Grupo Kalise facts for kids
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| subsidiary | |
| Industry | Dairy |
| Founded | 1960 |
| Headquarters | , |
| Products | Ice creams, Frozen desserts, yogurts |
| Parent | Grupo Farga |
Kalise is a Spanish company that makes yummy ice cream and desserts! It started in 1960 in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, which is in the beautiful Canary Islands. For a while, Kalise was part of a bigger group called "Grupo Kalise–La Menorquina S.A." This happened after it joined forces with another ice cream company, La Menorquina.
When they were together, Kalise sold its treats to everyone in stores. La Menorquina, on the other hand, mostly sold to restaurants. In 2017, the companies went their separate ways again. A company called Grupo Farga bought the group for 40 million Euros. Since then, Kalise has been its own company, still making delicious ice creams and yogurts.
Contents
History
How La Menorquina Started
After World War II, a businessman named Fernando Pons Sintes started a company called "La Estrella" in 1950. He was on the island of Menorca in Spain. His idea was to bring ice cream and cakes to the restaurants there.
Five years later, in 1955, the company changed its name to "La Menorquina". By the mid-1950s, La Menorquina started working with other companies in Barcelona. In 1956, Mr. Sintes bought a chocolate company called La Tropical de Mahón. He had actually worked there as a baking helper when he was younger!
Growing Bigger
In 1960, ice cream was still a special treat. But as more tourists visited and more restaurants opened, people had better access to refrigerators. This helped La Menorquina sell more products on the islands.
By the mid-1960s, many other companies also wanted to sell ice cream because tourism was growing. La Menorquina needed to grow too. So, they bought another company called Helados Marisa. This company later joined with a big company from the United States called Beatrice Foods. Beatrice Foods bought most of the company in 1965.
Beatrice Foods also bought parts of a company called Marisa. This company had factories that made refrigerators in Barcelona and Mallorca. This meant La Menorquina could start selling its products in Mallorca and reach even more people. La Menorquina sold three brands in Mallorca: La Menorquina, Matisa, and Calatayud. In 1983, Marisa fully joined with La Menorquina. This gave La Menorquina control of factories in Barcelona, Menorca, and Mallorca, helping them grow even more.
Kalise's Beginning
Around the early 1960s, in the city of Las Palmas on the island of Gran Canaria, another businessman named Delfín Suárez saw a chance to help tourists. His family company, Interglas, started making and selling their own ice cream. They called it Kalise.
Joining Forces and Separating
In 1990, Fernando Sintes retired. Delfín Suárez, who owned Interglas (Kalise), bought all the shares of La Menorquina. Even though he owned both, Kalise and La Menorquina stayed as separate companies for a while. La Menorquina even started selling its products in 27 other countries!
Later, in 1999, Beatrice Foods left the company. This allowed Interglas (Kalise) to fully join with La Menorquina. They formed a new group called the Kalise Menorquina Group. At this time, it became the first big ice cream maker in Spain that was fully owned by people from the Canary Islands.
In 2005, the Kalise Menorquina Group bought most of a company called SIALSA. SIALSA made and sold a yogurt brand called "Sandra" in the local area.
In 2017, the Kalise Menorquina Group was bought by Grupo Farga for 40 million Euros. After this, Kalise kept its main operations in the Canary Islands. It continued to make its own ice creams and yogurts. La Menorquina then sold its products along with a brand called "Farggi". In this year, the Grupo La Menorquina group ended, and Grupo Kalise S.A. was formed.
See also
In Spanish: Grupo Kalise para niños
