In 2016, the 474 EUROBAUSTOFF specialist retailers with their 1,534 sites have, for the twelfth time in succession, secured their cooperation headquarters a significant increase in buying volume. With an improvement of the centrally calculated turnover volume of 4.6 % compared to the previous year, the total turnover increased to 5.86 billion euros (previous year: 5.6 billion euros).
Austrian specialist retailers accounted for 318 million euros of this sum. External sales in the partner businesses increased to 14 billion euros in total. Hereby the EUROBAUSTOFF specialist retailers managed to maintain their leading position as a cooperation amongst other European cooperations of mid-sized specialist retailers for building materials, wood and tiles.
“Last year’s increase is solely thanks to our specialist retailers,” emphasised Ulrich Wolf, Chairman EUROBAUSTOFF Management Board, at a press conference on 18. January at the BAU in Munich. “In 2016 we neither listed new suppliers with strong turnover nor accepted new partners. The growth therefore was the result of the strength of our specialist retailers and the very significant increase indicates that we have triggered our own building boom here.”
The cooperation headquarters as a popular service campus in the cooperation is also an important source of ideas and inspiration for the specialist retailers who are able to boost sales with their very specialist knowledge regarding their region, customers and product ranges. The presence in the market, their presentation as a local or regional brand combined with the claim of the owner-managed, mid-sized enterprise-defined corporate philosophy gives them a noticeable success bonus which is reflected in the figures.
“2016 was, in general, a very good year for building,” confirms Managing Director Hartmut Möller. “After initial surveys, the building industry predicts a total increase of almost 6 %. However, this volume of 107 billion euros includes not only materials but also all other building services.” It is estimated that 290,000 residential units were built in 2016 and the figure is set to increase to more than 300,000 this year.
“50,000 to 100,000 units are still required to ensure that the extra demand doesn’t increase further,” says Möller quoting the findings of the study on housing demand commissioned by the BDB.
As a result of the restructuring of the goods segments which took place at the start of 2016, it is now for the first time also possible to see how the turnover is distributed across the trades. The biggest segment within the cooperation is building construction. With an increase of 4.6 %, this clearly reflects the positive development in the housing market. In contrast, the roofs & façades / building metals segment increased only marginally (0.8 %). This is, on the one hand, due to a very indifferent price development and also due to the fact that many newly built homes were not detached or semi-detached homes with roofs but in buildings of flats. Last but not least, new trends with lower roof pitches / flat roof constructions also played a role as this also decreased the turnover volume.
Civil engineering and gardening and landscaping, meanwhile, as well as drywall installations and insulation materials ended the annual rally with an increase of 5.1 % each. Both sectors had the most turnover growth in the year’s final quarter.
Whilst a significant increase can be seen in demand in the civil engineering and gardening and landscaping sector, drywall installations and insulation materials suffered from two problems involving publicity: the classification of exterior insulation systems with view to waste disposal and fire protection as well as the crisis amongst the general inspection reports of the building authority (abP).
The best development in 2016 was, once again, in the retail, wood and building elements sectors as well as in tiles/natural stone. The success of retail trade (increase of 5.6%) is based on the many concepts and sales modules and the intensive advice and support offered by external sales employees including the individual orientation of each retail area. In the wood and building elements sectors, it is the trade and professional customer orientated sales concepts which were developed in the EUROBAUSTOFF service campus which are becoming increasingly noticeable (growth of 7.5 %).
The greatest increase in turnover within the segments was again generated by tiles/natural stone. With an increase of 8.7 %, the tile specialists clearly achieved above average figures. Here it is particularly the clear sales policy, the strong commitment of the specialist group members in tiles and the consistent use of the own brands Cerabella and Ceratech which were decisive. The great financial commitment of many partners in high quality tile exhibitions also played a role here.
The current highlight here is the digital tile presentation which was presented at the FORUM 2015 as project “Ausstellung 2020” and has already been realised numerous times in new exhibitions.
The basis for all this success stems from the partners in the region. “At the end of 2016, the cooperation incorporated 474 partners with 1,534 sites,” explains Managing Director Jörg Hoffmann. “A new partner joined at the beginning of the new year – Johann Gronewold Baustoffe (building materials) in Holtrop. We will announce further new members as soon as the contracts are signed.”
All three EUROBAUSTOFF managing directors therefore see bright prospects for the building industry and, with this, also for the cooperation. There are plenty of reasons for this: demand for housing remains high and commercial construction remains positive. What’s more, financing is still at an all time low. 2017 is also an election year. Bearing all this in mind, Ulrich Wolf predicts an increase of 2.5 % this year: “To ensure that we achieve this, we will give our partners all possible help in buying, marketing, sales, training and further training and with our key subject for 2017, digitalisation in the partner companies.”
