Farsons Group Chairman Louis Farrugia last Friday shared plans for the company to enter into more foreign markets and thereby continue on its growth trajectory.

Speaking during the third session of the Executive Spotlight webinar series hosted by The Malta Stock Exchange (MSE) and MSE Chairman Joseph Portelli, Mr Farrugia remarked that Farsons is targeting further growth through both local and international brands.

“Our business model is to market both local and international brands, especially since Malta is a relatively small market,” Mr Farrugia said.

He remarked that the company now has around 900 employees, offering numerous services, with these ranging from food and beverage services to the bottling of soft drinks.

Louis Farrugia (left) and Joseph Portelli (right) / https://borzamalta.com.mt/ 

“We make it clear to whoever we work with, from Pepsi to Burger King and KFC, that Farsons will take good care of their brand,” he continued.

When asked about what plans Farsons has for further growth, Mr Farrugia said: “Our aim going forward is to establish Cisk as a regional brand.”

“We have already managed to enter markets like Bahrain and Qatar, and around six per cent of the beer we produce is sent overseas,” adding that Cisk is “definitely being recognised” as a brand abroad.

Over the course of the webinar, Mr Farrugia also outlined the company’s history, particularly how the family originally had a flour mill that had been burned down in the Sette Giugno riots in 1919, before making the move into brewing in 1928.

The Farsons brewery in Imrieħel was designed and built in 1948, and just a few years later, the company started producing Kinnie, a soft drink which is still very popular today.

Mr Farrugia added that during the COVID-19 pandemic, Farsons had to cut back on costs and overtime, with directors also experiencing cuts in salaries, with these being decisions that together with “help from the government’s wage supplements, played a crucial role in reducing the company’s debt during those challenging times”.

The webinar ended with Mr Farrugia being asked several questions from those attending the event.