“We developed the plant on the Nokia site and started out by making only De’Longhi branded espresso machines, but in time we’ve expanded and are now making other small home appliances under the Braun brand,” Peter Ferluga, sales manager of De’Longhi Romania, says. He has held this position since September 2017, when a decision was made to open a local sales office and has been working for De’Longhi since 2007.
The executive did not say too much about production in Cluj, only that De’Longhi is very happy with the performance of the plant, it works at peak capacity.
There are expansion plans but to be able to implement them, the group must find employees first, Ferluga says, and with the difficult labor market in Romania, it is hard not only for this industry for all sectors. De’Longhi is currently employing about 2,000 people in Cluj.
De’Longhi has plants in China, Italy and Romania. The production facility in Romania is strategic for Europe, because it allows it to ship products quickly, while a shipment from China takes a month, the executive added.
The group became the second largest home appliances manufacturer in Romania after Turkish-held Arctic last year, leaving Philips behind. (EUR1=RON4.6647)
(English version by Loredana Fratila-Cristescu)