna blends real, lived-in detail with museum-style elements — a fully immersive piece of Italian tradition dropped into a working supermarket.
“The idea kicked off back in February and the team hasn’t stopped since,” he says.
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“It’s been a massive achievement, with enormous time and effort poured in right up to the live date, and that energy will continue throughout the activation.”
Throughout the house, customers will find written plaques that unpack the small, beautiful intricacies of a traditional Italian nonna’s home, the kind of details every Italian family recognises instantly but few have ever seen explained.
One perfect example is the plastic-covered couch in the museum because no one can quite say why nonnas do it, but every nonna does.
Every detail at Casa della Nonna has been thought of. Source: supplied
It’s the kind of charm the Bippi team wanted shoppers to slow down for and notice.
However, for Circosta, his nonna’s reaction was one of the best moments of the whole project.
“She was shocked, in awe, even a little confused – it looked and felt so much like her own home that she couldn’t quite believe what she was seeing,” he says.
“Both Nonna and Nonno had a stream of questions, and watching them take it in was incredibly special.”
When asked what made Bippi decide to partner with the Italian supermarket and build Casa della Nonna, Circosta says LaManna was the natural fit.
“It’s a long-standing Italian supermarket that has served the local community with traditional, quality food for years, and that heritage aligns perfectly with what Bippi stands for,” he says.
“We’ve been stocked in LaManna’s for some time now, and the relationship – both on a brand and a personal level – has only grown stronger. Building Casa della Nonna inside LaManna felt like the most authentic way to celebrate that partnership and bring Italian tradition to life for shoppers in a way no standard product launch could.”
The Bippi team have confirmed each weekend there will also be tastings and separate events for the public, including free pasta this Saturday for the first weekend launch along with a few other items.
Bippi’s Casa Della Nonna at LaManna supermarket. Source: supplied
LaManna CEO Patrick LaManna says Bippi is a brand built on family traditions and food, which is exactly what the family-owned Italian supermarket is about.
“We’re not a typical supermarket. People come here for an experience, and everything we do is centred on creating moments that evoke real emotion,” he says.
“We have the space, and we love inspiring brands to use it in ways that genuinely connect with customers. Casa della Nonna is a perfect expression of that.”
LaManna says the reaction has been overwhelming.
“From the moment we opened, people haven’t stopped coming in — across every generation,” he says.
“Customers are taking photos, sharing stories from their childhoods, and genuinely connecting with the space. There have been laughs and tears. That kind of emotional response is exactly what we set out to create.”
A sign at Bippi’s Casa della Nonna at LaManna supermarket. Source: supplied