Meet The Italian Billionaire Behind Ferrero’s $3.1 Billion Deal For Kellogg

Forbes

Since he became the sole leader of his family’s candy maker in 2015, executive chairman Giovanni Ferrero has expanded beyond well-known brands like Nutella and built a global powerhouse—especially through big acquisitions in the U.S.  Read the full story on Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/giacomotognini/2025/07/11/meet-the-italian-billionaire-behind-ferreros-giovanni-ferrero-froot-loops-nutella-31-billion-deal-for-kellogg/  Subscribe to FORBES: https://www.youtube.com/user/Forbes?sub_confirmation=1  Fuel your success with Forbes. Gain unlimited access to premium journalism, including breaking news, groundbreaking in-depth reported stories, daily digests and more. Plus, members get a front-row seat at members-only events with leading thinkers and doers, access to premium video that can help you get ahead, an ad-light experience, early access to select products including NFT drops and more:  https://account.forbes.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=display&utm_campaign=growth_non-sub_paid_subscribe_ytdescript  Stay Connected Forbes newsletters: https://newsletters.editorial.forbes.com Forbes on Facebook: http://fb.com/forbes Forbes Video on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/forbes Forbes Video on Instagram: http://instagram.com/forbes More From Forbes:  http://forbes.com  Forbes covers the intersection of entrepreneurship, wealth, technology, business and lifestyle with a focus on people and success.

Transcript

00:00Today on Forbes, meet the Italian billionaire behind Ferrero's $3.1 billion deal for Kellogg.

00:09When Italian candy and food giant Ferrero announced it would acquire W.K. Kellogg,

00:15the cereal maker behind Fruit Loops and Corn Flakes, for $3.1 billion earlier in July,

00:21it wasn't just one of the largest deals in the food industry in the past year.

00:24It also marked the crowning achievement of Giovanni Ferrero, the billionaire executive

00:30chairman and majority owner of his family's company, who has led a decade-long campaign

00:35to evolve his Italian brand well beyond European chocolate treats and turn it into a food powerhouse

00:41in the United States. Forbes estimates the firm has spent more than $13 billion, including the

00:48deal announced earlier this month, buying up at least 21 companies in nine countries in the past

00:5310 years, ranging from a snack producer in Brazil to a butter cookie maker in Denmark.

01:00Giovanni took over sole leadership of the company, best known for its chocolate hazelnut

01:04Nutella spread and Ferrero Rocher gold-wrapped chocolates, after the death of his father,

01:09Michele Ferrero, in 2015. As the head of the third generation leading the company, Ferrero set

01:16about on a deal-making splurge to grow the business while diversifying from its focus on chocolates.

01:21It's been a winning strategy. Since 2015, the firm nearly doubled revenues to $20.4 billion in the

01:29year through August 2024. And it nearly doubled EBITDA, earnings before interest, tax, depreciation,

01:36and amortization, as well, to $3 billion, up from $1.6 billion in 2015.

01:42It's also been good for the Ferrero family's fortune. Giovanni Ferrero, who is 60 years old,

01:50owns 75% of the company and is now worth an estimated $41.2 billion, up from $23 billion

01:58when he first joined Forbes' world's billionaires list in 2018. He's currently the sixth richest person

02:05in Europe, and the 36th richest on the planet. The rest of the firm is owned by at least five other

02:11heirs of Pietro Ferrero, Giovanni's grandfather, who founded the business in 1946 in Alba, a town near

02:18Turin in northwest Italy. The mammoth deal for W.K. Kellogg is set to turbocharge the firm's growth in the

02:26U.S., where it has already made at least eight acquisitions since 2017, including picking up

02:32Nestle's U.S. candy business in 2018 for $2.8 billion and then adding Kellogg's cookie and fruit

02:38snack business the following year for $1.3 billion. Those purchases brought brands ranging from Famous

02:46Amos and Keebler to Nerds and Butterfinger under the Ferrero umbrella, with W.K. Kellogg recording

02:53$2.7 billion in revenues in 2024, the deal could grow Ferrero's sales by more than 10%.

03:01Aaron Lash, an analyst at Morningstar, says, quote,

03:05The tie-up will diversify Ferrero beyond its core confectionery and snacking fare

03:09to include W.K.'s domestic cereal mix. Ferrero's strategic rationale is likely anchored in W.K.'s

03:15ability to generate cash and its stable revenue base. This would follow Ferrero's efforts to expand

03:21its footprint in the U.S. With the W.K. Kellogg deal, Ferrero stands to benefit from a larger

03:28presence in U.S. grocery stores. Lash adds, quote, In light of the sheer size of the North American

03:34cereal aisle, which generates $12 billion in annual retail sales, this addition stands to buoy Ferrero's

03:41bargaining power with retailers. Giovanni spoke to Forbes in a rare interview in 2018 from Ferrero's

03:48original factory in Alba, where the company still makes some of its best-selling products,

03:53including Kinder chocolate bars and Nutella, that made it a global powerhouse. Back then,

03:59he said, quote, I feel like we are duty-bound to grow. He pointed to his plan to increase the

04:05company's sales by 7.33% each year in a bid to double its size over 10 years. He said, quote,

04:13We are in love with the growth algorithm of 7.33 periodic because organic or non-organic,

04:19that would double the company in a 10-year time horizon.

04:23Seven years later, he's on track to exceed that goal. Ferrero grew revenues by 84% between 2017 and

04:302024, meaning the firm can underperform that 7.33% over the next three years and still meet his target.

04:38For full coverage, check out Giacomo Taguini's piece on Forbes.com. This is Kieran Meadows from Forbes.

04:48Thanks for tuning in.

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