Former commercial director of STIHL Brasil, Arthur Torelly Franco died on September 28, 2020. Born in Porto Alegre on May 17, 1941, he graduated in Biology but made his career in the commercial area. He loved two things: Classical music and STIHL, to which he dedicated 26 years of his professional life. Passionate about classical music since childhood, he knew how to find space in his business agenda to tirelessly research Richard Wagner’s life and work. He participated in several editions of the Bayreuth Festival, the great mecca for Wagnerians, and had one of the greatest bibliographic collections in Brazil about the genius of the German opera. He died at the age of 79 due to a stroke in Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, leaving his children Luciana, Arthur, Alberto and Carlos, as well as many friends.
“Mr. Arthur was a human being of great value, character and integrity, who allowed us to live with him for 26 years at STIHL, from 1975 to 2001. To express our grief, we raised the flag of the Brazilian factory at half-staff. To the four children, we send our deepest feelings.”
Romário Britto, Vice-President of Marketing and Sales at STIHL Brazil
“A person of an odd intelligence and elegance that delighted everyone. I was honored and had the privilege of receiving a lot of advice that I bring with me today from this friend who carried STIHL’s flag everywhere he went and who remains a reference today. May God welcome him with open arms and may he continue in peace telling his stories and jokes to cheer the other side of life!”
Paulo Bazo, Southeast Sales Manager at STIHL Brazil
“Mr. Franco, or simply Mr. Arthur, has always been a source of inspiration, culture, and wisdom. Listening to him talking about history, travel, the development of STIHL in Brazil, and of course, about classical music, was a privilege I will never forget. In the company I saw him as the very embodiment of culture and the way STIHL was.”
Henésio Stumpf, former Marketing Manager at STIHL Brasil and current owner of the car lot STIHL Rota da Serra Máquinas e Motores Ltda.
Other events of Mr. Arthur:
- Before working at STIHL, he worked at Trilho Otero, an importer that is responsible for starting the commercialization of STIHL products in southern Brazil at the end of the 1960s.
- He was one of the people who encouraged the standard resale project in Latin America, considering an Andreas Stihl’s premise: “At first, every chainsaw is good. The leading brand will be the one that provides services of quality to the customer.”
- He enjoyed telling jokes and was fond of a cigar with whiskey.
- He had an extravagant hobby: He liked to pee on famous rivers and after tell the story, as a joke, saying he had committed a sin.
- He wrote the book, Adágio, Crônica dos Bastidores da Música Erudita, which was a synthesis of articles that were published for 15 years at Revista Digital.
- He was invited as a speaker in open recitals about Wagner’s songs at the Municipal Culture Center of São Paulo, at the Goethe Institute Theater and at the Foyer of Theatro São Pedro.
