It’s called «paintless dent repair (PDR)» the art of cold, paintless automotive repair that restores cars to their original shape without invasive procedures. Giovanni Liccardo, 49, founder and current CEO of Lever Touch, the leading group in the car repair sector with this innovative methodology, has transformed it into an industrial process applied on a large scale. Starting from Naples, over the last thirty years Lever Touch has grown to become a global player, with branches in six countries: France, Spain, Germany, Argentina, Brazil, and the United States. In addition to commercial success, the Group is involved in social and environmental initiatives and promotes sustainable practices, offering job opportunities to young people in difficulty. This approach has earned Giovanni Liccardo prestigious awards as an innovative and socially responsible entrepreneur in the automotive sector. Liccardo’s career began within the ranks of prestigious automotive companies, where he honed the technical skills that would become the backbone of Lever Touch. He himself recounts how many of the techniques used at Lever Touch were even born on the assembly lines of the Alfa Sud in Pomigliano d’Arco. Since his beginnings, Liccardo has come a long way, transforming a single intuition into an entrepreneurial reality of international scope. The Group has a turnover exceeding 80 million euros with approximately 250 employees and over 1500 collaborators, including PDR technicians and bodyworkers. In the automotive world, where weather events like hail can cause significant and costly damage, Lever Touch focuses on this cold repair methodology that avoids traditional bodywork processes like filling and painting. This not only reduces costs but also shortens repair times.
To maintain high service quality, LeverTouch adopts a three-pronged strategy:training new technicians through the Lever Touch Academy in Italy, France, and Spain; employing «priority» contracts to secure the best technicians worldwide, ensuring their immediate availability; and finally, as a multinational, having unique flexibility in allocating technicians according to global needs, ensuring constant work throughout the year for its specialists. Lever Touch therefore positions itself as a global partner for car manufacturers, insurance companies, short, medium, and long-term rental companies, and large dealer groups, with a service specializing in vehicle restoration for hail damage.
Last November, Liccardo received the prestigious Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the Senate of the Republic for the results achieved, respect for ethical principles, social responsibility, and environmental sustainability. «I always dreamed of founding a modern, sustainable, and inclusive company», Liccardo explains with pride. «Today, my dream is a solid reality established at the European and global levels. As is often the case for many Italian companies, the saying always holds true: no one is a prophet in their own land. This was the case for us, who initially received more recognition abroad than in Italy. Now things have changed, and we are very proud to be an Italian Group renowned for its high ethical, human, and professional standards»