BINASCO, Milan (Italy) – Cimbali Group, a leading Italian multinational specialising in the design and manufacture of professional espresso coffee machines and dedicated equipment for the coffee business, announces that it has acquired the entire share capital of Vassalli Service AG as of 2 October 2023.
The company has been the distributor of the Cimbali Group‘s brands in Switzerland for more than six decades and is an integral part of the sale and maintenance of professional machines for coffee and milk-based drinks and coffee-related equipment.
Cimbali Group acquires Vassalli Service AG
The Cimbali Group wishes to ensure a seamless transition and continuity of operations. As part of this vision, the current CEO, Marc Schneider, will retain his role and also become a member of the Board of Directors together with Enrico Bracesco, already the General Manager of the Cimbali Group, who will now also assume the role of Chairman of the Board of Directors of Vassalli Service AG.
Enrico Bracesco said: “This investment is yet another step in the expansion envisaged in our long-term strategic plan and it reinforces our presence in the heart of Europe, in a key market such as Switzerland for both traditional and fully automatic machines. Our aim is to maintain the standards and reputation that Vassalli has built up over the decades, enhancing our brands and establishing an excellent service infrastructure throughout the country”.
Vassalli Service AG currently employs 58 people and has offices, showrooms and certified training centres with a coffee academy in Zurich and Lausanne.
During the years, Vassalli has positioned itself as a key player in the Swiss coffee sector, building a dedicated team to provide top-quality technical services to industry players.
The creation of the new company will lead to changes in the management of the Cimbali Group. Marc Schneider will remain as CEO of the Swiss company and will also sit on its Board of Directors.
An engineering with a technical background complemented by a Master’s degree in Business Administration and Marketing, Schneider has been with Vassalli as the company’s CEO for over a decade.
A new role awaits also Stefano Caverzaschi, who will become Regional Director for Western Europe.
His responsibilities will include overseeing the European subsidiaries and managing the operations of the Swiss subsidiary. Caverzaschi has spent a decade with the Cimbali Group, first as Export Area Manager and then as Regional Director for Distributors.
This acquisition reflects the Cimbali Group’s commitment to expanding its international presence, a strategy it has been pursuing for a long time. It brings the Group’s global presence to 12 international offices, in addition to its 4 manufacturing centres in Italy and its dedicated Slayer manufacturing facility in the USA.
About Cimbali Group
Cimbali Group is one of the leading manufacturers of professional machines for making coffee and milk-based drinks, as well as coffee shop equipment. The Group, which includes the La Cimbali, Faema, Slayer and Casadio brands, operates through three production plants in Italy and one in the United States (in Seattle, where the machines are produced under the Slayer brand), employing a total of around 850 employees.
The Group’s commitment to promoting espresso culture and the local area led to the foundation of the MUMAC Coffee Machine Museum in 2012, the first and largest permanent exhibition dedicated to the history, world and culture of espresso machines, located at the Cimbali Group headquarters in Binasco, in northern Italy. MUMAC is home to MUMAC Academy, the Cimbali Group coffee machine academy, a training, promotion and research centre.
