Insight

Over the last years fischer has experienced continuous growth. In 2010 group turnover was €582 million, by 2016 we generated and consolidated group turnover at €755 million – roughly a 30% increase – with more than 4,600 employees. 

For 2017, we had a significantly higher turnover compared to 2016, which will result in most likely double-digit growth. In general, 2017 was very positive even though we faced a lot of political conditions and changes – such as BREXIT, currency devaluation, the developments in Catalonia, Turkey and the political situation with Germany, as well as a lot of other movements in political situations. 

To add to this there has also been a shortage in raw material supply – especially in the chemical market as there are currently shortages in the production capacities of the suppliers. Furthermore, the steel supply situation on procurement markets will be challenging. We try and combat this through our long-term partnership with our suppliers, but it is still a problem impacting the whole market. Nevertheless, we ensured we provided the customers with the products by introducing flexible production processes and additional working shifts during the weekend. There will also be further currency devaluations in the future. 

In terms of market development 2017 was a good year. We saw good development of the Asian market, which is one of our growth markets. In general, we noticed that the speed of business is increasing and there are a lot of market changes, so as a business we need to learn and adapt to these situations. 

Looking forward to the challenges in 2018, I think digitalisation, Industry 4.0, and the increase in speed within the market, will all be big challenges. However, these are not only challenges, but also opportunities for us – especially in our growth markets. To add to this there is also the market potential we have in all our existing regions. 

For the next 5 – 10 years one of our main goals is that we want to produce more in the markets we and our customers are already based. This will help reduce waste, as well as increase the support and service we can offer to customers. We are working on our penetration and introducing new product ranges for regional needs and market needs. 

Key developments for the construction sector will be Building Information Modelling (BIM), which will have a big impact on the market, as well as an increase in productivity and the lack of skilled man power. Compared to other industries, the construction sector is still working in a low-degree of organisation. There is huge potential in the construction industry for high productivity and this is a very good opportunity for us to understand the needs of our customers, as well as the craftsmen and planners. By doing this we are ensuring that we, and our partners, are involved in the very early stages of construction planning. 

As a producer, with our relatively limited assortment, we are not going direct in our main markets, which is why we have such an intensive relationship with specialised retailers and DIY companies. This approach has enabled us to create a strong presence across all our markets and guarantee high-quality products with short-delivery times. However, going forward, we need to provide services to support our distributors’ partners in order to approach the market in a professional manner and to respond to the increasing requirements of the market. For example, we have in the last two years invested massively in e-commerce and proactively created e-commerce marketing strategies for our dealers – supplying all the information and live updates for any e-commerce material they might need. 

Different customers require different information and it is up to us to make sure our distributors have the right material. We have also introduced an online shop with checkout possibility for the customer, but this is through the dealer. 

fischer is perceived in many markets and for many products as a technology leader for fixings. With our strong brand recognition, we have an excellent position for future growth and I think we are well prepared for the future.