Paolo Recrosio, CEO Berlin Packaging Europe

1th October 2020

Berlin Packaging, a world leader in the supply of packaging based in North America, has recently carried out the integration process of Vidrimon and Vidremar into Bruni Glass Iberia, which has been part of Berlin Packaging since 2016.

"The birth of Bruni Glass Iberia reinforces the Group's position as a leader in packaging distribution in Europe"

Bruni Glass has been part of the Berlin Packaging Group since 2016. What is your balance over these years?
Four years of growth from many points of view.
At the European level, we can confirm a strong double-digit increase in turnover. The organization has also grown to the point where today we have a staff of over 500 people on the team.
Globally speaking, there has been a greater global presence, given that, in addition to North America and Europe, we are present in South Africa and China thanks to the acquisition of Erben (UK) and Novio (Holland).
Our distribution capacity has also increased, today having more than 100 locations with more than 500.000 square meters of storage.
We can also confirm the growth in our product range, with more than 15.000 items in different segments, which are plastic, glass and metal closures.
Finally, our capacity for innovation and design has been increased thanks to two design and product development centers: Studio One Eleven in America and Bruni Design and Innovation Center in Italy.

What does the incorporation of Vidrimon and Vidremar contribute to the Group?
By integrating the two companies into Bruni Glass Iberia, the Group strengthens its position in an important market such as Iberia.
We have combined Vidrimon's important know-how in the olive oil sector with Vidremar's extensive experience in spirits, wine, beer, food and gourmet, enhancing them with the capacity of the Bruni and Berlin packaging, especially in terms of innovation. , customization and development of high-quality products.
In 2018, Berlin Packaging and Bruni Glass acquired the English company Erben LTD. How has this purchase benefited you and what synergies have been created?
Erben LTD is an England-based supplier of closures, containers and packaging equipment with a strong presence in the beverage and spirits sectors.
This acquisition allows the Group to grow and take full advantage of the diversification strategy in terms of products, but also geography: Erben also brings operations in South Africa, in California with its California Capsules business, and operates www.TheBottleJarStore.co.uk.

What are the differential values ​​of Bruni Glass?
We have five values ​​that drive our entire vision and mission: Passion for customer emotion, Taking care of our people, Wanting to win together (positive attitude), Leadership in design and solution, and Always acting with integrity.

What are the most important countries for the Group?
North America is undoubtedly the most incisive for the Group.
With regard to Europe, we can say that Italy and the Netherlands are the most mature markets from the point of view of turnover.
In terms of future potential, Italy is a leading player in glass, followed by France, the United Kingdom and Spain. In plastic, Germany is undoubtedly the most important country, but also France and Italy.


What is the positioning in Spain?
The birth of Bruni Glass Iberia reinforces the Group's position as the leader in packaging distribution in Europe and allows it to further consolidate its presence in the valuable Spanish market.
The objective is to be an increasingly prominent contact for all our clients, suppliers and partners operating both in Spain and Portugal and in the rest of the world.

In addition to the offices in Montilla, Montaverner and Barcelona, ​​what plants and logistics warehouses do you have in our country?
In Spain we currently have our own offices and warehouses in Montilla, Córdoba and Montaverner, Valencia.
In Barcelona we have a commercial office and a 3PL warehouse, in addition to the logistics warehouse in Ourense.
This business organization allows us to branch out more and more to ensure first-rate service and geographic coverage.

For which sectors do they work and in what proportion?
The main market is olive oil and gourmet. Also spirits are historical pillars of our company in Iberia.
They are followed by jars and home fragrances, which are the latest in our range and which undoubtedly represent interesting opportunities for the future.

Tell us about your new products.
In terms of markets, we will focus on fragrances for the home, oils and, in particular, spirits, a sector in which we are working on a new prestigious collection that is launched this fall across Europe. It is made up of 15 exclusive and top quality articles.
We are also working on alternative materials to complete our product offering.
We will develop projects ever closer to our Innovation Center to provide innovative solutions in terms of design and functionality, in order to offer our customers value-added packaging.

What does the Innovation Center mean?
The Innovation Center is the division of Bruni Glass internationally recognized as a center of excellence for research and development of new design solutions in the world of glass bottles and jars. The division is made up of a team of designers and industrial engineers who work closely with Bruni Glass's network of producers and partners and collaborate with our clients to interpret and shape their ideas.
We also make available to our clients the services of Studio One Eleven, our in-house innovation consultancy in the USA, where designers, engineers and marketers delight in bringing not only amazing designs but also a global consulting experience on the best solution to maximize the brand experience.

Personalization is a clear trend. What do you offer your customers so that they have a tailored product?
In a market that is increasingly saturated with products, our customization services are a strategic support to give personality and originality to packaging projects.
We work closely with our clients to find a unique style that perfectly matches their brand positioning and increases the recognition of the product so that it stands out from the competition and captures the attention of its reference target.
This is a unique service that distinguishes us from our competitors and is our core business, from which a significant part of our turnover comes.

As a leader in glass packaging, what other trends do you see?
Future challenges focus on three driving forces: The first is the ability to offer a lot of customization, which we just talked about.
The second can be called "premiumization" and aspiration to a better quality of life. More and more brands are seeking to "premium" their offerings, so we offer a premium product and thus allow our customers to emphasize its superior quality and exclusivity.
Lastly, sustainability and the ability to offer products in line with the growing ecological awareness of our customers. This, in any case, is a true global need.

How do you apply sustainability criteria in your production?
We are not producers, and this may lead us to think that the issue is far from us. Things couldn't be more different.
Glass is by nature an environmentally friendly material because it can be recycled endlessly. What makes the glass recycling process even more important is the fact that the more recycled glass the manufacturer uses during production, the more profitable the glass container will be, and this, by definition, is a double advantage.
We, like Bruni Glass, always try to get our suppliers to use as much recycled glass as possible.
At the same time, we organize our logistics in the most efficient way to minimize the carbon footprint of our products.

What motivated you to create the Bruni Glass Design Award?
The Bruni Glass Design Award is an international design competition for glass containers that was born in 1997. The idea was to involve university students of industrial design from around the world to create innovative glass shapes in a variety of market sectors. Much more than a contest, it is a real workshop, the first in Italy where students are followed step by step by experienced professionals.
The project has two main advantages. It is aimed at future generations, as we offer design students an invaluable experience, because they are able to transform their ideas into a concrete professional result. For the firm it represents a real possibility of innovation, being able to count on new ideas and exploration in the field of design. As proof of this, we are proud that many ideas have been turned into real projects that distinguish some of the leading food and beverage brands.
Therefore, we can say that the Bruni Glass Design Award is born from a noble training value to which is added a concrete development perspective.

Finally, what are your next goals?
This question must be placed in the context that we are living now.
In recent months, although within a very complex world scenario, we have had results that few firms have been able to achieve, also thanks to our diversification strategy, which has once again been the winner.
We will continue with our expansion objectives. Regarding products,
I'd like to highlight the new Bruni Glass Prestige Spirits collection and confirm that our focus is on developing high-quality products.
I consider it important to underline that, in addition to the products, among the keys to our success are our people. Even in this specific period we have new human resources (+ 5% of the workforce) at the European level, including Iberia, and we will continue to maintain growth in this context.
I would like to conclude by noting that our new CEO from Berlin, William Hayes, has just officially joined the firm. It has already been fully aligned with the strong European expansion project, so that strategic continuity is assured.

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