The premium Italian coffee brand is exclusively distributed by Coca-Cola HBC Hungary and held a joint event at Félegyházi’s BudaPart Piknikség (a portmanteau word made from the Hungarian piknik and pékség, or bakery) outlet earlier this month to showcase seasonal fall and winter pastry and coffee specialties.
Coca-Cola HBC acquired a 30% stake in the family-owned Casa del Caffè Vergnano in October 2021 and has been distributing premium Italian coffee products in Hungary since January 2022.
The partnership announced a few weeks ago between Caffè Vergnano and Félegyházi Családi Pékség makes the 100% Hungarian-owned bakery the largest Caffè Vergnano catering partner within the Coca-Cola HBC Group.
Operating since 1999, Félegyházi employs more than 1,400 people, has 90 of its own shops and supplies fresh bakery products daily to 400 partners, including retail chains, catering companies and the Hungarian Defense Forces.
The bakery is implementing a HUF 10 bln greenfield investment in Kiskunfélegyháza (115 km southeast of Budapest), which will include a warehouse, a multi-line production area, an automated and robotized cold packing plant and a 5,000-pallet frozen storage warehouse. The development will create 200 new jobs in the town.
Félegyházi had revenue of HUF 30 bln in 2023, making it the largest Hungarian-owned bakery chain in the fresh and frozen bakery market. Some 35,000 tonnes of products roll off its production lines every year, and 320 million products are expected to be produced at the company’s Kisunfélegyháza factory by the end of this year.
“As a family business, we operate ‘Piknikséeg’ shops in 36 cities across the country,” says Szilvia Gulyás, marketing manager and second-generation owner of Félegyházi Családi Pékség.
“We are delighted to have been approached by Coca-Cola HBC Hungary and Caffè Vergnano because we see and feel that we can be increasingly successful by offering the best of everything to our consumers, who have quickly grown to love Caffè Vergnano’s coffee specialties,” she adds.
As part of its long-term partnership with Félegyházi, Coca-Cola HBC Hungary will support the family-owned bakery business with equipment, advice, service, professional barista training, and coffee sales. A team of coffee experts is involved in creating product pairings that will allow the Pikniksegs to renew their seasonal offerings, giving customers more reasons to make more frequent return visits.
“The collaboration between Félegyházi and Caffè Vergnano is a perfect match; two family businesses with a long history and shared values,” said Anita Partali, marketing manager of Coca-Cola HBC Hungary’s coffee business unit. The partnership makes even more sense when Partali adds that Félegyháza’s pikniksegs sell 1.5 million cups of coffee annually.
“By incorporating seasonal recipes alongside classic drinks, we can pass on expertise and a fresh approach to our customer partners by putting new flavors and ingredients into their hands that they may not have previously thought could harmonize with coffee,” says Iván Gávris, a coffee expert at Coca-Cola HBC Hungary.
“In addition, flavors available for a limited time are proving to be a profitable business decision. Introducing a well-chosen seasonal coffee recipe can result in up to 15% increase in turnover for a restaurant,” he adds.
Coca-Cola HBC Hungary is one of the three largest players in the premium segment of the Hungarian HoReCa hospitality sector. It has two coffee brands, Caffè Vergnano and Costa Coffee. Together with the Félegyházi piknikségs, the former is now available in around 500 hotels, cafés and restaurants in Hungary.
This article was first published in the Budapest Business Journal print issue of November 15, 2024.
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