Continued growth
Klaes enters the anniversary year with positive overall development and new products
In 2022, Horst Klaes GmbH & Co. KG from Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler successfully continued the growth of the past years. After the incredible year 2021 with the highest sales in the company's history - despite Corona and the Ahrtal flood - "the numbers" could again be significantly increased. Miriam Berzen and Lars Klaes are proud that they, together with the worldwide Klaes team, can continue their father's life's work so successfully and lead the company into its anniversary year with continuous growth. Because Klaes was founded in December 1983 and therefore from BAU 2023 to Fensterbau/Frontale 2024 the motto is: 40 years of Klaes!
According to Lars Klaes (Klaes management), the success factors "broad product range", "worldwide markets with regional contacts" and "customized services" will be continued and further expanded. Following the launch of the digital training offering, the Klaes Web Campus, a number of new software solutions will be launched in 2023 that will enable customers' workflows to be organized digitally even more comprehensively. To set a good example itself, Klaes has set itself the goal of being completely digital in its own company organization by 2025 at the latest.
At the same time, however, it is also crucial that the team grows with us and that all the experts stay on board. That's why Miriam Berzen (Klaes management) is particularly concerned about Klaes daycare for toddlers from 0 to 3 years old. It is one of the few large daycare centers in Rhineland-Palatinate and ensures that both parents can return to work earlier after the birth - if they want to. "Otherwise, work and family would be much more difficult to balance," she knows from her own experience, because her youngest is also just at Klaes i-Tüpfelchen.
Markets
Germany, still Klaes' core market, is undergoing some changes. Not in terms of stable positive development in all regions and target groups. Companies also continue to use Klaes solutions for the consistent expansion of end-to-end digitalization. But the topics of "mobile working" and "more IT security" are increasingly changing attitudes towards cloud computing and the associated rental of infrastructure and software solutions. At Klaes, buying and renting can even be combined and so there is a suitable concept for every company.
The export markets also grew compared to the previous year and reached a new high. Very good growth was achieved above all by the teams in Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland.
Klaes China was also successful despite the challenges posed by many strict Corona lockdowns, not least due to increasing expansion to other Asian countries. The South-East Europe region with Bosnia, Croatia, Serbia and Bulgaria was again very important. Here, the Klaes team has been achieving very stable and good sales for years. Overall, sales increases were achieved in almost all countries.
The reasons for this positive development are the same as in Germany: Many companies only really became aware of the importance of digitalization during the Corona pandemic. In addition, many window manufacturers complain about staff shortages and a lack of applicants. This leads to investments in workflow optimization and production automation to compensate for staff shortages.
Products
When it came to products, the focus was of course very often on Klaes industry solutions along the entire value chain - locally or also in Klaes' own cloud. In addition, the solutions for home office, mobile working, document management and cloud telephony were increasingly in demand.
The wide variety of products offered by customers, in addition to the classic window construction elements, also created demand: curtain wall and window wall facades, patio roofs, winter conservatories, pergolas, and house and room doors.
In addition, more and more customers are successfully using the web configurator links. In the roller shutter sector alone, there are already over 300. This "data on demand" is now available to Klaes customers from various manufacturers for roller shutters, external venetian blinds, door panels and accessories.-
New time management: the smart web solution runs everywhere - no matter whether PC, terminals or any mobile devices -
New assembly planning: the intuitive user interface provides a clear overview and high flexibility - with little effort
Activities
Fortunately, in 2022 there were again several national trade shows around the world that were very well attended. At other events with deliberately limited numbers of participants, it was also noticeable that the desire for direct communication was there again. Joint events with partner companies were also particularly important to provide participants with comprehensive information - e.g., for a machine investment.
From Klaes' point of view, large-scale international events have not yet worked and therefore it was right not to participate in them. The digital alternatives built up during the Corona period continued to create demand in all countries in 2022. The regular web presentations are now regularly used by many companies to find out about the extensive possibilities at Klaes.
Outlook
2023 will again be the first normal trade show year for Klaes, i.e. the Klaes presence will be as before Corona. Starting with BAU in April, continuing with LIGNA in May and ending with Fensterbau/Frontale 2024, the company's anniversary will be celebrated with many of its own regional events in all markets. In addition, "40 years of Klaes" also brings a product offensive.
Klaes will launch its own time management, assembly planning and cRM solution. According to Lars Klaes, this will drive the digitization of the industry even further - and more new building blocks are already in the starting blocks. But also important is the longstanding successful cooperation with customers and supplier partners, which will certainly get new impulses again at the upcoming events - we are looking forward to it.