Setting a course for growth

BLANCO focusing on added value for the kitchen water place

Frank Gfrorer - BLANCO CEO
Frank Gfrörer - Chief Executive Officer, BLANCO

Oberderdingen (Germany) 03/05/2024 – Despite an exceptionally difficult international market, the BLANCO Group generated sales of around €413 million in the 2023 financial year. This equates to a decline of around 16% compared to the previous year. The very weak state of the international construction and new kitchen sector was the main factor in this downturn. Against this backdrop, over the past year the BLANCO management team set a direction for the company in terms of cost structure, organisation, product portfolio and brand orientation, thereby paving the way for future growth. CEO Frank Gfrörer believes that these efforts have now positioned the company to begin growing again. "We have consistently continued our strategic course despite the adverse circumstances," he says. "We are upgrading the water place for private kitchens with the BLANCO UNIT and positioning ourselves in the premium segment. Our new CHOICE water system and other product innovations, a new brand identity and developments at our locations will all help with this."

Further development of the product portfolio

In the autumn of last year, BLANCO presented the new multifunctional water system BLANCO CHOICE to retailers and the public. Besides normal tap water, the 6-in-1 water system offers filtered, boiling water and chilled water – still, medium sparkling and fully sparkling. With this premium system, BLANCO is focusing on an aesthetically appealing, convenient and technically impressive product experience, with particular appeal for pleasure-oriented, quality-conscious consumers. The BLANCO UNIT app, designed for controlling and supporting remote maintenance, now allows CHOICE consumables to be reordered with ease via the BLANCO online shop.

Frank Gfrörer sees the CHOICE as an important marker of BLANCO's shift towards growth: "We are very satisfied with how it has performed so far. In addition to the multiple functionalities for water, consumers particularly like the fact that it can be integrated effortlessly into a BLANCO UNIT, with a space-saving design. It takes the entire kitchen water place to the next level."

Other innovations, such as BLANCO Multi Frame variants that complement the range, new colours and surfaces for a consistent design language, and the expansion of the accessories portfolio also aim to embed the BLANCO UNIT system on the market.

BLANCO Group Management Board (from left to right): CFO Rüdiger Böhle, CEO Frank Gfrörer, COO Holger
BLANCO UNIT

Brand identity reworked

BLANCO is conducting a new campaign alongside the current market launch of BLANCO CHOICE in Germany and the United Kingdom. Under the slogan “You've got the CHOICE”, BLANCO focuses on the wide range of water preparation options and the versatility of the modular system that the BLANCO UNIT offers for the kitchen water place as a whole. The campaign offers retailers the opportunity to showcase the technical and design added value of CHOICE for BLANCO UNIT in a more targeted manner. The campaign appeals to consumers with a low-threshold emotional appeal that is intended to arouse curiosity and enthusiasm for high-quality kitchen water place fittings.     

The campaign for the CHOICE launch also provides a vision of the new BLANCO brand identity that will be gradually introduced over the next few months and rolled out across all touchpoints – from our own digital channels and Brand Experience Centres to the POS materials for retail support. Media campaigns on key online platforms and the standard channels are also intended to help anchor the new appearance in the minds of consumers and increase the number of visitors in retail. Frank Gfrörer sees this as an important step that highlights to the outside world the company’s transformation into a system provider for the kitchen water place: "The ability to change is one of BLANCO's great strengths – and has been for almost 100 years. We have undergone a major evolution in recent years and are now expressing this visibly to the outside world with our new campaign."

Locations strengthened and delivery reliability increased

With investments in the double-digit million range, BLANCO targeted improvements to its production and logistics locations in the 2023 financial year to prime them for future tasks.

The Sulzfeld site has been enhanced with additional expertise and is responsible for processing stainless steel, final assembly of the Multi Frame models and handling returns. With the successful introduction of the Manufacturing Execution System (MES) at the Toronto (CA) and Most (CZ) sites, the Global Production Centre Composite now enjoys excellent positioning worldwide. Following the rollout of a modern IT system for warehouse management in the USA and Canada, the company’s seven logistics sites are now also working on a common platform, generating significant efficiency advantages.

COO Holger Stephan has noticed the positive effects of the changes on delivery reliability and quality at BLANCO: "For us, OTIF, which stands for 'on time, in full', is an extremely important key figure. We have made significant improvements in this area thanks to the measures and are now at over 90%. This brings us closer to our self-set target – ensuring that our trading partners can rely on us."

Collaboration between management and workforce

Last year, the BLANCO management responded to the difficult market situation with an extensive package of measures. The use of short-time working in all areas of the company has taken the pressure off the cost side and maintained the necessary staff flexibility. At the same time, the BLANCO Execution Programme (BEP) was launched to make the company as a whole more agile and efficient, and thus increase its competitiveness and profitability. The measures were supplemented with extensive and intensive training and communication activities aimed at the workforce in order to drive forward the transformation of the company.

Last year, the number of employees in the BLANCO Group fell from 1,634 to 1,544. In all cases, this occurred due to natural staff turnover and individual agreements, rather than operational terminations. In this context, CFO Rüdiger Böhle emphasises the importance of close cooperation between the workforce and the management team in the current situation: "On behalf of the Management Board, I would like to expressly thank our employees, who have dealt with the past year with great flexibility and real commitment. In these challenging times, such close cooperation between staff and management is vitally important."

The environment remains difficult – but BLANCO has set a course for growth

BLANCO remains cautious with regard to the overall market development in its forecast for the 2024 financial year. In particular, the weakness of the construction sector in key markets and the noticeable ongoing consumer reticence in the kitchen sector are hampering development. At the same time, BLANCO believes that it is well positioned in all areas. CEO Frank Gfrörer sums up the situation: “With an attractive product portfolio, well-positioned locations and a clear strategic direction, we have everything we need to grow."

The 2023 financial year in figures

Consolidated total sales €413 million (–€80 million/ –16%)

Domestic sales

€147 million (–€20 million/ –12%)

International sales

€266 million (–€60 million/ –18%)

Percentage of sales generated abroad

64%

Investments

€11 million

Employees (full-time/end of 2022)

1,544

- of which in Germany

1,038

- of which in international locations

506

(rounded*) Please note that rounding may result in differences from the exact figures for percentages, absolute values and comparisons with the previous year.

*) Please note that rounding may result in differences from the exact figures for percentages, absolute values and comparisons with the previous year.

BLANCO offers system solutions for the water place in domestic kitchens. The BLANCO UNIT is synonymous with functional systems in complementary designs, consisting of bowls, high-end mixer taps, water purification with natural carbon dioxide, filtration, cooling, boiling water at the touch of a button and supplementary accessories, right the way through to waste and base cabinet organisation systems. The wide range of functions and the variety of designs, colours and materials ensure flexibility for retailers and kitchen planners and give consumers a wide choice to suit every taste.

Founded in 1925, the company is now an internationally established premium brand for the kitchen water place. With subsidiaries in Europe, North America and APAC, together with its trading partners, the BLANCO brand has a presence in around 100 countries and offers a portfolio that is perfectly tailored to the respective needs of consumers. In addition to the company headquarters in Oberderdingen in Baden-Wuerttemberg (Germany), there are various production and logistics locations in southwest Germany and in the United Kingdom, Czech Republic, USA, Canada, Australia and China.

In 2023, the BLANCO Group generated consolidated annual sales of €413 million and had 1,544 full-time employees worldwide by the end of the year, of whom 1,038 were working in Germany and 506 at the international locations.

Founded in 1925 by Heinrich Blanc, today BLANCO is part of BLANC & FISCHER Family Holding and has won multiple employer awards.www.blanco.com

With BLANCO, kitchen chores are transformed to be sources of joyful moments. BLANCO is the premium brand for the well-thought-out kitchen water hub in residential homes. At its core, the BLANCO UNIT is based on three founding pillars: “Drink, Prep, Clean” and is characterized by a wide array of seamless combinations of sinks, high-end faucets, water optimization solutions, complementary accessories and organization systems. This range of product and the design, color and material options, make it easy for every kitchen lover to find their perfectly customized UNIT at BLANCO.

Founded over 95 years ago, the company is now an internationally recognized premium brand for the kitchen water hub. With subsidiaries in Europe, North America and APAC, plus its trading partners, BLANCO has a presence in about 100 countries all over the world and offers its customers a portfolio that is perfectly tailored to consumer needs. The company headquarters and key production sites in support of North American demand are in Southwest Germany and Canada.

Established in 1925 by Heinrich Blanc, BLANCO is part of BLANC & FISCHER Family Holding. BLANCO America and BLANCO Canada have proudly served the North American market for over 30 years.

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