Bolton Group
Italian multinational consumer-goods group with brands spanning food, home care, personal care, adhesives and cosmetics.
Last updated August 27, 2026
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Overview
Bolton Group is an Italian multinational consumer-goods company headquartered in Milan. Its origins lie in Exportex, a distribution business founded in Milan in 1949 by Joseph Nissim, a Greek-born Jewish immigrant who had moved to Italy after the Second World War. Exportex initially imported and distributed consumer products for international manufacturers in Italy, including brands associated with Procter & Gamble, Kimberly-Clark and Beecham. Over time, the business moved from distribution toward ownership and manufacturing, creating the diversified group now known as Bolton. A decisive early step came in 1960, when Nissim acquired ICIS, a Cermenate-based producer of canned meat sold under the Manzotin brand. The company was renamed Trinity Alimentari in 1965 and expanded into canned tuna with Rio Mare. Rio Mare became Bolton’s best-known food brand and the foundation of its later international development. The group established Bolton Group B.V. in Amsterdam in 1978 and took control of Exportex and Trinity in 1981. During the following decades it broadened its portfolio through acquisitions in food, household products, personal care, cosmetics and adhesives. The portfolio includes brands such as Rio Mare, Simmenthal, Saupiquet, Wild Planet Foods, UHU, Bison, Bostik, Collistar and Manetti & Roberts. The company’s food activities include canned fish, seafood, canned meat and sauces, while its non-food businesses cover detergents, household-care products, personal hygiene, cosmetics, glues, sealants and related maintenance products. Through Tri Marine, acquired outright in 2019 after an earlier minority investment, Bolton also participates in the global tuna supply chain, including trading, processing and fishing operations. Bolton has continued expanding through acquisitions. Important transactions included the purchase of Simmenthal from Kraft and a stake in Grupo Calvo in 2012, the acquisition of Conservas Garavilla in 2015 and the purchase of the remaining stake in 2016, full ownership of Omia Laboratories and Tri Marine in 2019, Wild Planet Foods in 2021, the Madel Group in 2021, Unipak in 2023 and Repair Care in 2025. Its growth has made food the group’s largest business, while adhesives, personal care, home care and cosmetics provide additional geographic and category diversification. According to the supplied reference material, Bolton reported 2024 revenue of €3.5 billion. Food accounted for 68.3% of revenue, followed by home care at 10.6%, adhesives at 9.2%, personal care at 7.8% and cosmetics at 4.1%. The same material describes a workforce of more than 11,000 people, operations through dozens of offices and production facilities, research laboratories and fishing vessels. Bolton remains a privately held, internationally active consumer-goods group rather than a publicly traded company.
History
Bolton’s history began with Exportex, a Milanese distribution company established in 1949 by Joseph Nissim. Exportex imported and distributed consumer products for foreign manufacturers and gradually became a significant Italian distributor. Its early relationships included international businesses in personal care, household products and pharmaceuticals, giving the company experience in brand management and national distribution. In 1960 Nissim acquired ICIS, a canned-meat producer in Cermenate. Renamed Trinity Alimentari in 1965, the company launched Rio Mare tuna, which became the group’s central food brand. Exportex expanded its Italian network during the 1960s and 1970s, while related activities entered chemicals and household care. Rio Mare began international expansion in Greece in 1978. That year Bolton Group B.V. was established in Amsterdam, and Bolton later opened a Milan branch before taking control of Exportex and Trinity in 1981. The group’s early consolidation included a minority position in Beecham Italia, which produced personal-care and hygiene items including Aquafresh toothpaste. Bolton sold that interest to Beecham in 1992. In 1982 it acquired Manitoba Paper Italia from Kimberly-Clark, adding household, paper and laundry-care brands. In food, Trinity acquired SIE in 1986, strengthening the Napoleon canned-sardine business. These moves established the pattern of combining manufacturing, distribution and brand ownership across several consumer categories. The 1990s brought rapid portfolio expansion. Bolton acquired or added businesses and brands including Brill, Manetti & Roberts, Lines, UHU, CILE, Bison, Rogé Cavaillé and Saupiquet. The company also expanded geographically, opening subsidiaries in Western and later Eastern Europe. In 2001 it sold the Lines diaper division to Kimberly-Clark, demonstrating that portfolio management included divestments as well as acquisitions. Further additions in the 2000s included Kolmat, Bostik, Alco, Palmera, Petreet and Sanogyl. Food became the group’s principal growth platform in the 2010s. In 2012 Bolton acquired 40% of Grupo Calvo and purchased Simmenthal from Kraft for approximately €100 million. Because of competition concerns, Bolton placed Manzotin on the market; Generale Conserve acquired it in 2013. Bolton acquired 75% of Conservas Garavilla in 2015 and the remaining 25% in 2016, adding production sites in Spain, Ecuador and Morocco. The group expanded its control of the tuna value chain in 2019. It acquired Omia Laboratories through Manetti & Roberts and took full control of Tri Marine, after first acquiring a minority interest in 2013. Tri Marine added international tuna trading, supply-chain management and fishing operations. Environmental scrutiny of tuna sourcing led Bolton to announce a more progressive sourcing policy in 2018. In 2019 Joseph Nissim died at the age of 100. During the 2020s Bolton continued its acquisition-led strategy. Canned-seafood demand increased in Europe during the early COVID-19 period. The group bought Wild Planet Foods in 2021, the Madel Group later that year, Unipak in 2023 and Repair Care in January 2025. By 2024, the supplied reference material described Bolton as operating across food, home care, personal care, adhesives and cosmetics, with revenue of €3.5 billion and more than 11,000 employees. The group’s current identity combines a large international food platform with specialist household, personal-care, cosmetic and adhesive brands.
- 2025
Repair Care acquisition
[1]The group expands its adhesives division with Dutch wood-repair specialist Repair Care.
- 2023
Unipak acquisition
[1]Bolton adds a Danish sealants business serving Northern Europe and the Baltic states.
- 2021
Wild Planet Foods joins Bolton
[1]The group expands its North American sustainable canned-fish presence.
- 2019
Tri Marine becomes wholly owned
[1]Bolton completes its acquisition of the global tuna supply-chain company.
- 2015
Conservas Garavilla acquisition begins
[1]Bolton acquires 75% of the Spanish canned-fish company and completes ownership in 2016.
- 2012
Simmenthal and Grupo Calvo transactions
[1]Bolton buys Simmenthal from Kraft and acquires a 40% stake in Grupo Calvo.
- 1994
UHU joins the portfolio
[1]Bolton acquires German adhesive brand UHU.
- 1981
Bolton takes control of Exportex and Trinity
[1]The group consolidates its distribution and food-manufacturing foundations.
- 1978
Bolton Group B.V. is established
[1]A Dutch holding company is created as the business prepares for broader international expansion.
- 1965
Rio Mare is launched
[1]Trinity Alimentari enters canned tuna with Rio Mare, which becomes Bolton’s flagship food brand.
Products and positioning
Broad, brand-led consumer goods with strong European heritage, mass-market reach and selected premium or specialist positions.
Canned seafood · 1965
Rio Mare
Bolton’s signature seafood brand, launched through Trinity Alimentari in the 1960s. It sells canned tuna and related seafood products and has expanded internationally. The brand introduced an organic tuna line certified by the Marine Stewardship Council in 2017.
Canned meat
Simmenthal
An Italian canned-meat brand acquired by Bolton from Kraft in 2012. It became a major component of Bolton’s Italian food portfolio after the group divested Manzotin to address competition concerns.
Adhesives
UHU
German adhesive brand producing glues and related bonding products. UHU is part of Bolton’s adhesives division, which also covers sealants, lubricants and welding products.
Cosmetics · 1993
Collistar
Italian cosmetics brand acquired by Bolton in 1993 and included in the group’s cosmetics activities.
Personal care · 1992
Manetti & Roberts
Italian personal-care business and brand platform within Bolton. It manages personal-hygiene products and acquired Omia Laboratories in 2019.
Seafood · 1999
Saupiquet
French seafood brand acquired by Bolton in 1999 and operated within the group’s food division.
Canned fish · 2004
Wild Planet Foods
US canned-fish company acquired by Bolton in 2021 and known for positioning around sustainable seafood.
Brand decisions
2018
Progressive tuna-sourcing policyStrategyBackground
Environmental organizations had criticized aspects of Bolton’s tuna-sourcing practices.
Action taken
Bolton announced a more progressive policy for sourcing tuna.
Aftermath
The policy became part of the group’s response to sustainability scrutiny in its seafood business.
2012
Simmenthal acquisition and Manzotin divestmentM&ABackground
Bolton sought to strengthen its canned-meat portfolio by acquiring Simmenthal from Kraft. Competition concerns followed the transaction.
Action taken
Bolton purchased Simmenthal and placed Manzotin on the market; Generale Conserve acquired Manzotin in 2013.
Aftermath
Bolton retained Simmenthal while reducing overlap in its Italian canned-meat activities.
Purchase price for Simmenthal. Approximately €100 million (2012)
Sources1 sources
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