Marino Godi was born in Verona, Italy in 1941 where he also received his high school diploma as a "geometra." At 20 years old, he served in the Italian army for 15 months in the mountain artillery unit. Marino later studied civil engineering at the University of Padua and began a career in construction at 27 years old after marrying his wife Rosanna. At 34 years old, Marino and Rosanna moved with their two young daughters to Edmonton, Alberta, Canada to pursue a real estate career. The same year he also ventured to and fell in love with Arizona.

Marino, Rosanna and their daughters began living dividing their time each year between the United States, Canada and Italy. In 1982 Marino moved to Arizona permanently returning to Italy for 3 months each summer to visit family. Mr. Godi has been an active real estate investor and developer in the Phoenix marketplace since relocating to Arizona from Edmonton. Marino has specialized primarily in acquiring land for residential, industrial and retail uses throughout the Phoenix metro area. The majority of projects have been located in the North Phoenix and Scottsdale markets, where Marino has maintained an office for over 20 years.

Although Marino retains some property in Italy, 90% of his business is in the United States. In 1999, his love of antiques led him and a partner to establish Artitalia Group, a furniture company which imports high-end Italian furniture. Marino still visits Italy once a year, mostly for the grappa, prosecco and amarone.