Swiss chocolate manufacturer Maestrani Schweizer Schokoladen has acquired the family business Delafaille, a Belgian pralines producer.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
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As well as acquiring the shares of Delafaille, the transaction also includes the company’s subsidiary Ostrapack, based in Ostrava, Czech Republic, which specialises in chocolate packaging.
In a post on LinkedIn, Maestrani said the deal offers the “opportunity to expand its product range to include Belgian praline and truffle specialties, while simultaneously strengthening its international market presence”.
Founded in 1999, Delafaille, based in Beveren, manufactures and packages moulded pralines, enrobed seashells, and cocoa-dusted truffles.
Maestrani told Just Drinks that the acquired company has a “strong focus” on exports, with the US, Latin America and Asia being some of its “key export markets”.
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By GlobalDataDelafaille’s products are distributed worldwide through a variety of channels, such as retail and private label partnerships, the Swiss group added.
Maestrani, which owns brands such as Munz, Minor, and Avelines, also confirmed that it will “retain the current team” at Delafaille.
Following the deal, the company added that Paul Daems, Delafaille’s current owner and CEO, stay with the company for a “limited period” as he aids the transition, but that a new CEO would be appointed to head Delafaille.
In April, Maestrani acquired Swiss chocolatier Chocolat Ammann, founded by Theodor Ammann in 1949, as part of a plan to “secure” the brand’s future.
Both Maestrani and Chocolat Ammann have national distribution in Swiss retail and export businesses.
The acquisitions followed what Maestrani described as a “successful” revitalisation of the Geneva praline brand Avelines in 2022.
