Three

Here’s how the company website described the company when I took the helm:


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Welcome to Attenzi, the renowned and trusted international brand for kitchen equipment and services. Our company has a five-decade heritage providing the finest kitchen appliances and service to the hotel, restaurant and catering industries. And since 1990 we have translated our passion for and excellence in equipment design and reliability to the home kitchen.

Our products include cookers, cooktops, grills, microwave ovens, refrigerators, dishwashers and mixers. Our business services include hotel and catering facility design, and equipment maintenance.


Lorenz Capital acquired the firm from the founders’ trust in 2005, intent on growing the company until such time as an initial public offering (stock market flotation) makes sense. They originally planned to double revenue in eight years, maintaining an EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization) of 17%, yet growth over six years had amounted to 21% with a current EBITDA of 14.9%. That’s a compound annual growth of 3.2% versus overall market growth in that time of 2.8% per annum, so Attenzi had nudged only slightly ahead of the industry average.

So far not so bad or so great then, although a portion of the gap between reality and the owner’s expectations can be attributed to the ‘Great Recession’ of 2008/10 of course, and subsequent economic travails. To put the current position in perspective, if Attenzi was to achieve the original plan of doubling revenues in eight years, growth in both the last two of those years, 2012 and 2013, would need to be 28%.

So that’s a ‘no’ then.