Michele Ferrero, The Man Who Brought Nutella to the World, Dies

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Tic Tac mints.  Ferrero Rocher chocolates.  Nutella spread.  All these delicious confectionery products are produced by Ferrero SpA, a $30 billion company, and brought to life by Michele Ferrero, who died at the age of 89.

He was a family man and had a great, global vision for his firm (well ahead of his time):

It was Michele Ferrero’s vision to expand internationally. In the 1950s, he opened production plants and offices in Europe. He expanded to the rest of the world starting in the 1970s. All the while the company shunned acquisitions, breaking into foreign markets by introducing products catering to local tastes.

Ferrero is the world’s fourth-biggest chocolate confectionery company, with 8% of the global chocolate market. No. 3 Nestlé has 12%, according to consumer research group Euromonitor’s data from 2013.

Read the obituary:  Italian Chocolatier Found Success with Nutella

And what a sweet ending ... he passed away on Valentine's Day.