What's a better day for a globally renowned sweets maker to die than on Valentine's Day? Nutella producer Michele Ferrero passed away Saturday at his Monaco home at 89, leaving behind a storied and prestigious legacy to his descendants and a slew of iconic sweets that many around the world still enjoy to this day.
"Ferrero dreamt up the chocolate-hazelnut Nutella spread, Ferrero Rocher pralines, Kinder eggs and Tic Tac sweets, turning a provincial chocolate factory into what is widely seen as Italy's most valuable privately-owned company," Reuters reported. "The billionaire died at home in Monaco after months of illness."
The man, who is also the richest man in Italy and, subsequently, the "richest candyman on the planet," had already relinquished control of the company since 1997, although he still helped out with the tasting and designing of products until about a couple of years ago.
"Born in 1925, Mr. Ferrero inherited the family business from his father, Pietro Ferrero, who after World War II, had experimented with new ingredients for sweets that could substitute for chocolate because cocoa was in short supply," The Wall Street Journal said. "He settled on pasta gianduja: a butter-like paste that combined hazelnuts with cocoa butter and vegetable oil. The recipe, which formed the basis of what later became known as Nutella, was kept a family secret."
Ferrero's contribution was the international expansion of his father's initiative, although he was careful not to let anyone outside of th company acquire any shares of the Ferrero empire.
"In the 1950s, he opened production plants and offices in Europe. He expanded to the rest of the world starting from the 1970s. All the while the company shunned acquisitions, and instead broke into foreign markets by introducing new products catered to local tastes," WSJ said.
According to Forbes, the candymaker's fortunes had been estimated at $23.4 billion, with his confectionery firm being the fourth largest in the world, just behind Nestle.
Meanwhile, Italian President Sergio Mattarella had noted the Nutella maker's passing with the following statement, as reported by The Sydney Morning Herald:
"I have learnt with emotion of the passing of Michele Ferrero, a true entrepreneur, known and loved in Italy and abroad."
"Ferrero was a leading light in Italian business for many years, always managing to stay on trend thanks to his innovative products and his tenacious and cautious work. Italy remembers him with gratitude."
Currrently, Ferrero's son Giovanni runs the company, after the original successor, older brother Pietro, died in 2011 from a heart attack while cycling in South Africa, the BBC said.
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