Groupe SEB Acquires Wilbur Curtis
WIlbur Curtis Headquarters
A French conglomerate announced it is buying Los Angeles-based Wilbur Curtis for an undisclosed sum. Wilbur Curtis, founded in 1941, is one of America’s largest tea and coffee brewing equipment makers, earning $90 million annually and employing 300.
Groupe SEB, owners of Krups, small appliance brands and cookware, said it is staking a claim in the US coffee equipment segment. In 2016 the company acquired WMF, a German manufacturer of super-automatic espresso machines that owns the Schaerer and WMF brands. Clientele overlap as both Wilber Curtis and SEB supply foodservice operators in hotel, restaurant, and convenience stores.
Thierry de La Tour d’Artaise, SEB chairman and c.e.o., called the acquisition “a very valuable strategic complement” that will result in SEB becoming “one of the leaders in the professional coffee business in the United States.”
“Wilbur Curtis has built and maintains a long-term relationship with its customers, leveraging its professional salesforce and ensuring extensive national coverage,” writes SEB.
Groupe SEB, headquartered in Ecully, France, employs 33,000 in 150 countries, and manufacturers about 300 million products annually.(Learn more: groupeseb.com)