{"id":3323,"date":"2023-05-05T12:16:09","date_gmt":"2023-05-05T10:16:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/flo.lessismore.co.it\/storia\/"},"modified":"2024-01-26T10:42:40","modified_gmt":"2024-01-26T09:42:40","slug":"story","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.flogroup.eu\/en\/group\/story\/","title":{"rendered":"Our Story"},"content":{"rendered":"

The course of time has defined the experience and expertise of a visionary, close-knit group of companies.<\/h5><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
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The Beginning<\/h2><\/div>
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The beginning of our story can be found in the words of Kent Johansson, who, as a young salesman for the American company Braun, travelled to Italy to install FLO’s first thermoforming machine. It was 1973…<\/p><\/div>

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\u201cI arrived here in Italy as a young man working for the American company that had manufactured this machine in 1973.
\nDuring the year in which I worked for Flo, from 1973 to 1974, the factory was still under construction, with exposed bricks. When I first started, it was sometime between November and December, one of the harshest winters we had ever had in Italy, and I recall the factory not having any windows or chimney.\u00a0<\/small><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>

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Read more...<\/div><\/div>
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\"\"Back in those days, Antonio could speak German but didn’t know any English, whereas I couldn’t speak German but, because I lived in Sweden, I spoke a bit of English. Therefore, communication was not easy and for this reason Antonio hired a young lady called Elvira to be our interpreter, with whom I immediately fell in love. The winter was so cold that we decided to put a tent in the middle of the establishment with a heater. The image I recall is that of the interpreter completely covered, with only her eyes and mouth visible, trying to translate what we were saying. We didn’t even have the equipment to move the machine, no forklift, no crane. Initially we didn’t know how to get it done, but then we thought of using the car jack and started moving piece by piece: we got it done, but it took us two whole days! We moved the machine twenty centimetres at a time, then fixed it, assembled it, and started it up.
\nAfter many changes and adjustments, an evening around ten o’clock the machine started working flawlessly. I am convinced that these things happen to good people. He called his wife, his mother, and other relatives, who I believe worked in an electrical equipment shop, not to tell them the news, but to come to the factory and pack the cups that kept coming out of the machine.<\/small>\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

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1970s<\/h2>\n

It all started with an idea<\/h5>\n \t

... an idea of Antonio Simonazzi, who established FLO S.p.A., a company specialising in the production of plastic cups for vending machines in 1973, in Fontanellato, province of Parma, Italy.<\/p>\n <\/i><\/a>\n <\/div>\n

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1973<\/h4>\n

Antonio Simonazzi was the first to realise that it was the dawn of a new sector with a high potential, and he became a leading player in it: at the time, demand far exceeded supply, it was a new and rapidly expanding sector, and only few people were producing technical cups suitable for vending machines!<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n \n

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1979<\/h4>\n

The acquisition of Vendorplast, a respected competitor specialising in the production of automatic cups in San Polo di Torrile, immediately defined FLO's identity as a company that thinks big and keeps moving forward.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n

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1980s<\/h2>\n

Entry into the Retail sector<\/h5>\n \t

In these years of economic boom, the market for disposable products for domestic consumption also experienced strong growth, in step with FLO's corporate growth.<\/p>\n <\/i><\/a>\n <\/div>\n

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1981<\/h4>\n

FLO establishes itself in the retail sector with a dedicated commercial department and a wide range of disposable products for mass consumption: plates, cups, cutlery, napkins.
\nTo achieve its goals, FLO invests in machinery for the production of plastic plates and containers: user friendliness, hygiene and convenience is what consumers look for and and appreciate.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n\t\n\t<\/div>\n\t\n\t\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\t\t\n

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1990s<\/h2>\n

Conquering Europe<\/h5>\n \t

FLO's expansion into Europe begins, with new sales offices in the most strategic countries: Flo Vending in France, Flo Deutschland in Germany, Nupik&Flo in England.<\/p>\n <\/i><\/a>\n <\/div>\n

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1991-95<\/h4>\n

In just five years, FLO's turnover doubled from 12 million Euros in 1991 to 25 million in 1995, thanks in part to investments in new equipment and new production departments.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n \n

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1993<\/h4>\n

FLO celebrates its first 20th anniversary with Italy's leading vending operators. A strong partnership consolidated over the years that makes the company to be one of the references to the vending sector in Italy.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n

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2000s<\/h2>\n

From family business to multinational corporation<\/h5>\n \t

The incorporation of FLO Europe and the acquisition of ISAP, in association with two important companies in the sector, represent a further breakthrough to serve international markets efficiently and quickly, thanks to new strategic production and logistics hubs.<\/p>\n <\/i><\/a>\n <\/div>\n

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2003<\/h4>\n

FLO Europe, the factory producing plastic plates and cups and PAPER napkins for northern European markets, is established in Ruitz, France.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n \n

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2006<\/h4>\n

ISAP SpA, a company based in Verona and historically specialised in the production of cups for the Ho.Re.Ca. channel and food containers for the retail and industrial sectors, also joins FLO.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n

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2008<\/h4>\n

the production of Ecokay, a complete and innovative line of biodegradable and compostable cups starts in Verona<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n\t\n\t<\/div>\n\t\n\t\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\t\t\n

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2010s<\/h2>\n

Towards a sustainable future<\/h5>\n \t

FLO chooses sustainable innovation applied to processes and products, raw materials and plant management, to offer greener solutions while reducing its environmental impact.<\/p>\n <\/i><\/a>\n <\/div>\n

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2011<\/h4>\n

Hybrid, the first revolutionary ecological cup invented by FLO and meant for vending machines, is created with the aim of reducing the environmental impact of the daily coffee break.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n \n

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2012<\/h4>\n

The group expands with the acquisition of BENDERS UK, a Welsh manufacturer of paper cups and folded napkins, with over 100 years of experience in the paper industry.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n

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2013<\/h4>\n

BDV, the German vending association, honours Antonio Simonazzi 'for his essential contribution' to the sector.
\nTo this day, the founder of FLO is the only Italian entrepreneur to have received this lifetime achievement award from this German association: the value of his experience has been passed on to his children Daniele and Erika Simonazzi, today the Managing Director and Marketing Manager of the FLO group respectively.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n \n

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2014<\/h4>\n

From its experience in vending, Flo acquires the necessary know-how to add hot beverage capsules to its traditional range of plastic and cardboard cups. The new department dedicated to the production of single-serve coffee capsules is born.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n

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2018<\/h4>\n

The Group's Research and Analysis Laboratories kick start their activity: the FCP Lab in Verona<\/a>, accredited by Accredia, and the Application Laboratory<\/a>, based in Fontanellato.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n \n

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2019<\/h4>\n

The FLO Group acquires majority control of ISAP and BENDERS and becomes a major European player for the production of sustainable disposable packaging and food containers for the Vending, Retail, Food Service and Industrial sectors.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n

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2020s<\/h2>\n

New Developments<\/h5>\n \t

The total conversion of FLO Europe's plant from a plastic manufacturer to a paper manufacturer is completed in compliance with the regulations in force in France.<\/p>\n <\/i><\/a>\n <\/div>\n

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2023<\/h4>\n

The new PAPER department in Fontanellato is inaugurated, thus pursuing the strategy of an advanced and sustainable multi-material diversification, which can improve all company performance, also from an environmental point of view.<\/p>\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n\t\n\t<\/div>\n\t\n\t\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n<\/div>\n\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2874,"parent":3335,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"100-width.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-3323","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"yoast_head":"\nOur Story - Gruppo FLO<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flogroup.eu\/en\/group\/story\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Our Story - 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