ISSUE 1 · SUMMER 2007
Marcus Nybom, Starkki Vantaa:
Sales
“
Must Pay Off “ INSIDE
8 11 14 16
Read page
The Honeymoon is over Wolseley Adopts Builder’s Shops Selling a Forest a Day Women are better prepared
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Glowing Grills Blue Mountain Grills Selling like Hot Cakes
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Dear colleague! Yes, you’re quite right.
4 We have a plan 6 HardTalk 8 The Honeymoon is over 11 Wolseley Adopts Builder’s Shops 12 Bezzer Wizzzer 14 A Forest a day 19 New Design Concept at Stark 23 DT Employees save in shares 24 The Final Word
Selling to Female Customers
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It’s not that hard
Useful numbers: DT Group Wolseley Starkki Stark Beijer Neumann Silvan Cheapy DT Trade
+45 39559700 +44 118 929 8700 +358 3850900 +45 89343434 +46 752411000 +47 55549900 +45 87308730 +46 431443547 +45 39559700
Magazine
Something has happened to your company magazine since the previous issue. The format is new and just right for your pocket, the title DT Magazine is new, and the articles are different from what you’re used to. The transformation has been brought about after consultation with employees in all DT Group divisions, and our hope is that it will help create more transparency on the Nordic level. Another novelty is that the magazine offers you a direct line to the DT Group CEO. And you don’t need to mince your words as we plan to question him closely. The new DT Magazine also tells the story of what happens from the moment the woodcutter cuts down a tree until the finished boards are in the shops. The entire process takes one month. We hope that you’ll enjoy this our first shot and that you’ll want to contribute to making the future issues even better. We welcome your opinion of the magazine and your good ideas. Please don’t hesitate to contact me.
Enjoy your read! Charlotte Gullach, Editor editor@dtmagazine.dk
Editor-in-chief: Charlotte Gullach (DT Group). Concept and Production: Impact Magazines, Pat May. Articles: Redaktionen, Ib Keld Jensen, Lizette Ottensten. Graphic Design: Appetizer.dk, Simon Johnsen. Photos: Das Büro, Ulrik Jantzen. Translation: Scantext. Printing: Trykbureauet.
Contents
We are Expanding New shops since 2006! Stark (7): Within the last months STARK has acquired or established shops in Copenhagen, Roskilde, Lemvig, Hillerød (STARK ByggeDesign), Køge and most recently Svendborg. These initiatives have made STARK a market leader in the most attractive, dynamic and densely populated areas of Denmark. Ledreborg Tømmerhandel. . . . Roskilde . . . . . . . . Ledreborg Tømmerhandel. . . . Osted. . . . . . . . . . . Krejsler Tømmerhandel . . . . . . Lemvig. . . . . . . . . . Adelgaard Byggeforum . . . . . . Hillerød . . . . . . . . . Superbyg Kalallit Nunaat. . . . . Greenland. . . . . . . Jakobsen & Sønner. . . . . . . . . . København. . . . . . XL-Byg, Baagøe & Riber . . . . . Svendborg . . . . . . STARK now has 88 business addresses 83 in Denmark and 5 in Greenland
Denmark Denmark Denmark Denmark Greenland Denmark Denmark
Beijer (6): Lissma Såg & Byggvaror. . . . . Stockholm . . . . . . Strängnäs Brädgård . . . . . . . . . Stängnäs . . . . . . . Hjalmars Trä. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Stenungsund. . . . Carl K Persson & Son. . . . . . . . Eskilstuna. . . . . . . Häggvik. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Stockholm . . . . . . Järn och Trä Orust. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Beijer now has 65 business addresses
Sweden Sweden Sweden Sweden Sweden Sweden
Silvan (2): Silvan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Greve. . . . . . . . . . . Denmark Silvan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Vanløse. . . . . . . . . Denmark Silvan now has 51 business addresses 40 in Denmark and 11 in Sweden
Neumann (2): Røthing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Haugesund. . . . . . Norway H.R. Sandvold . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Haugesund. . . . . . Norway Neuman now has 12 business addresses
DT Trade (3): Helatukku Finland Oy. . . . . . . . Seinajoki. . . . . . . . Finland 4a. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Greve. . . . . . . . . . . Denmark 4a. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Slagelse. . . . . . . . . Denmark DT Trade now has 16 business addresses
Cheapy (7): Cheapy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nässjö. . . . . . . . . . Cheapy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ängelholm. . . . . . . Cheapy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Katrineholm. . . . . Cheapy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Karlskoga. . . . . . . Cheapy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Köping. . . . . . . . . . Cheapy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Värnamo. . . . . . . . Cheapy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Motala. . . . . . . . . . Cheapy now has 22 business addresses
Sweden Sweden Sweden Sweden Sweden Sweden Sweden
New shops. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Total number of shops. . . . . . . . . . . 274
Strategy
We have a – and it is a success 2002+ is the name of the simple strategic plan followed by all divisions and shops in DT Group. It consists of only a few requirements and lets the individual divisions choose themselves how to fulfil them. We have talked to Starkki, Beijer Bygg and Stark, as these chains achieved the best results when measuring on the important parameter P20B. Incentive bonus pays off at Starkki The bonus scheme is one of the initiatives enabling Starkki to earn money for the company as well as for its employees: The salespeople earn
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a bonus if they sell products for more than a certain amount every month. The higher the amount, the higher the bonus. This pays off for both the sales staff and for Starkki, since although it generates increased turnover
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The requirements in the plan are as follows: P20 A The profit margin must be above 20 per cent of the gross profit. P20 B Result that shows how well the shop yields interest on the money invested in it by the owners – the result must be above 20 per cent. But today it is much higher. P45
The staff costs must be max 45 per cent – the means to achieve the aim of P20 A.
P10
An annual sales growth of at least 10 per cent.
We have talked to Starkki, Beijer Bygg and Stark, as these chains achieved the best results when measuring on the important parameter P20B.
it does not to the same extent result in increased staffing costs. In other words: It is more favourable for Starkii to employ one salesperson with a high turnover and consequently a high bonus than employing two salespeople who together generate the same turnover and consequently earn no bonus. ”The bonus scheme definitely makes me work harder,” says Jari Rissanen, a business-tobusiness salesman at Starkki Helsingfors. He has worked for Starkki for eight years and thus started before the introduction of the bonus scheme. ”Obviously it’s important for me to Jai Rissanen, Starkki:
”I must sell enough to generate bonus”
sell enough to achieve a turnover that generates bonus,” he continues and explains that the bonus ladder has four steps, which really gives you something to strive for. ”I provide my sales staff with backup, and we often discuss that the deals must pay off. I don’t mind telling my salespeople that have sold too cheap! The bonus scheme is a constant reminder to me that the deals must pay off,” shop manager Marcus Nybom of Starkki Vantaa explains. His own bonus is based on the overall performance of his shop.
Removing administrative work At Beijer Bygg in Sweden the working days changed when the strategy plans were implemented. The objectives for the shops were to focus on the customers Continued on page 22
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HARDTALK
HardTalk with Steen Weirsøe
How will the negative Wolseley results in the US influence our business? It will not influence the operations of DT Group. Construction activities has dropped considerably which has influenced the earnings at Stock Building Supply with almost 15000 employees. But this is also an opportunity to remember that the bad times may return and that all managers should consider what they would do if the market drops by 10 %.
Why are there no apparent synergies between DT Group and Wolseley yet? I do realise that the synergies are not apparent on shop level. We soon realised that major synergies were to be found in purchasing. In DT Group we already cooperated across borders, and we have established a European purchasing organisation in Wolseley headed by the purchasing manager of DT Group, Ole Mikael Jensen. I would like to stress that we would prefer to keep our present main suppliers. I know how much work it entails in the shops if one of the major suppliers is replaced. This is not something that is done quickly one morning before opening time.
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Will we have more private brands in the shop? Yes, that’s part of the strategy. Both DT Group and Wolseley aim at having a larger share of private brands in our shops - not in order to reduce our sales of brand names but to make us more attractive to customers. And our goal is to increase our sales of both private brands and brand names. The goal is not the same for every division. For instance, our goal is that Silvan will carry 3-4 times as many private brand products as Stark.
Is it true that Raptor is to replace tools for the professionals in the shops? We have gone further than our competitors by introducing a private brand for professionals as a supplement to the brand names. We have had great success with Raw building materials and are well on our way with Raptor. In that area, our present suppliers will really put up a fight as they are not used to this kind of competition. And they will try really hard to prove that Raptor is inferior in qual-
What would you like to ask Steen? Send your question to steen@dtmagazine.dk Don’t mince your words as you may remain totally anonymous.
In a company with 8000 employees the top management may seem far away. However, Hardtalk brings the top management closer and invites you to enter a dialogue with the chief executive officer of DT Group. Steen Weirsøe will answer questions from you and your colleagues - including the tough ones. And even the confrontational ones. That’s the whole point of Hardtalk. We dare you. Steen is ready. Are you?
ity to their own brand names. If a few of our private brand products should fail to fulfil our high demands, we will deal with it. However, we will keep a clear head. Raptor is here to stay.
Why is there so little information on what the other divisions are doing? We focus a lot on exchanging information on management level, and many ideas are exchanged on this level. Especially Stark and Beijer have learned a lot from the Silvan expertise on private consumers, for instance regarding the presentation of the products. The other way around Silvan has benefited from the logistics of Stark as regards timber. Silvan would not have achieved this on its own. And incidentally, this is one of the reasons for reintroducing DT Magazine.
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Synergies
The Honeymoon is over
More than 6 months have passed since DT Group was acquired by Wolseley. So far, this has not lead to any changes in our everyday business. But what lies ahead? Which side of the double bed do you want, and what about me who usually sleeps with the window open? These small but important worries are part and parcel of forming a partnership in your private life. In DT Group and Wolseley we are also beginning to realise what ”matrimonial life” means to day-to-day business. The times when we were a little worried whether the big bad Wolseley would tell tiny DT how things should be are now over. Things did not turn out so badly. The everyday business in the shops hasn’t changed much, if at all. And Wolseley is
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full of praise for the DT Group employees who have succeeded in maintaining business as usual – even with increased sales.
Finding each other’s potential DT Group is the largest acquisition Wolseley has ever made. Thus it is also the greatest challenge Wolseley has ever faced in trying to get the two parties to act as partners. ”We have spent time on analysing what each of us does the best and how we can benefit from being a large group of companies”, says Lars Hansen, CEO of Stark and member of the DT Group corporate manage-
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ment. He believes that the most important result so far is that we have gotten to know a lot of competent colleagues. The first phase of the integration has been to investigate
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the prospects as regards logistics, purchase and sale. Having a large organisation means that shipping products from the Far East is much cheaper due to the large quantities. Another benefit is that we might draw on Wolseley’s European distribution centre. In this way, we can speed up delivery and thereby meet our customers’ demands sooner.
Fewer lorries Another possibility may be to find suppliers whose products can be sold in all Wolseley shops. Søren Lysemose, a product group manager in
Wolseley The name the world builds on
Wolseley was founded in Australia in 1887 by Frederick York Wolseley who manufactured sheep-shearing equipment. Moved to Great Britain two years later Departments in 28 countries in Europe and North America Has more than 5,200 shops Has approx. 78,200 employees. Turnover last accounting year to July 2006 was £ 14,2bn In the autumn of 2006 Wolseley acquired DT Group at a price of £ 1,339m.
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DAY-TO-DAY BENEFITS OF HAVING FEWER SUPPLIERS Fewer deliveries Improved efficiency Fewer contacts Better opportunities for thorough training Increased competitive power
Stark and member of the Nordic purchasing group, has studied the market to find suppliers of floors, windows and doors with whom Wolseley will deal when the new Wolseley central purchasing organisation is in place. The goal is to establish close connections to large suppliers and thereby get more favourable prices and deals. This is not to reduce the number of products for sale but to create a more efficient day-to-day operation – for instance by having the products delivered by three lorries instead of ten. ”The individual shops will still remain fully free to purchase the products that they choose to market. However, many suppliers carry the same products, so reducing the number of suppliers should be no problem.”
Søren Lysemose, Stark:
”The goal is to establish close connections to large suppliers” 10
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Wolseley is content Apart from floors, windows and doors, we have also signed contracts on insulation, plaster, roof tiles and many other product groups. To a large extent, though, the benefits have been in our favour. Wolseley finds that they can learn a lot from DT Group: ”DT Group has a number of business concepts that we are currently implementing in our shops - for instance their shops for professional builders (see article on page 11),” says Sara Harper, who is involved in the integration process at Wolseley. ”We are also most impressed by the excellent way in which DT Group communicates its overall strategies and ideas to the individual shops and the way in which the staff lives up to them,” she continues with reference to DT Group’s main objectives regarding earnings. Employees are often affected by an acquisition due to the changes made to the management; this has not happened here. On the contrary, Wolseley has great respect for the DT Group management. ”DT Group also gains from being part of a large organisation,” Sara Harper explains. ”It provides enhanced security and stability.”
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Wolseley Adopts Builder’s Shops The concept of special shops for professional builders is unknown outside the Nordic region. But Wolseley is crazy about this concept and will now try it out in several countries. Synergy is a fancy word for finding out what each partner is good at and then learning from each other. And synergy is one of the things that should arise from an acquisition like the one DT Group has just experienced. In our case, not least Wolseley has been inspired by us and our concepts – in particular a concept which is a matter of fact to us, but not to Wolseley: the shop for the professional builder where he is in focus and can find everything he needs from coffee filter bags to expensive contractor’s machinery – one-stop shopping. ”This concept is totally unknown in Great Britain,” Kai Ove Hoffmann from Stark explains. He is a member of the group set up by Wolseley to study whether the concept can be introduced in Great Britain, France and Ireland. ”In England they are perhaps six to eight years behind us. English builders buy from small
individual shops. They buy their working clothes from one shop, tools from another, and they might order products themselves from catalogues. And they don’t expect the high level of service and commitment that our salespeople deliver and which makes them return to our shops,” he adds and emphasises the importance of a committed sales force to make the concept work. ”In England the salespeople wait for the customers to come, as there are so many”, he explains. In France they are perhaps three to four years behind, and most of the shopping takes place in specialty shops. Ireland is more like Denmark, but perhaps two years behind and their salespeople still stay behind the counter. Wolseley is now planning to open test shops to learn what we do. The first shops are expected to open in France in the third quarter of this year. Magazine
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QUIZ
Test your knowledge of DT Group, and win a stay in one of our pleasant holiday houses. We grant you a little help: the answers to the questions are all found in this issue of DT Magazine. Good luck! 1 How many Nordic
colleagues work in DT Group? A 6921 B 7183 C 8245
2 In how many
countries is Wolseley present? A 28 B 12 C 22
3 How much timber
do the shops in the entire DT Group sell every day? A 20 soccer fields B 40 soccer fields C 50 soccer fields
4 How long does it
take from the cutting down of the tree to the delivery of the timber to your shop? A Four weeks B Eight weeks C Twelve weeks
5 What is the
Wolseley slogan?
A Because you’re worth it B I’m lovin’ it C The name the world builds on
6 How many shops does DT Group comprise today? A 200 B 230 C 274
7 Wolseley was
founded in 1887. But how did they start?
A They manufactured cars B They manufactured sheepshearing equipment C They manufactured matches
8 What is SOX? A An American football team B An abbreviation of SarbanesOxley C The word socks misspelled
9 What is the name
of the DT Group private brand grill? A Weber B Park C Blue Mountain
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If all your answers are correct, you have the chance of winning a stay in one of DT Group’s 11 pleasant holiday houses of your own choice as well as airfare for two persons (if you live outside Denmark). The houses are at your disposal from week 34, and you can choose between a 5-day stay (from Monday to Friday) and an extended weekend stay (from Thursday to Sunday). Remember: you must pay tax on the prize.
Use the coupon or send your answers by e-mail to: bezzer@dtmagazine.dk
Send your answers before September 1st. The locations of our holiday houses: • Tannis (6 km from Hirtshals in Northern Jutland) – 6 persons, 3 kilometres of beach • Tversted (35 km from Skagen) – 8 persons, 1.3 kilometres of beach • Danland in Ebeltoft (Eastern Jutland) – 6 persons, 2 kilometres of beach • Møllekrog in Vejlby (Northern Zealand) – 8 persons, 15 minutes’ walk to beach • Herthavevej in Rørvig (Western Jutland) – 6 persons, short distance to sandy beach • Hesselbjerg on the island Langeland – 6 persons, 1.5 kilometres of beach • Marielyst near Nykøbing on the island of Falster – 6 persons, 250 metres of beach • Bjerregård near Hvide Sande (Western Jutland) – 6 persons, 1 km from the North Sea • Tranevænget in Skagen (Northern Jutland) – 6 persons, 1.7 kilometres of beach • Grenå (Eastern Jutland) – 6 persons, 900 metres of beach • Knasborg near Aalbæk (Eastern Jutland) – 6 persons, 10 minutes’ walk to beach
YOUR ANSWERS A 1: 2: 3: 4: 5: 6: 7: 8: 9:
B
C Name: Address: Zip and City: Country: Phone: E-mail: Employed at:
Send this coupon to DT Group, Att.: Charlotte Gullach, Gladsaxe Møllevej 5, 2860 Søborg (Denmark)
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The Journey of Timber from Forest to Shop
DT Sells a Forest a day Every day of the year the DT Group shops together sell so much timber that a forest area the size of 40 soccer fields is cut down to meet the demands. But DT Group’s timber policy assures that at least as many new trees as felled are planted. Imagine that Copenhagen was razed to the ground. That all buildings were torn down, the streets dug up, the lakes covered and the entire area planted with trees. Imagine then that all the trees were felled and sold in the DT Group shops. Would there be enough timber for a whole year?
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The journey from forest to shop When everything runs smoothly, it takes only four weeks from the tree is felled until the timber is ready for sale in the shops. EK
WE
1
Felling Transportation from the forest to the sawmill Storage at the sawmill, perhaps under a sprinkler.
EK
WE
The answer is No. Every year the suppliers of DT Group cut down 140 square kilometres of forest. In comparison, the Copenhagen area is only 88 square kilometres. Counted in soccer fields, the annual amount of timber sold corresponds to the trees planted on 14,560 soccer fields – by international standards – or 40 forest-clad soccer fields a day.
2
Grading of raw wood Debarking Sawing Drying
EK
WE
3
Grading Further processing Packaging
EK
WE
4
Storage for delivery Delivery. Primarily direct delivery from sawmill to shop Storage at the shop
Increasing timber prices A large part of the timber comes from forests in Sweden, Finland and Norway. A small amount comes from Denmark, and the Baltic countries and Russia also supply timber. But an exceptionally mild winter has made life difficult for the sawmills in Northern Sweden and Finland. The woodmen have had difficulties getting the timber out of the forest due to the softness of the forest floor. Normally, the frost will make
Display to the customers Sale
the floor hard and thus easy to drive on for the heavily loaded timber vehicles. Russia has had the same problem. Furthermore, the Russian government has imposed duty on raw timber in order to retain the sawmill processing inside the country, Continued on page 18
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Ask the Guru
Women are better prepared Selling to female customers is not a complicated matter, and you don’t necessarily have to be in tune with your feminine side to do so. Nevertheless, there are some rules of thumb which are good to know. What is particle board exactly? Many of the technical terms used off-hand by professional builders and handymen mean nothing to female customers. So when you tell the thirtysomething female customer just to put up a piece of particle board and also remember to use
When you deal with a female DIY customer: 1. Find out the details of her project 2. Show her what a bit is - instead of just explaining what it is 3. Try to gauge her DIY skills 4. Make sure she has got all the materials and tools required 5. Make sure she feels comfortable about seeking your advice
Don’t ever: 1. Talk down to her 2. Use superfluous technical terms
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bits that fit the screws, she may look like a question mark. To many women, bits and particle board are technical terms making no sense in the actual situation. But if you produce a bit from your pocket and show her how it fits the screw, she will understand. And while you’re at it, why don’t you show her a piece of particle board as well? But do it like a gentleman. Don’t laugh out loud and exclaim: Don’t you know what particle board is?? Did you hear that, mates? The lady doesn’t know what particle board is. We sure have some hilarious customers in this shop. Jens Ole Skafsgaard is the department manager of Silvan in Aarhus, the second largest city in Denmark. In recent years, he has held DIY courses
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for women only, and he finds that there are major differences between servicing female and male customers. It is important to find the customer’s level in the sales situation – especially if the customer is a woman. Does she know that she can get edging strips for the laminated board? Has she got the tools required? And glue for the edging strips? Single women in particular have taken to doing it themselves. ”They often come into the shop, very well prepared for the project. At the moment, many customers want to put tiles on table tops – and 95 % of these
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customers are women,” Jens Ole Skafsgaard explains and adds that women are ready to take on even big challenges: ”Recently, I had a female customer in her 40ies who wanted to tile her bathroom herself – both the floor and the walls – even though she’d never done it before.” Jens Ole Skafsgaard could hear that the female customer was well prepared and knowledgeable; nevertheless, he warned her about embarking on the project on her own. When she returned to the shop later, she told him that the result was successful. ”Men tend to just buy the materials and then take the plunge. Sometimes with good and sometimes with really bad results,” says Jens Ole Skafsgaard. So, there are many things that women can do better than men. What most women don’t know is who won the world championships in football in 1966. But that is actually besides the point… (Yes – it was England).
DIY courses for
WOMEN ONLY Every year Silvan holds two DIY courses for women. In 2007 the courses are on ”Glass weave and felt” and ”Power tools”.
Duration: Two hours Price: Free Time: Usually from 5-7 pm
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Spruce is number one Continued from page 15
and all this has increased the prices of timber. At the same time, the demand for timber is rising, as it is not only the Nordic people who have extra money to spend on refurbishing. This trend is seen all over Europe. The prices have now reached a level where importing timber from countries as far away as Canada or Chile might be a good idea. DT Group has already ordered a trial consignment from Chile. It seems, however, as if the prices have peaked.
Fell one tree and plant another Don’t cut the bough on which you sit. And there is some truth in this old saying. Obviously, if you just fell trees as if there was no tomorrow, you will at some point run out of trees to fell and timber to sell. In the Nordic countries the forest areas have grown considerably over the last many years, and sustainable forestry has been a natural fact in the industry. For this reason it has been fairly easy for DT Group to adapt to the still tighter regulatory requirements and local environmental provisions, since DT Group has already laid down
In the Nordic countries, spruce and pine are the most popular timber type.
1. Spruce 2. Pine 3. Larch 4. Birch
In 2006 DT Group bought timber corresponding to: approx. EUR 195,000,000 or approx. 866,000 cubic meters of wood or 104 square kilometres of forest or 14,560 soccer fields
a purchasing policy. But now DT Group has become a member of the Wolseley family, and the suppliers to DT Group now have to document that they live up to the Wolseley global purchasing policy supporting sustainable forestry. To this end, we employ an external specialist consultancy firm whose job is to make sure that the suppliers meet the requirements in all aspects. In this way, the DT staffs avoid checking themselves and can focus on what they do the best: buying and selling timber. The timber policy has been approved by the international environmental organisations focusing on sustainable forestry: the PEFC and the FSC.
PEFC
FSC
In the 1990s 30 European governments agreed on a definition of sustainable forestry in Europe. PEFC-certified forests must fulfil these requirements. PEFC Danmark has developed a system to check and document that a forest complies with the regulations. The Danish PEFC certification system for sustainable forestry was approved by the international PEFC network in October 2002.
FSC stands for Forest Stewardship Council and is an international non-profit labelling system. FSC was founded in Toronto in September 1993 on the initiative of environmental organisations, forest owners and human rights organisations from 26 countries. The aim was to lay down common principles of sustainable forestry, including a new and reliable labelling system, in order to supply timber and paper based on sustainable forestry methods to consumers all over the world.
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Design Concept B2B
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Goodbye to dusty tile samples Hello to a new design concept showing living environments to builders and house owners A dusty tile sample and a glossy catalogue. It’s difficult to imagine what your new bathroom will look like from the builder’s explanations and sketches. That’s why the new Stark design concept may help both the builder and the house owner. The idea is that the builder can bring his customers to Stark ByggeDesign and present the products to them in the right surroundings. It really does make a huge difference to feel the smooth surface of the glazed roof tiles and try out the closing mechanism of the front door yourself compared to just reading about it in a catalogue. And this goes for many other building projects. The concept is aimed at two customer groups: the private customers who build or participate in the building activities themselves, and the professional builders who generate 75 per cent of the Stark turnover.
”Builders often spend considerable time on obtaining catalogues for customers. Here, they get the chance of showing their customers what they mean by good quality materials,” Pernille Olsen explains. And Stark gets a chance of providing competent and professional sparring, which is the trade mark of the shop. In April 2007 the first showroom of 2200 square metres opened in Hillerød north of Copenhagen. Stark plans to open four more showrooms across the country. A handful of building consultants with sound all-round knowledge and understanding of the customers’ needs will work in the showrooms. Magazine
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top tools
Glowing Grills The sale of grills at Silvan is booming, and the customers are buying our private brand Blue Mountain ball grills almost on impulse It is time to start thinking about dinner. The children would rather stay outdoors and play, and if they do come in, they’ll probably end up in front of the telly or the computer – as
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always. From the neighbour’s garden comes the mouth-watering smell of grilled meat ……… Barbecuing – that’s the answer! Doing the cooking outside, so that everybody can participate, including the children
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who under adult supervision can grill sausages, vegetables and bread on skewers and feel like summer chefs. From its sales figures Silvan sees that outdoor cooking is becoming still more popular. Grills and accessories are selling like hot cakes. And for the second season, Silvan and Stark offer Blue Mountain products – our private brand with prices that are 25 % lower than the prices of Weber grills. And already bestsellers.
Almost an impulse buy ”I experience that our customers buy a Blue Mountain grill almost on impulse. The weather is fine. They know how wonderful outdoor cooking is - and then they check our products. Typically, people buy a Weber grill as a special birthday or wedding present, and our selling points are the 10-year guarantee and that they are the best grills on the market,” explains Oliver Bradley, department manager of Silvan in Valby. ”But when we then tell the customers that the cheaper grills will last for three to four seasons, it’s fine by them,” Oliver Bradley adds. He thinks that the Blue Mountain grill, which is available in several sizes, is fine. He often compares the two different brands of grill with cars: Weber is the Mercedes, and Blue Mountain is the Ford. ”You can buy a Ford and get an excellent ride. But you just know that a Mercedes is more exquisite,” he says. Kirsten Larsen, a product group manager in Silvan, finds that all customers are interested in the cheaper brand, but espe-
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cially those who do not care so much about brand names.
A popular small grill A small cast-iron fire pit from Blue Mountain has also become very popular in the shops. ”Last Saturday when the sun was out, I sold 40 of them. The customers buy them when they come to buy other things, since the price is only DKK 249! And they are brilliant if you live in the city. They don’t take up much room – for instance on your balcony. It is fantastic how many we are selling,” says Kirsten Larsen: ”Families with children love them because you can use them as a charcoal grill or fill them with firewood and use them for baking twistbread”. All in all, the grills and accessories from Blue Mountain have been very well received by the customers, and Silvan will retain the products in the shops during the autumn and winter season as well. It turns out that the Weber grills sell all year, so why not the 25 % cheaper version! ”Many people buy a grill as a Christmas or birthday gift, and you don’t need summer and sunshine to use a ball grill. We plan to include it in our Christmas catalogue, perhaps with a picture of someone preparing Christmas dinner outside in the snow,” Kirsten Larsen adds. The Blue Mountain products also include an electric patio heater and a trampoline
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and on the sale. ”To relief our staff we removed the administration of finance and pay from the shops. We also centralised purchasing by establishing a Nordic purchasing partnership. In this way we gained other terms of payment and a larger profit,” manager Anders Wassberg explains. Henric Sandahl, who has worked as a salesman at Beijer Bygg in Värnamo since 1991, finds that he has always been able to focus on his sales work. However, he likes the fact that the shops have become more profitable. ”If you have to save money, it must be on the administration. Never on service, product knowledge or self-organising. So I think they made the right decisions,” he says. But Staffan Svensson, who has worked in the warehouse of Beijer Byg in Växjö for 17 years, finds it hard to live up to the new plan: ”We used to be eight men in the warehouse. Now we’re only six, but the work load is the same. We pick products for the customers, and we handle the purchase of building materials. I think it’s been hard, and I constantly feel that I only have time for the most essential tasks. It has reduced my job satisfaction,” he states.
Stark is strong on strategy ”The strategy is excellent because it makes sense,” says Lars Hansen, manager of Stark:
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”It gives the individual shops the freedom to decide themselves how they want to achieve the goals – by economising or by getting up steam.” At Stark Holstebro they decided some time ago to focus on selling the more expensive glazed roof tiles which had been difficult to sell in the local area. Until then the main demand had been for concrete tiles. Together with the roof supplier they set up an action plan, and since then they have held well-attended events regarding roofing which have attracted the local builders and drawn the customers’ attention to this higher-class roofing material. ”Naturally, we listen when the customers ask for a quotation on concrete roof tiles. But then I ask the customer’s permission to tell about the glazed tiles – for instance that the warranty is twice as long, that the glazed tiles are self-cleaning and that they improve the property value. This often results in the customer asking for a quotation on glazed tiles. To some extent we influence the builders to listen to us and move the customer to select glazed roof tiles,” says the salesman René Jørgensen, who has sold more than 10 glazed roofs in this year alone. The aim is to increase the sales by 30 per cent this year compared to last year.
Shares B2B
LOGISTICs
SHOP
Many DT Employees Save in Shares More than every 6th of the 6891 employees who have been with DT Group for more than a year has chosen to save in Wolseley shares when they got the first opportunity to do so in March last year A total of 18 percent of the DT Group employees chose to save a monthly amount in return for the option of withdrawing their savings and any capital gain after either three or five years. This is far more than among the other European employees of which only 5 percent took advantage of the Wolseley offer. At the moment, prospects look good for the 1219 DT employees who joined. The Wolseley share has risen in the first three months. The market value has risen from 1221 on 20th March to 1284 on 20th June. The employees with their savings in shares have thus already earned DKK 60 for every DKK 1000 invested. Including the 15 % discount, they have actually earned DKK 250 for every DKK 1000 invested during the first three months.
Saving in this way carries almost no risk. Should the share value be worth less in three years, you still get your savings back - without interest, however. Petra Hult, a checkout operator at Cheapy in Kristianstad, has chosen to save SEK 150 a month for three years. ”I did it mostly for fun, but actually it’s rather exciting. The market value is announced in the shop every month, and I check it. I think that, in the long run, this gives me a more personal attachment to the shop,” she says. The Wolseley board will decide whether to offer more employee shares next year, and Jakob Larsen, HR and communications manager in DT Group, thinks that the chances of this are looking good. Magazine
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“THE FINAL WORD” Do you want the final word on this page? Write to thefinalword@dtmagazine.dk
No dirty SOXs So far, the shop employees have been only slightly affected by the fact that DT Group must pass its financial transactions through a finemeshed sieve. Mention the word SOX, and you will be met by frowns and shrugs in many large companies. The reason for this is that SOX may be a complicated and cumbersome system. But the DT divisions have been little affected by this control
system implemented to ensure complete control of the company assets. Some employees in the DT shops may have bumped into SOX at the annual stock-taking but without realising it. ”More external auditors and management representatives than usual will be present at the stock-takings, but apart from this only people in key positions will notice the difference,” Jan Jansson, SOX coordinator in DT Group, explains. SOX is a type of ISO programme for financial reporting implemented in all companies listed on the American stock exchange, including Wolseley. This tool was devised after some major stock market drama, including the so-called Enron scandal. One induced effect is that the financial year now ends on 31st July and that stock-taking often takes place close to this date. So far most DT divisions, however, have been able to take stocks in May.
About SOX SOX is the popular name for an American act implemented after a number of big auditing scandals. The abbreviation stands for The Sarbanes-Oxley Act which places heavy auditing demands on companies listed on the American stock exchange.
We are 7183 Nordic Colleagues
(Dec. 31st. 2006)