Friday, June 15, 2012, marked the 111th anniversary on which the qualified draper and clothier Hans Grohe established his own sheet metal manufacturing business in Schiltach in the Black Forest in the year 1901. The company became a pioneering enterprise in the sanitation industry that was just starting to develop at the time, has today blossomed into a world renowned brand, a company whose products are used daily in more than 120 countries across the globe.
“In these fast-moving times, it should not be taken for granted that a company will be able to grow and develop so successfully over such a long period of time,” says Siegfried Gaensslen, Chairman of the Management Board of Hansgrohe SE. “This could only be achieved thanks to Hansgrohe’s persistent challenging of the old-fashioned ways of doing things, together with the company’s ability to reinvent itself whenever it was necessary,” he added.
A major asset right from the start has been the creative spirit and passion form innovation of the company’s founder, the gifted inventor Hans Grohe – and it is a legacy that is maintained and nurtured until this very day. It is a well established fact that Hansgrohe SE has shaped bathroom history and continually set new standards with inventions ranging from the world’s first automatic drain and overflow system, the showerbar, the handspray with variable jets right through to the water and energy-saving EcoSmart-technology, as well as with its multi-award-winning design concepts.
“It is because our partners in the market appreciate and respect us for our ambition to increase the benefit to the customer, and hence the quality of their lives, through real innovation. This is not confined to manufacturing innovative products, however: it is also a matter of coming up with innovative ideas in relation to service, and the way we relate to customers,” explains Siegfried Gaensslen. As the 29th subsidiary of the global company, Hansgrohe South Africa has established itself as a key industry player in the market by adopting these ideals and establishing a sustainable distribution network across the African continent.
On this basis, the company is continuing on its course for growth even in the face of the difficult economic conditions prevailing in 2012. “We are indeed performing well, given the recessionary trends affecting many parts of the world. In the project business, we have been able to achieve some stunning successes, including the supply of equipment for four sports stadiums in Poland and Ukraine,” said the CEO of Hansgrohe. “In the fields of logistics and manufacturing, we have now reached the limits of our capacities, and we are therefore thinking about expanding our operation.” The Black Forest-based mixer and shower manufacturer set a new record in 2011 with net sales reaching € 764 million.
