From the Marches to the South Seas, passing through the Far East, the expansion of the Elica Group, world leader in the production of cooker hoods, continues. The Italian company has recently acquired a further 15% of the Chinese Zhejiang Putian Electric, active in the household appliance market. A 30 million euro operation that brought Elica's stake to 70%. “We have decided to invest significantly in this country to increase our market share, which is currently at 4% – Francesco Casoli, president of the group, told Firstonline -. We want to access new channels: the Chinese one is a very complex reality and you have to experience it from the inside, otherwise you won't get anything out of it”.
But the Fabriano-based company does not intend to stop and new investments could already arrive in the next few months. “We are present in Europe, Central America and Asia – continued Casoli -. We are now evaluating the possibility of expanding into South America. For example, let's look at the opportunities offered by Brazil, but Argentina is also more than interesting”.
Instead, we will only have to wait a few days to see Elica's latest creation on the market. It's called "Clip" and was designed by Ludovica and Roberto Palomba. Presented in Milan during the Salone del Mobile, the new extractor hood will hit stores in June. It is characterized by the simplicity of the geometric lines and the contained dimensions. Casoli underlined that "the testing ground for the new product will be the Italian market", but the company expects "an important response also on European markets".
With these prospects, Elica closes a particularly positive year. The 2010 financial statements showed numbers higher than expected, for a turnover of 368,3 million euros (+9,9% compared to the previous year). Ebitda (from 20,1 million to 26,2) and Ebit (from 0,7 to 10,6 million) also grew. The most surprising figure, however, was that relating to net profit, which rose from 200 euros in 2009 to 4,3 million in 2010. In the same period, the company's debts grew from 22,9 to 34,9 million. An increase mainly due to the investments made by the group in Asia.
The company's numbers in the first quarter of 2011 were less good. Revenues, equal to 93 million, increased by 5,6% compared to the same period last year, but profitability suffered a contraction. Net profit decreased (from 1,5 to 1,1 million), Ebitda (from 6,4 to 6,2 million) and Ebit (from 2,3 to 2,1 million). Debts, on the other hand, rose to 40,5 million. “We blamed the surge in raw material prices – explains Casoli – but we are sure we will recover and continue to grow during 2011. We have already implemented measures to make production more efficient and cut costs”. The forecasts for this year thus remain unchanged: revenue growth between 5 and 7% and improvement in Ebitda between 5 and 10%.
Elica is one of the most active realities of the Italian fourth capitalism. This is a typical case of our entrepreneurship: a family-controlled pocket multinational, number one in the world in its niche sector. Founded in 1970 in Fabriano by Ermanno Casoli, in 1978 it had 130 employees and a turnover of 3,5 billion lire. The same year, the premature death of the founder marks the entry into the company of his son Francesco, just seventeen years old, who in 1990 became managing director and in 2006 president. His family still owns 56,946% of the company today.
From the end of the 2002s, Elica launched a strategy of acquisitions and partnerships which allowed it to expand abroad. In 2008, the group went outside Europe and signed an agreement with Fuji Industrial, the first Japanese manufacturer of extractor hoods. Four years later he acquired the majority of the Japanese company. Other transactions include the acquisition in 2010 of Gutmann GmbH, leader in the sector in Germany, and the joint venture in XNUMX with the Indian entrepreneur Pralhad Bhutada, which leads to the creation of Elica Pb India Private Ltd.
With over 2.800 employees, today Elica produces around 17 million pieces a year, including kitchen hoods and electric motors, including for boilers, refrigerators and ovens. There are nine production sites, four of which are in Italy, the others in Poland, Mexico, Germany, India and China. The company manages 17% of the hood market globally and 41% in Europe.
What distinguishes the group from the majority of medium-sized Italian companies is its presence on the Stock Exchange. Since November 2006, Elica has been listed on Piazza Affari in the Star segment, with the symbol BIT:ELC. Over the past year, the stock has lost 9,01%. The performance was also negative on a half-yearly basis, which recorded a drop of 2,85%. But the most serious losses have come in the last month, with a heavy -16,57%. In the early afternoon, Elica shares were trading at 1,364 euros, up 1,04%. A dividend of €2,51 per share will be distributed today.
According to president Casoli, “the decision to be listed on the Stock Exchange was very positive. Up to now the performance of the stock has not been brilliant, but ours is not a large company, so it is natural that it is not able to move very large volumes. In any case, the presence in Piazza Affari has allowed us to become much more attractive on an international level and to open ourselves up to a major player such as Whirlpool Corporation, which today owns 10% of our shares. Listing involves costs, it is an important commitment and above all a risk, but it is also the only way to overcome those limits which have always hindered the growth of our business. I think that, for the good of their companies, Italian families should take a step back and leave more room for the market".
