Tonitto 1939 lands in Japan and prepares assault on the USA
The Genoese company expands abroad by focusing on both private label and its historical brand
3' min read
3' min read
Tonitto 1939, the historic Genoese producer of sorbets and ice-creams is preparing to land in Japan, as early as August, with its own brand; while by the end of the year a project in the USA, which has been in the pipeline for some time in the private label market, with an American chain of supermarkets, should become operational.
But also other countries, in different areas of the world, ranging from Europe (including Eastern Europe) to the Middle East and South America, are in the sights of the company led by the Dovo brothers, together with general manager Alberto Piscioneri.
It is the latter who explains the company's future goals, for which private label now accounts for 70 per cent of total sales. "We are pushing," he says, "towards growth abroad, particularly in the private label market: we have an active dialogue with many retailers in different countries. We closed 2024 with EUR 16.2 million in sales, which is +13% on 2023, an increase of 2 million. Exports accounted for 41% of revenue and Ebitda last year quadrupled over 2023 to EUR 907,000. This growth was also possible thanks to the managerialisation of the company, which took place in 2023, and to the continuous expansion outside the national borders as well as the capillarisation on the Italian territory'.
In recent months, continues Piscioneri, 'we have launched new private label projects, in addition to Italy, in three important European countries: Holland, Greece and Germany, thus strengthening our presence in the main EU markets. Eastern Europe is also a strategic area of expansion for us. Countries such as Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia are showing a marked dynamism and growing interest in Tonitto's made-to-measure proposals".
But in the field of private label it is certainly America that is the most ambitious target. 'In the United States,' says Piscioneri, 'we have a project on which we are working very hard, despite the fact that we do not know how the tariffs threatened by President Trump will end. The operation should start at the end of the year with a major retailer; it is one of the most important supermarket chains in the US, present in almost all states. I can't say much, except that, under their brand, we will bring a particular product to market: an ice cream with an unusual flavour, intended to celebrate the US holiday season, from Thanksgiving day onwards. The launch should take place, as I mentioned, in late 2025 and will have visibility through the retailer's own marketing tools, traditional and digital.
