De’Longhi arrived in Romania more than five years ago and has since invested EUR50 million in the production of espresso machines and small home appliances.
“Investments (…) relate primarily to the purchase of systems and molds at the group’s plants, completion of the Romanian plant expansion and beginning of the construction of the new Treviso headquarters,” De’Longhi officials say in the nine-month report in 2018, the latest available on the corporate website.
In all, investments in 2018 stood at more than EUR60 million, international media reports. They do not include marketing and promotion expenses, only on manufacturing and development spending.
De’Longhi last year said the plant in Jucu was regarded as strategic for Europe because it allows for quick product shipments. It takes a month for products to reach Europe from China.
The importance of this production facility also shows in figures, in the trend of the main financial indicators of De’Longhi Romania. The revenue has gone up by 30% to 40% or more year by year, so it could be close to 1.3 billion lei (EUR273 million) in 2018, according to ZF estimates. The plant was profitable even in its first year in business and the number of employees has steadily gone up to more than 2,000.(EUR1=RON4.7585)
(English version by Loredana Fratila-Cristescu)