Davide Riboni
Italian Group CEO in consumer goods. Board member, investor and private equity advisor, based in Dubai.
Summary
Davide Riboni is an Italian Group CEO based in Dubai, with twenty years in consumer goods (FMCG) across Europe, the Americas, Asia and the Middle East. He is Group CEO and Executive Director of Tapal Group. He was previously Group Chief Commercial & Strategy Officer of IDS Borjomi Group and President & CEO of Lavazza Americas, after strategy consulting at the Boston Consulting Group and Kearney.
He builds and transforms consumer businesses by aligning people, priorities and resources, and works with boards, private equity investors and family owners on growth, governance and value creation. Alongside his executive roles he is an investor and director of Soprana Watches, an independent Swiss watchmaker.
- Current role
- Group CEO & Executive Director, Tapal Group, since August 2026
- Nationality
- Italian
- Based in
- Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- CEO experience
- Since 2017: President & CEO of Lavazza Americas, then Group CEO of Tapal Group
- International path
- Milan, Turin, Madrid, New York, Dubai
- Categories
- Coffee, tea, premium beverages, Swiss watchmaking
- Channels
- Retail, e-commerce, foodservice, office coffee
- Markets
- Europe, the Americas, Asia and the Middle East, with experience in more than 25 countries
- P&L responsibility
- $500M-$1B across executive roles
- M&A
- 8 acquisitions and integrations
- Education
- MBA, IE Business School, Madrid (full scholarship); MSc in Business Management summa cum laude and BSc, Università Carlo Cattaneo LIUC
- Languages
- Italian (native), English (fluent)
An Italian CEO with an international career
Davide Riboni trained in Italy and built his executive career abroad. After his master’s degree at LIUC he worked in strategy consulting in Milan from 2006 to 2014, with Kearney and the Boston Consulting Group, and completed a full-time MBA at IE Business School in Madrid. He then led commercial strategy at Lavazza’s headquarters in Turin. In 2017 he moved to the United States as President & CEO of Lavazza Americas, and in 2020 Lavazza also named him President of Lavazza Professional North America and Asia Pacific. Since 2024 he has worked from Dubai, first at IDS Borjomi Group and, since August 2026, as Group CEO of Tapal Group.
He became a CEO eleven years after completing his degree and has since led businesses in North America, the Middle East and South Asia. He belongs to a new generation of Italian CEOs who pair Italy’s culture of brands and products with operating experience in international markets.
Career
Tapal Group
Leads the development of the group, with a focus on growth, governance, commercial performance and international opportunities.
IDS Borjomi Group
Led a commercial organisation of more than 1,500 people and the strategy agenda of an international premium beverage group.
Soprana Watches
Supports independent Swiss watchmaking through commercial strategy, brand positioning and business systems.
Lavazza Americas
As Lavazza’s most senior executive in the region, he led more than 340 people and a multi-brand, omnichannel coffee business (Lavazza, Kicking Horse Coffee, Lavazza Professional) across retail, e-commerce, foodservice and office coffee. He first took the U.S. business through a turnaround that doubled its size; from 2020 he was also President of Lavazza Professional North America and Asia Pacific. Net sales and gross margin grew threefold like-for-like between 2017 and 2022, and Lavazza opened its first U.S. roasting plant in West Chester, Pennsylvania, in 2022.
Lavazza Group
Boston Consulting Group
Kearney
Working with boards, investors and owners
- Transformation and growth. Professionalising businesses, strengthening the operating model and turning strategy into P&L performance.
- M&A and integration. Connecting the investment thesis to commercial diligence, acquisition execution and post-merger delivery.
- Brands and routes to market. Portfolio choices, brand positioning, channel strategy and international expansion.
- Private equity advisory. Advising private-equity investors on large transactions, commercial diligence and value creation.
- Coffee expertise. Operating experience across the coffee value chain: brands, channels, manufacturing and international expansion.
- Boards and ownership. Working with investors and family owners on strategy, governance and disciplined value creation.
How he uses AI in business: Applied AI.
Questions
Who is Davide Riboni?
Davide Riboni is an Italian Group CEO in consumer goods, based in Dubai. He is Group CEO and Executive Director of Tapal Group and previously served as President & CEO of Lavazza Americas and as Group Chief Commercial & Strategy Officer of IDS Borjomi Group. He is also a board member, investor and private equity advisor.
Is Davide Riboni Italian?
Yes. Davide Riboni is an Italian citizen, based in Dubai. He studied at Università Carlo Cattaneo LIUC, worked in strategy consulting in Milan and at Lavazza’s headquarters in Turin, then led businesses in the United States, the Middle East and South Asia.
What international experience does he have?
He has worked in more than 25 countries across Europe, the Americas, Asia and the Middle East. He lived in the United States as President & CEO of Lavazza Americas from 2017 to 2023, and from 2020 was also President of Lavazza Professional North America and Asia Pacific. He has been based in Dubai since 2024.
How long has he been a CEO?
Since 2017, eleven years after completing his degree. He was President & CEO of Lavazza Americas from 2017 to 2023 and has been Group CEO and Executive Director of Tapal Group since August 2026. In between, as Group Chief Commercial & Strategy Officer of IDS Borjomi Group, he led a commercial organisation of more than 1,500 people.
What is his track record in consumer goods?
Twenty years across coffee, tea, premium beverages and Swiss watchmaking. At Lavazza Americas, net sales and gross margin grew threefold like-for-like between 2017 and 2022, and the company opened its first U.S. roasting plant in 2022. Across executive roles he has held P&L responsibility of $500M-$1B and worked on 8 acquisitions and integrations.
Which markets and channels has he led?
Businesses across Europe, the Americas, Asia and the Middle East, with experience in more than 25 countries. At Lavazza Americas he led a multi-brand business across retail, e-commerce, foodservice and office coffee.
How does he work with private equity investors and family owners?
He advises private-equity investors on large transactions, commercial diligence and value creation, and works with investors and family owners on strategy, governance and disciplined value creation, from the investment thesis to post-merger delivery.
Where did he study?
He holds an MBA from IE Business School in Madrid, earned with a full scholarship, and a BSc and an MSc in Business Management from Università Carlo Cattaneo LIUC in Italy, the MSc summa cum laude.
How does he use AI?
He builds decision tools and operating workflows: management dashboards, AI-assisted investment research and valuation models, and custom commercial software.
How can I contact Davide Riboni?
By email at davide.riboni@gmail.com or on LinkedIn.
Public sources
- Lavazza Group announces Davide Riboni as President of Lavazza Professional NAAP, PR Newswire, 2020
- Management team, Tapal Tea
- Davide Riboni, LinkedIn