Italian furniture producer to relocate part of production to Romania to lower costs

Natuzzi, the largest furniture maker in Italy, will relocate part of its production in Italy to its Romanian factory, starting the second quarter of this year, Profit.ro reported. With this move, the group aims to lower labor costs and improve profitability.

The relocation activity from Italy to Romania targets only the production of furniture under the brand "Natuzzi Editions" while the products under the luxury brand "Natuzzi Italia" will continue to be manufactured in Italy.

The company has obtained the agreement of the Italian Government and trade union representatives for this move, which will reduce the group's labor costs in Italy and optimize its profit margin. The move is seen as the most important event for Natuzzi this year and in the future.

Natuzzi owns the Italsofa Baia Mare factory in Romania, where it produces sofas and armchairs. The factory has over 1,000 employees. In 2017, it posted RON 236.6 million (EUR 53 million) revenues and RON 10.9 million (EUR 2.4 million) net profit.

The Natuzzi group was in the red last year, with EUR 25.5 million operational losses and EUR 429 million consolidated revenues.

(Photo source: Facebook / Natuzzi)