Fazer informs today of the acquisition of Gateau, leader in handmade bread and pastry and a forerunner in its field in Sweden. Gateau has bakery and confectionery shops in and around Stockholm. They are known best for their bread which is baked in a stone hearth oven and made of sourdough with stone ground rye, but they also offer pastry of the highest quality. Through the acquisition, Fazer adds to its already strong bread assortment and, at the same time, expands its operations through the bakery and confectionery shops.
‘Consumers demand exclusive and hand made artisan bread to an increasing extent. Gateau is the leader in Sweden in this field. They have a strong and well-known brand in the Stockholm area and they maintain an extremely high quality in their assortment. The target of the acquisition is to gradually increase capacity so that we will be able to offer this genuine premium bread to completely new markets more extensively than today, both in and outside Sweden,’ says President and CEO of Fazer Group Karsten Slotte.
Consumers demand both bread produced by large bakeries and exclusive fresh-baked handmade bread, which is why the two companies complete each other so well. They share the same key values and a belief in that tasty bread of high quality should be the guiding star of operations.
‘We are delighted by the deal with Fazer since we feel that the companies share a common value base and have their roots in a small bakery.
Fazer will make it possible for Gateau to expand further maintaining its core values and, at the same time, the excellent quality of bread and confectionery products will always come first. Fazer will be able to provide for us assistance and the needed strength in spreading Gateau’s concept to completely new markets both in Sweden and abroad’, says Claes Christenson, founder of Gateau.
Fazer has a 120-year-long history which began in Karl Fazer’s café in Helsinki. Today, Fazer has, apart from 8 large bakeries and a mill, also 28 local bakeries in Finland. A new locally produced bread concept was also launched in Karl Fazer Café in Helsinki, where bread has been baked since the 1890’s. The acquisition of Gateau in Sweden adds an important piece to the puzzle, with a clear connection to Fazer’s origin.
The acquisition became effective on 27 April 2011.
Additional information:
Ulrika Romantschuk, Director, communications and stakeholder relations, tel. +358 40 566 4246
Fazer Group
The origins of Fazer Group lie in a family company founded in 1891 when Karl Fazer opened his first café in Helsinki. Today the Group offers meals, bakery and confectionery products and operates in a total of eight countries. Its operations are based on passion for customer, quality excellence and team spirit. The Group operates in two business areas which are committed to creating taste sensations: Fazer Food Service and Fazer Bakeries & Confectionery.
Fazer Group‘s turnover for 2010 was over 1.5 billion euros. The Group employed ca 16,500 people in 2010.
Fazer Food Services is a leading contract catering company in the Nordic and the Baltic countries, offering customers delicious food and tailor-made service solutions. Fazer Amica has almost 1,400 restaurants in the Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia and Russia.
Fazer Bakeries & Confectionery
Fazer is Finland's leading bakery company and one of the leading companies in the Baltic Sea region and Russia. Bakery products are manufactured in Finland, Sweden, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Russia, where Fazer operates under the name Hlebny Dom. In confectionery business Fazer is Finland’s leading company and a strong player in the Baltic Sea region. The confectionery factories are located in Finland: in Vantaa (chocolate products), Lappeenranta (sugar confectionery) and Karkkila (chewing gum).
Gateau is the leader in handmade bread and confectionery products and a forerunner in its field in Sweden. Gateau has bakery and confectionery shops in and around Stockholm. The company is best known for their bread which is baked in a stone hearth oven and made of sourdough with stone ground rye, but they also offer confectionery products of the highest quality. In addition, Gateau also offers a gift product assortment with marmalade, olive oil, tea and coffee beans, chocolate, sea salt and honey. Gateau has 160 employees and the turnover in 2010 was 84 million Swedish krona.