Italian coffee giant Gruppo Lavazza closed 2019 with a net profit of €127.4 million, the company has said.
This is a 45% increase on the previous year, when the Turin-based company posted a profit of €87.9 million.
Revenues rose 18% to €2.2 billion, of which 70% was generated from foreign sales.
Sales Performance
The positive performance resulted from the integration of the Lavazza Professional business and a 3.9% growth in volume sales, with the company posting double-digit growth in North America (+15.2%), Northern Europe (+13%) and Eastern Europe (+23%), mainly in Russia and Poland.
EBITDA for the year stood at €290.6 million (+47%), with an EBITDA margin of 13.2% (up from 10.6% the previous year).
In 2019, Gruppo Lavazza saw organic growth across all its channels, particularly in Single Serve (+5.2% in volume) and Roast & Ground (+3.8%).
Lavazza also entered the 'ready-to-drink' segment, which is growing at a global level, through a partnership with PepsiCo. After launching in the UK, the Lavazza ready-to-drink will be introduced in other European markets this year.
Coronavirus Challenge
However, the coffee group is finding it difficult to forecast hat will happen in the coming months, in light of the coronavirus emergency.
“We are tackling this unprecedented situation of uncertainty with a proactive, concrete approach and from a position of strength, driven by the positive performance in the recent financial year and from the group's solid capital structure," commented CEO Antonio Baravalle.
Following the spread of the coronavirus epidemic, the group immediately took all the necessary measures to ensure maximum safety for employees, customers, suppliers and consumers.
© 2020 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Branislav Pekic. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine
