The Kandia-Excelent chocolate producer has finalized the acquisition of a line of sweets from Kraft Foods, giving the company access to equipment required for production, including technological specifications, recipes, promotional materials and support for the sale of Silvana and Sugus candies, and stocks of finished products.
The company signed an agreement with Kraft Foods in December 2006 for the takeover of assets, in the form of equipment and two brands of sweets. The transaction is worth some €10 million. The Competition Council authorized the takeover on condition that Kandia gives up brand exclusivity clauses in its relationship with distributors. The transfer of production lines will begin on June 4, while production will follow as soon as possible at the Kandia-Excelent facilities, said company officials. The chocolate tablet market in , in terms of retail prices, rose in 2006 to some RON 368 million (about €104 million). Kandia-Excelent’s main competitors in this segment are Kraft Foods Romania, Heidi Chocolate Suisse, and Supreme Group.
Kandia- Excelent’s best-known brands are Kandia, Laura, Rom and Magura. The company had net sales worth RON 122.37 million (about €37 million) in 2006, and net income of RON 26.63 million (some €81 million). It has recently announced its intention to increase its share capital by listing the company on a foreign stock exchange, in order to finance the acquisition of the Kraft Foods sweet division. The Axis Investments fund is the majority shareholder of Kraft-Excelent, with an 83.96 percent participation. The Austrian Meinl Bank became one of the company’s shareholders in April 2006, with a 9.16 percent stake. Romanians are among the lowest European Union consumers of chocolate. Expert studies indicate that Romanians consumed approximately 1.9 kg of chocolate per capita in 2006, compared to Europe’s leader, , at 11 kg per capita. Hungarians annually consume 4 kg per capita, Greeks 3 kg, and Portuguese a low 1.93 kg per capita.
