Business Hours in Italy:

• The hours of operating for banks, shops and services vary from region to region.
• In general, shops are open between 9:00am and 7:30pm, Monday through Saturday. Shops in smaller towns may close for lunch from 1:00pm to 3:00pm.
• Most supermarkets are open from 9:00am to 9:00pm, Monday through Saturday. Shopping centers and large supermarkets will be open on Sunday morning/early afternoon as well.
• Generally, banks are open between 8:30am and 1:30pm, and between 3:30pm and 4:30pm. Afternoon operating hours will vary from city to city. Banks are closed on Saturday, Sunday and on national holidays.
• Post offices and public offices are usually open between 8:00am and 12:30pm, Monday through Saturday. Major post offices are open from 8:30am to 5:00pm, Monday through Friday and 8:30am to 1:00pm on Saturday.
• (Source: http://www.seeitalia.com/essentials/business_hours)

Business Practices:

• Conservative attire is recommended for business meetings. Nonetheless, fashion is important to Italians. Accordingly, they generally dress well at all times and good clothes are a sign of success.
• Italians generally prefer to be introduced by a third party. Women and older persons generally are introduced first.
• Italians generally drink alcohol only at mealtimes.
• Invitations to lunch and dinner are commonplace when doing business.
• The best time for meetings is between 10:00am and11:00am, and after 3:00pm. Business visits in July and August are strongly discouraged due to Italians vacationing at this time of the year.
• Italians may be slow to respond to inquires.
• When writing figures, Italians invert commas and decimal points, e.g., 2,4% (i.e., 2.4%) and 5.120.000 (i.e., 5,000,000).
• Pursuant to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), U.S. individuals and companies (as well as foreign companies that issue stock on the U.S. capital markets) who bribe foreign government officials can be prosecuted for such actions in the U.S. For more information, see the U.S. Department of Justice website at www.usdoj.gov/criminal/fraud/fcpa