World-renowned domestic coffee- and small-appliance manufacturer, De’Longhi has gone from strength to strength over the past year, according to its 2020 financial results.
Founded in 1902, the Italian company’s home products – including their celebrated coffee-machines – continue to expand into new homes and larger markets.
The Board of Directors announced that the company’s normalised net revenues were up 12.4 per cent over the year 2020, with profits also increasing by 24.3 per cent. This is a phenomenal result for the company given the instability of a COVID-battered global economy.
STRONG 2021 EXPECTED
De’Longhi’s CEO, Massimo Garavaglia, is highly optimistic about 2021 as well.
“From the point of view of sales, the start of the year was extraordinarily strong, at a rate of growth, on a like-for-like basis, foreseen for the first quarter at around 50%,” he says.
“This important growth will allow us to continue to reinvest a portion of the operation margin in our support plans for product innovation, brand communication and strengthening of digital strategy.”
A TEAM EFFORT
Garavaglia commended everyone in the company for their exceptional work during a year of unpredictable developments.
“The results obtained by the Group are, first of all, the result of an extraordinary commitment by our employees, to whom my special thanks go for their dedication and commitment in managing a particularly critical phase from both a professional and personal point of view,” he says.
“In the last year we have witnessed many changes in the market, on both the production and commercial fronts, to which the De’Longhi Group has been able to adapt with great flexibility and reactivity, thanks also to the strength of our brands, to the investments in the digital world and the continuous innovation process that has always characterised our Group.”
NOTABLE TRENDS
The COVID-19 pandemic has allowed De’Longhi to capitalise on trends already underway in the market, including increased consumer spending on so-called “home experiences”.
In the Asia-Pacific-Americas region, there was double digit growth in China, Hong Kong, Australia, and New Zealand. 2020 also saw Japan and North America record growth in the high single digits.
While all of De’Longhi’s main product segments recorded growth in 2020, special attention must still be given to their coffee products segment, which constitutes 52% of the company’s revenues. This segment achieved normalised double-digit growth in 2020 as well as in the first quarter of 2021. Important growth occurred, particularly, in the families of full-automatic and manual machines. While capsule system revenues also grew, they made up a lesser portion of the overall revenue picture for De’Longhi.
“The COVID pandemic has allowed De’Longhi to capitalise on trends already underway in the market, including increased consumer spending on home experiences,” Garavaglia says.
