Visiting Profitec in Germany

In 2024 I headed to Copenhagen for the World of Coffee conference. Meeting one of my coffee idols, Lance Hedrick, was a real highlight.

After this I moved on to Heidelberg, Germany, to visit the Profitec factory. After selling Profitec coffee machines for 10 years it was great to visit the factory to see behind the scenes.

When I arrived I was served an espresso by none other than Michael Hauck, owner and Director of both ECM and Profitec. Now that’s what I call a warm welcome. Michael then gave me a complete tour.

We started at Profitec HQ and has a good chat about ECM and Profitec. It was interesting to get Michael’s view on the ECM/Profitec relationship. In summary, Michael owns both companies. ECM is positioned as a traditional Italian-style brand and Profitec is positioned as a younger and more innovative brand. Innovation is a key reason I am a huge fan of Profitec.

Next we moved to a showroom jam packed coffee machines including the Profitec Go, Pro 300, Pro 400, Pro 500, Pro 600, Pro 800, Profitec Drive and Profitec Move. We walked through and discussed every model. Michael was very keen to get my thoughts, and to understand customer feedback. It was great to share ideas.

Michael then took me to the service center and explained how Profitec coffee machines are supported for servicing and for spare parts. He then took me to the Skunk works area and showed me some top secret prototypes.

Next we jumped into a car and headed to the factory. After a photo shoot with a Profitec truck we headed inside and I got to see a range of coffee machines, including the Profitec Pro 400, being built by hand. Yes, truly built by hand in Germany.

Michael saved the very best to last. Michael has his very own coffee museum. He is a keen collector and he has gathered perhaps the best collection of coffee machines in the world. He walked me through the museum and showed me many historical machines.

Michael’s coffee machine museum was a real eye-opener. It was a great example of a business owner being driven by genuine passion. After my day with Michael I had a better understanding of what drives Profitec.

I look forward to continuing to offer Profitec coffee machines to Australian coffee enthusiasts. What a fantastic company.