Giacomo Groppi

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Giacomo Groppi , also Jacques Groppi , (* 1863 ; † 1958 ), was a Swiss pastry chef , restaurateur and entrepreneur who founded Café Groppi in Cairo in 1920 .

Life path

Giacomo Groppi came from Ticino and after training as a pastry chef and confectioner, during his apprenticeship and traveling years he came to Alexandria via Marseille , where he opened his first café in 1890. In the same year his son Achille was born.

Known as a chocolatier who supplied the royal houses in the Middle East and was the first to offer whipped cream in Egypt, he sold his two pastry shops in 1906 and wanted to retire. A short time later, however, he lost a large part of his fortune and was forced to return to the confectionery business.

In 1909 Groppi opened his first café in Cairo, with which he was able to build on his earlier successes in Alexandria. In the 1920s, the Industrie du Froid, an ice cream factory, was used to supply the Egyptians with ice cream. Son Achille also worked in the company, which was expanded to include a snack chain and a catering service. The parent company, which opened in 1925 at what is now Midan Talaat Harb, developed into a social and cultural center in Cairo. After the war and the death of Achilles, the café began to decline and Giacomo Groppi returned to his homeland in Switzerland, where he died in 1958.

Groppi as a collector

Giacomo and Achille Groppi made a name for themselves as collectors of ancient Egyptian art, especially glass, ceramics and small sculptures. The Antikenmuseum Basel presented an extensive exhibition in 2008. Part of the collection was auctioned in London in 2012.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ https://www.nzz.ch/groppi-1.1151342
  2. ↑ http://www.qualitylifemag.com/groppi-downtown-cairo/
  3. ↑ http://www.antikenmuseumbasel.ch/de/ausstellungen.html
  4. ↑ https://www.faz.net/aktuell/feuilleton/kunstmarkt/altaegyptische-kunst-auf-die-groesse-kom-s-nicht-an-11724583.html
personal data
SURNAME Groppi, Giacomo
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Groppi, Jacques
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Swiss pastry chef and restaurateur
DATE OF BIRTH 1863
DATE OF DEATH 1958