MILAN — It may come as a surprise to many that former Bulgari and LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton executive Francesco Trapani in the Nineties was the owner of three McDonald’s in Rome. That first initial interest in food has now germinated into new investments in two symbols of Italian culture: pizza and ice cream. The goal is clear-cut. “To become the reference Neapolitan pizza brand in Europe,” said an upbeat and relaxed Trapani of his investment in Briscola-Pizza Society during an interview at the Bulgari Hotel in Milan, ahead of the official opening of two Briscola restaurants in the city at the tail end of Milan Men’s Fashion Week. The investment in Briscola was made in parent company Foodation, founded in 2014 by Riccardo Cortese and Federico Pinna, through Trapani’s Argenta Holdings sarl last year. Argenta has a 53 percent stake in Foodation. Earlier this month, it also took a 51 percent stake in Geloso, a start-up that makes fully natural ice cream on a stick. “It happened by chance, [Cortese and Pinna] were looking for an investor and strategic help because they wanted to expand and I was impressed,” Trapani said. “Despite the small size of the business, their presentation was well-structured, they knew

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