From the Gribino press-room, North of Some Places, South of Others
Gribino is a mysterious, internationally-minded company operating nationally within the United Kingdom.
Fig.1 - The Gribino Prototipi Shed, in a top secret location - Not made with AI.
It was founded sometime between 1990 and 2024 by Il Capo, following a period of undisclosed ideation, spirited sketching and innumerable internal discussions that have since been de-, then re-, classified.
Like many of the world’s greatest vehicle manufacturers, Gribino did not begin in the automotive industry. Peugeot produced steel. Piaggio made timber. Lamborghini made tractors. Toyota, sewing machines.
Gribino, naturally, specialises in the distribution of freshly roasted coffee beans and grounds.
This is not as unrelated as it may first appear.
Coffee is the lubricant for the brain (the company doctor would like it known that cerebrospinal fluid is actually the correct grade of mind lubricant). Nevertheless, coffee remains the silky, smooth fluid that powers Gribino’s varied and exciting exploits on the internet, most of which involve cars, design, questionable mechanical surety, and the ongoing understated cultural significance of the Fiat Panda 319.
The Nuova Panda is our preferred vehicle. However, the original Panda is also recognised. The Fiat 500 may be admitted under suitable conditions. Abarth is agreeable.
Other vehicles may be considered by means of a convoluted conformitisation process, on a case-by-case basis although the Gribino Approval Committee is very difficult to trace and may not exist outside of the payroll office.
Today, Gribino spans the intersection between a coffee company, a car-adjacent media operation, and a pontificating bureaucratic department that nobody remembers officially creating.
Our purpose is four-fold.
- To architect the most stupendous coffee experience known to humankind
- To provide mental stimulation for outlandish projects that more sensible corporations discounted as unfeasible
- To promote joy, mechanical curiosity and a measured appreciation of small Italian vehicles
- To bury serious messages in a pile of administrative ambiguity
We are not just selling coffee. We are building a powerhouse.
Get ready for your psycho-mechanical breakthrough. Or just a silky espresso with crema for days ☕️💡
That is our official history.
History verified and issued by the Gribino Press Office, co-signed by M. Ployee, Auxiliary Chief Initiation Officer — West Riding Branch