Europe has suffered an economic downturn over the last two years. How is Phoenix Mecano holding up?
Dr. Rochus Kobler We have done well in this environment. Even in economically challenging times, the strength of the Phoenix Mecano Group really shines through. We are active in two completely different growth sectors that complement each other very well on the demand side. Globally, our position is balanced, which, in recent years, in the face of sluggish industrial demand in Europe, has enabled us to benefit from the effects of dynamic demand in the North American furniture industry.
Phoenix Mecano just managed to maintain its turnover in the 2024 financial year. How do you intend to achieve growth again in the future?
Dr. Rochus Kobler We continue to pursue our growth strategy and aim to achieve our medium- and long-term growth targets. To do this, we are focusing our industrial activities on dynamic growth fields such as industrial digitalization, industrial automation and technologies that support decarbonization. In the DOT Group, we are focusing on innovative drive systems that are used in various areas of the furniture industry. Electrically adjustable furniture, in particular, is the segment that is growing faster than the market. Overall, we are always looking for attractive niches around the world. By attractive, we mean profitable and driven by structural growth.
The DewertOkin Technology Group's new industrial park in China is up and running. Is it already operating at full capacity?
Dr. Rochus Kobler This new industrial park in Jiaxing is a milestone in the development of the DOT Group. And looking ahead, it is an important building block for our future growth. Full utilization now would be wrong. We naturally felt the upswing in the North American market last year, as capacities filled up and our shop floors got busier. At the same time, we actively filled up the factory even more by shifting production of functional furniture fittings to Jiaxing. Moreover, we are consistently and systematically working toward increasing our real net output ratio in a targeted manner.
The US is unsettling the market with threats of tariff increases. What does this mean in concrete terms for the Phoenix Mecano Group?
Dr. Rochus Kobler Our industry activities are only slightly affected by trade policy developments. We have only marginal intercontinental flows of goods to deal with. However, the supply chains of the global furniture industry are international. They cross continental boundaries. And tariffs always have a dampening effect. And tariff threats immediately trigger redundancies. Capacities are duplicated. Risk inventories are built up. All of that ultimately makes the product more expensive for the customer. And that, in turn, means that these customers are less inclined to invest, especially in North America. The DOT Group could suffer indirectly from that. Our advantage, by contrast, is our global production set-up, with production infrastructure on every continent. This enables us, together with our customers, to react flexibly to tariffs and tariff threats.
Phoenix Mecano is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. What is special about this company?
Benedikt Goldkamp As a company listed on the stock exchange, we have our forward-looking strategies, we have transparency, we have professional management. On the other hand, our cornerstone shareholder enables us to plan long-term and focus less on quarterly results.
Phoenix Mecano has rejuvenated its Board of Directors and two women have been newly appointed to the board. Do you feel this change?
Benedikt Goldkamp Our Board of Directors continues to work as it always has – now with the added expertise of the two female members. Ms Hatebur de Calderón is the CEO of a mechanical engineering firm, which is an important segment for us. And Ms Hocker has considerable digitalization expertise, as well as experience in recruiting key personnel. She has already played a role in some of our key projects.
What is Phoenix Mecano doing to avoid suffering from the dispute between China and the USA?
Benedikt Goldkamp The world is currently beset by conflict. China and the USA is just one aspect. We are indeed facing a very dynamic environment. Our response: Phoenix Mecano has a global footprint of production sites, of production bridgeheads. We can expand or downsize them at any time and thus adapt to new tariff regimes. This means we can always meet our customers’ needs with affordable products and quick delivery.
In 2024, Phoenix Mecano's greenhouse gas emissions in Scope 1 and 2 increased slightly. To achieve the target of halving them by 2030, they would have to decrease by 7.5% each year. What happened?
Benedikt Goldkamp Our DewertOkin Technology division has grown rapidly. Our industrial divisions have more or less held steady. In the DOT division, i.e. DewertOkin Technology, we shifted much of our value creation from the supply chain to our in-house value creation. In other words, from Scope 3, which we can’t measure, to Scopes 1 and 2. As a result, this increase is now recorded. But this does not mean that there are more emissions, only that they have been allocated to a different account. More importantly, we are working with the latest machinery and equipment. We are continuously expanding our in-house solar capacities, so that we can operate more efficiently and with cleaner energy than was probably the case in our supply chain previously. This a positive development. But we will further intensify our efforts. We will continue to assess where we can do better. And I am optimistic that we will achieve our objectives for 2030.
