PROFILE Cimbali
A driver of change
Gruppo Cimbali’s newly released Faemina.
GRUPPO CIMBALI GENERAL MANAGER ENRICO BRACESCO TALKS ABOUT LEADING THE COMPANY THROUGH A PROCESS OF RENEWAL, HIS STRATEGY FOR INTERNATIONAL EXPANSION, AND HOW TO MAINTAIN THE CULTURAL IDENTITY OF THE 110-YEAR-OLD COMPANY.
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or the third time in his life, Enrico Bracesco made a career change in May 2019 when he joined Gruppo Cimbali as Chief Commercial Officer to help coordinate the business strategy of the company’s four brands: LaCimbali, Faema, Slayer, and Casadio. An industrial engineer by trade with a degree in engineering management and a master’s degree from the London Business School, Bracesco held managerial positions with multinational companies in the air conditioning and renewable energies sector, and fitness equipment industry, before coffee came calling. “It was a bit daunting at the beginning, but in hindsight it was the best step I could have made. A common trait in all three industries is that the product has always been technical with a big element of service and asset management in the offering. But the passion, drive, and element of pleasure you find in the coffee industry is something you don’t find anywhere else,” Bracesco says. From the outset, Bracesco’s perception of Gruppo Cimbali was “a manufacturer of premium brands with global brand awareness and a quintessential Made in Italy company”, and he wasn’t wrong. Since 1912, the company has been a leader in the design and production of professional espresso machines and coffee shop equipment. It operates through three production plants in Italy and one in the United States, employing around 700 staff. “Gruppo Cimbali embraces the perfect mix of product, technology, tradition and history, and is a classic example of a company that dives into the future with innovation but at the same time keeps connected to its tradition and roots,” Bracesco says. To lead the company into its next stage of development, Bracesco was appointed General Manager of Gruppo Cimbali on 1 September 2021. At the same time, Andrea Clerici took on the role of Group Commercial Director. “I was preparing for this role for a while, but once the pandemic hit, I thought it would become even more challenging. It sounds like a paradox, but one of the benefits of the pandemic was the
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extra time we had to reflect and prepare for the next phase. We reflected upon who we are, what we have been doing well, what we have been missing, and how to project new trajectories and capture new trends,” Bracesco says. Now, with a solid investment platform for all four brands – each in distinctive markets in terms of its target customer and value proposition – Gruppo Cimbali is ready to diversify its product range and services. With 85 per cent of Gruppo Cimbali’s revenue made abroad, Bracesco is keen to strengthen its market position with international expansion into the Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Americas. “The name of the game is defending our high market share. We’re already big in Europe, but at the same time, we recognise there’s much more room for growth for our brands internationally in key areas,” he says. Gruppo Cimbali is represented in 130 countries and has 12 subsidiaries across the United States, China, Middle East, United Arab Emirates, Singapore, and Australia as of Q1 2022. Where it does not have a direct
