Saturday April 19, 08:29 PM
German cutler takes over French cookpot maker
STRASBOURG (AFP) - French cast-iron cookpot maker Staub has been sold to Germany's Zwilling, which specialises in stainless steel kitchen equipment and knives, Staub boss Francis Staub told AFP Saturday.
Declining to disclose the sum involved, Staub, the founder of the firm based in Turckheim, eastern France, said the takeover would be finalised by the end of May.
As part of the deal, Zwilling had promised no job losses among the 430 employees in Staub's three factories in France, and agreed to move the headquarters of its own French subsidiary from the Paris region to Turckheim.
Staub also has a marketing and distribution branch in the United States and a joint venture in Japan.
"With this merger, Zwilling extends its range to products in enamelled cast-iron, and Staub will continue to develop thanks to Zwilling, which has some 500 wholly-owned stores worldwide," Staub said.
Staub recorded a turnover last year of 44 million euros (66 million dollars), as against 270 million euros for Zwilling, a subsidiary of the Werhahn group which was founded in 1731 by a cutler in Solingen, western Germany.
Francis Staub began designing cookware in the mid-1970s and turned to production in 1988. Praised by leading French chefs such as Paul Bocuse, his company was the target of a number of firms before choosing Zwilling, he said.
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