NEWS
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It also allows DAWN to focus as a distributor without
having to deal with any manufacturing-related
challenges,” says Suelmann.
DISTRIBUTION OF LIXIL AFRICA’S RANGE
“Although DAWN will be the master distributor, it does
not mean they will be the sole distributor — the DAWN
agreement is a non-exclusive third-party agreement.
Simply, the ‘master distribution’ role aims to achieve a
wider and deeper distribution of all brands and they will
carry a full range of all of our brands.”
PRODUCT RANGE AND INNOVATION
“LIXIL will not bring its own product range into South
Africa. LIXIL Africa will be the legal company name,
ensuring that we have one face to the customer and one
supply chain. The GDWT brands will remain the brands,
for good reasons, as the brands are so different. We
have the Cobra brand, which is a long-standing South
African icon — a typical target group for the plumber;
the GROHE brand, which is the more high-end showroom
product offering, driven by technology and innovation;
and then we have ISCA, which is targeted more at the
value level in retail and DIY outlets.”
Suelmann noted, “LIXIL opens a huge amount of
opportunity within the R&D and technology space. R&D
is very expensive when you are just doing it for an
operation in one particular country, but when you are
doing R&D across the world, it starts to make sense, so
we will have access to those types of technologies, which
will potentially allow us to incorporate some of the new
developments into our existing brands. As an example, if
you look at Vaal Sanitaryware, LIXIL has technologies that
include special glazing, which prevents dirt from settling
on it; this is a technology that we can implement.
“Any upgrades required to make use of any of the new
technology will depend from facility to facility, but we
have already started on our five-year investment plan,
which is a significant step for us.”
STOCK, PROMOTION, AND CUSTOMER COMFORT
“Yes, we have had supply chain issues, and there were
several reasons for this, but we have sorted out a lot
of those issues and at this moment in time, I would
say orders have improved significantly as well as the
availability of stock for all our customers.
“The environment is really competitive at the moment;
however, it is very important to differentiate that as a local
manufacturer, we have the unique ability to offer the market
all of these services that is just a phone call away, with
really good technical assistance and great warranties that
we can see through immediately,” Suelmann comments.
www.plumbingafrica.co.za
GETTING BACK THE CUSTOMERS’ CONFIDENCE
“This final step is very good: we have clarity in the
ownership structure and we have clarity between
manufacturing and distribution — I think many people in
the market were waiting for this.
As part of the five-year
investment plan, new
machinery has been purchased
and installed.
“I can acknowledge that we have been through a very
difficult time with our customers and you may question
whether we are going to do things differently. To see
the difference, all you have to do is walk through the
Krugersdorp plant.
“We will work continuously on this (implementing and
proving our changes) and our credibility. We hope that
people are going to see the benefits of these changes
and our service, as well as how competitively we are
producing and marketing our products.
“In terms of our brands and main portfolios, we are not
closing or rationalising our brands; they are going to be
remaining exactly as they are currently. We are going
to continue to market them as the individual brands,
positioned correctly so that they fulfill a specific need in
the market. I know we have had lots of rumours about
some of the brands being discontinued and the factories
closing. I would like to state that this is absolutely not
going to happen. They will now just be brands of the new
legal entity called LIXIL Africa,” Suelmann continues.
WHAT THIS DEAL REALLY MEANS TO
THE SANITARYWARE MARKET
“Firstly, from a LIXIL point of view, Africa was the ‘white
spot’ on the map because LIXIL was active over all the
other continents: in Asia, mainly through LIXIL and Inax;
the Middle East and Europe mainly through GROHE; and
in America, through American Standard. Africa has now
been covered through the conclusion of this transaction.
“From a South African perspective, I believe it is very
important that we have South African brands —
produced in South Africa, by South Africans. We should
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November 2017 Volume 23 I Number 9