Dt magazine 12

no. 12 路 spring 2012

20

Sick and tired of being sick and tired

Part time

HERO 26

Gaggia Titanium

Win a

coffee maker

4

Our vision for the future

16 private label 24 hard talk 30 Cheapy

introduces a new concept

e m e e k m a o T h

Inside

4

Six divisions ...and their visions for the future

20

Sick and tired of being sick and tired

Surveys show that every fifth employee has knowledge of a colleague who has a drinking problem. But less than half act on this knowledge.

24 26

HardTalk

30

Cheapy to complete their new concept by 2015

Part time hero

“Neumann supports my spare time activities”

DIY chain Cheapy wants to increase sales volume by doubling the number of branches in Sweden.

32

DT Quiz

Create your own Starbucks at home with the Gaggia Titanium.

16

Private Label

Spring season is almost here with lots of new products.

USEFUL NUMBERS DT Group +45 39559700 Wolseley +44 118 929 8700 Starkki +358 93 541 3000 STARK +45 89343434

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DT MAGAZINE

Charlotte Gullach Büttrich Chief Editor for DT Magazine

The missing link Antoine de Saint Exupéry, the author of ‘The Little Prince’ once said: “If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people to collect wood and don’t assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.”

It makes sense once you stop and think about it. Same thing for our business. We’re part of a large organisation, assigned specific tasks.

Sometimes it can be hard to understand the importance of what you are doing in relation to the bigger picture. What does collecting wood have to do with sailing to warm, exotic places?

Well, no wood, no vessel - no journey.

Every task, every assignment - is an important part of the bigger picture. Without our

commitment and effort, plans and strategies are not worth the paper they are written on. But if we are to support the strategy, we need to know what the overall plan looks like.

We have to know what we are trying to achieve and how we can help to achieve it.

Therefore we have reserved space in the magazine for our leaders to tell us what their visions for the future are. They share with us the goals, how they envision we can achieve them and equally important - what they expect from us.

Happy reading.

You can write to Charlotte at editor@fittings.nu Feel free to share your ideas and comments - both positive and critical.

Colophon Beijer Neumann Silvan Cheapy

+46 752411000 +47 55549800 +45 87308730 +46 431443540

Editorial responsibility: DT Group/Charlotte Gullach Büttrich Journalistic production and project management: Radical Communications/Patrick May Design and layout: Appetizer/Simon Johnsen Photography: Das Buro; HPKristensen. Print: Trykcentret

DT Magazine // Social face

A warm gesture for the homeless Christmas inspires us to do something extra for people who are less fortunate. Take for example Jens Dynglykke, Klaus Gregersen and XXX from Silvan in Holbæk. On Friday 23 December, they filled a Silvan trailer with coffee, fruit and sleeping bags and drove to a shelter for the homeless in Copenhagen.

“We got the idea when we heard two female customers talk about goody bags they were planning to drive out to the homeless,” says Jens. “It made us think what we could do on a short notice. We only had four days and limited assets.”

“We contacted Outwell, our supplier for camping

equipment, and asked them if they wanted to sponsor a few sleeping bags. The very next day 70 sleeping bags arrived. That was just great.

Our local supermarked, Superbest, sponsored coffee and the local veg shop sponsored the fruit. We wanted to serve an entire breakfast but unfortunately we

were too late to organise this.”

Return to our warm homes

“We contacted a well-known shelter called "Hus Forbi" who helped us to ensure that we helped the right people. What struck us was the diversity of people who were homeless. For example, we met an engineer who had a good career going for him but at some point

he couldn’t cope any longer and now he lives on the streets. Talking to these people was a real eye-opener for us.”

“In spite of their situation, there was a positive spirit. We got the feeling that they look after one another.

They lead a hard life. We were out there in the cold for nearly four hours, but we had the luxury of knowing we had warm homes to go to.”

“I am sure we made a difference and that made me feel good. We also realised that we can do a lot more for these people.

We just have to get organised. We have posted an entry on the local intranet and hope that colleagues with good ideas will write to us. Or maybe even participate.”

Did you know?

Number of homeless people in the Nordics:

Sweden

18,000 Finland

Norway

8,000

6,000

Denmark

5,000

DT MAGAZINE

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DT Magazine // Spotlight

Six Business Units and their visions for the future Steen Weirsøe

Reach for the stars “The current recession makes it impossible to predict how the market will develop,” says Steen Weirsøe, CEO of DT Group. “But that shouldn’t stop us from having a vision. Each managing director has compelling ambitions for his business unit. We can be proud of the fact that we have leaders who keep their heads cool and are capable of think-

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DT MAGAZINE

ing expansion even in difficult times. Where possible, DT Group will fully support the ambitions of the individual business units. But growth also requires responsible investments, especially in the current market environment. When reaching for the stars, we should realise that the journey will probably take longer than we originally expected.”

Explorers like Leif Ericson, Thor Heyerdahl, Fridtjof Nansen and Roald Amundsen achieved heroic status by the force of their vision, courage and willpower. They sailed their ships into the unknown but with a clear objective in mind and were prepared to face whatever hardships came their way.

Not very much unlike the world our leaders are facing. Six leaders reveal what they expect from the journey, how they prepare and the destination they have in mind. They sharet their motivation and most importantly, what they expect from their crew, you.

open new branches

In Silvan everybody is a

success

“In five years from now we should have 45 to 50 stores,” says Freddy Lauridsen, Silvan’s managing director. “We will cover the entire nation and our e-shop will be the industry’s best. We’ll be even better at serving our customers. When people think Silvan, they will automatically associate it as the place where they can get help with their building project.”

More customer contact and less back office tasks “We’re aware of the crisis in the market but personally I think that soon enough we’ll stop referring to it as a crisis. Because we’ll have gotten used to it. I don’t believe the market will return to the awesome high level of four years ago. For Silvan this means battling our competitors for market share to create the level of growth we want to achieve.

Currently, our market share is approximately 10%. More or less the same level as our two main competitors. If we want to grow, we need to be better than them.”

More time with customers

“We have to give our customers the best possible experience.

By staying true to the fast and easy concept. The interior of our stores should reflect this. We’re not there yet. We know that 70-80% of the people visiting us are looking to purchase a particular item. But only 50-60% of these customers actually purchase what they are looking for. Other people visit because they want advice. In essence this means that today six out of eight customers get what they want.

The other two can’t find the item they

are looking for or can’tfind a employee.

That’s a lot of potential that we need to be better at capitalising on.”

“In my book this is a task for branch management. Customers entering a store should always be able to find a Silvan employee. In fact, we should be more proactive and approach customers and ask them what they are looking for.

Whether they need any help. The branch manager should make sure that back office activities are reduced as much as possible; to free up time for customer interaction. I also think this is what most people want.”

increase sales

Freddy Lauri dsen Great place to work

You should always be able to find a Silvan employee

“Silvan is a great place to work. We’re opening a new store in Odense where we need 45 people. We received 1,600 applications. This indicates that we’re a preferred employer that has been able to create a good working environment. This is backed

More on next page

DT MAGAZINE

5

“We want to hit the SEK 1 billion mark,” says Pär Rampe, the chain manager of Cheapy. “We have a strong foundation, we have control of our business but we’re not making enough money. We need to grow to generate an acceptable trading margin. In every way possible. That is our mantra from now on.”

Continued up by our employee satisfaction surveys. A healthy working environment is important. It rubs off on customer service.

Happy employees provide customers with a good experience.”

“I believe that our ambition is very realistic. We have 40 branches today.

I expect that on average, we will open two new branches every year. As far as our E-shop is concerned, we’re already attracting around 600,000 visitors every month. We have a solid foundation to build on.”

“My motivation as a leader comes from my deeply rooted belief that we can always improve things. Doing things a little bit smarter than yesterday. We can grow in size, but also from the inside out. On top of that, I like challenges and opportunities. We’re not yet succeeding with every visitor entering our store.

But I have confidence in our plan and our ability to succeed. I keep my word and I expect the same from my people.

We also have the confidence of being part of DT Group and Wolseley, who provide the means for us to grow and develop the chain.”

continuous improvement

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DT MAGAZINE

drive-in

Cheapy supersizes

results is essential for survival results - Pär has a clear plan. “In essence it’s quite simple. We have to improve our results so we can open about 20 new branches - 4-6 branches a year - so we’ll have 40 new branches in 2015. These branches will have a different look and feel from what our customers are used to.

They will be bigger, there will be higher inventory levels on top selling products, staff in the branches will be more proactive and they will have an important

new feature: an indoor drive-in for customers who appreciate convenience.

In fact, we will really change our culture from being a retailer primarily focusing on price, to a retailer that offers low prices with much higher levels of service.”

Getting the most out of our resources

“To be able to do this without our costs

e-commerce rocketing, we need to invest in efficiency. A good example is our IT infrastructure. Together with Silvan, Beijer Byggmaterial and Starkki, we have developed a system that helps us planning demand

and order flow centrally. As a result branches will see fewer deliveries but better product availability. This will save branch staff a couple of hours every day - which they can use to serve customers. We’ll also put an extra effort in our on-line business, which we estimate will account for 5% of our total business by 2015. I believe people will use on-line shopping more and more in the future. We want to be able to give our customers a coherent multi-channel shopping experience: they should be able to browse our product catalogue from their home or office and get DIY tips and tricks - and pick up their supplies at their local store later on.”

“The challenge is to scale our business without overhead growing at headquarters. Opening 4-6 new branches a year takes up a lot of resources.

But we have reorganised some functions in Ängelholm to free up the necessary resources for the expansion without having to hire more people. We utilise the strength of other, larger business units within DT Group to save costs.

For example, we use Silvan’s in-house

marketing agency to create and develop our marketing material. We have to constantly ensure we develop as far as possible on existing resources. We’ve reorganised the sales organisation to train staff in the new branches. We now have four team leaders who can visit branches one day a week and train people and make sure the branches are sales ready.”

More time with customers

“If possible and if financially responsible, the current network of branches will gradually be updated to have the same look and feel as the new branches. We’re also considering working with locally flexible assortments and merchandise presentations.

It’s what we want though it’s still only at the idea level. But it illustrates our new line of thinking. It also requires a proactive approach from staff. We need everyone to be critical about how we use our time. I want us to minimise time spent on activities that have no direct value for our customers.

Instead, I want us to proactively approach our customers. Everybody will have to learn how to do this.”

“Due to our historical lack of size and therefore lack of results, we are categorised as a performance builder. Basically, this means that Wolseley would not invest in our growth. But thanks to the fact that we are relatively new and because Wolseley and DT Groups’ management have confidence in our concept, there’s willingness to invest in our growth. This year alone, we have increased our sales by 5%. That might not sound like a lot to some people but it’s great compared to our competitors. We have tough competition. Bygmax, the market leader in our segment, is expanding aggressively. So are we in mediumsized towns, where we don’t run the risk of competition from big players like Bauhaus.”

“What motivates me is the fact that I feel that we are not living up to our full potential. I believe we can do a lot better. If we could dou-

I believe we can do a lot better

DT Magazine // Spotlight

Cheapy and their visions for the future

Pär Rampe

ble the business in 3-4 years with the help of very competent people in DT Group, that would be huge.”

open new branches

DT MAGAZINE

7

The recession might be a

good thing for us

Our competitors have been willing “We have a model to pay a lot more. for growth,” Per Erik Amounts we conexplains. “A comsider to be unsound bination of green business. In some fields, that is, decases they paid velop new branchtwice the amount es from scratch, and Wolseley uses in acquisitions - buying their standard calcuexisting companies lations.” and turning them into Neumann branchBuilding es. The latter we relations is have not been very what counts lucky with. For good “As a result we reasons. There have been relying have not been on green fields. a lot of compaThe problem nies for sale. with starting And the ones a branch from there have scratch is that been, it takes a few were years before they too are profitexContinuous able. Typipenimprovement cally two to sive.

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DT MAGAZINE

“In five years from now, we should be double the current size,” says Per Erik, Neumann’s managing director.

“Geographically we will cover all of the main population centres in Norway. Our turnover will be NOK 3 billion. It’s a very tough challenge but we will succeed. It’s a matter of time. It’s a matter of patience.”

For Neumann it’s about readiness

three years. In those years, you produce negative figures. If you start up more branches simultaneously, it has an effect on the numbers of the entire business. What is the biggest challenge is getting the right people on board. We have a solid framework for starting a new branch up. Getting the supplies, forklift trucks and whatever else you need to run an operation is the easy part. But finding people who put customers first and who can win them over to Neumann,is not all that easy. We focus on profession-

grow b-b

Whatever happens, we have to be ready to act

al builders. We can’t use people with a retail mindset. We need salespeople who can build relationships.”

“However, these obstacles don’t mean we will lower our ambition. Rather, we should be ready at all times to move in as soon as the situation changes. One of the major developments in the construction industry is ownership. Owners are increasingly profes-

sional about their investment and they want to see a return.

Some of our competitors have performed lousy in the past many years.

They have consistently produced poor results. At some point, the owners won’t take it any longer. These companies will either be sold or closed down.

Neumann is in good shape. The current recession can stir things up. It’s going to be interesting to see how much more patience the owners of some of our poorly performing competitors have. But whatever happens, we have to be ready to act.”

Focus on business as usual

“The crisis could actually be a good thing for Neumann.

As long as we are able to run a financially healthy operation. As I see it, the responsibility for the growth in the Norwegian market is the responsibility of

headquarters in Bergen. In the meantime, we have to make sure that our existing business is as sharp and efficient as possible.

This is the responsibility of local management. We’re a strongly decentralised organisation.

The local branches are highly independent profit centres with the responsibility of developing their own local market area, product categories, operational efficiency, customer service, cost efficiency and so on.”

“Having said that, headquarters in Bergen has a responsibility to act if we feel that things can be done better. As we do in Tromsø right now. Tromsø is our second largest branch but their turnover is less than half compared to Bergen, which is the largest branch. An external consultancy has evaluated the situation in Tromsø. Their conclusion was that some departments run

smoothly while others lag behind. We’re doing everything to get Tromsø back on track again. We’re using best practices from Starkki, STARK and Silvan. We also identified cultural issues in the branch, a ‘them against us’ culture. If we want to succeed in Tromsø, we have to get everyone on the same page again.”

“As a leader you have to have good social and communication skills. Getting people to understand where you want to go and motivate them to do the job, is of vital importance.

It’s what I love about my job. It can be lonely at times. The worst thing is when I have to let people go.

That makes me have sleepless nights. I wouldn’t want to have it any other way though. If you don’t care about laying off people any longer, you have grown cynical and you’re not a good leader anymore.”

DT Magazine // Spotlight

neumann and their visions for the future

Per Erik

w ne es n e h op ranc b

DT MAGAZINE

9

Our reputation is our

biggest asset

“I am proud of what we have accomplished so far,” says Lars Hansen, STARK’s managing director. “Our people are real achievers. Every time we set a goal, we get there. That is pretty impressive. Thanks to that winning mentality, STARK is the market leader in Denmark today. A position we want to consolidate. There are still many areas where we can improve. Continuous improvement is the key for our development.”

STARK: the reliable partner for professional builders how we are doing.

These figures are “We don’t have broken down to local five year plans – but branch level. Local we know where we management knows want to go on the these figures. They short term”, says can see it every Lars Hansen, day. If the figSTARK’s manures change, aging direcwe expect lotor. “Instead cal managewe have ment to act monthimmediately and ly and get back weekon track Continuous ly objecimprovement as fast as possible. tives.

This way The we can make sure market is volatile.

Competition is fierce. there’s a limit to how We have a solid busi- wrong things can go.” ness, which we run based on key perEverybody wants formance indicators. a piece Figures that tell us “We’re the benchmark of our industry.

Everybody in Denmark knows us and respects us. That also means that we’re the company to beat. All of our

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DT MAGAZINE

build reputation

Large customers want reliable and sustainable suppliers

competitors want a piece of our sucess.

We can’t afford to take our eye off the ball. Ever. What has contributed to our success is that we keep things simple. And the fact that we’re close to our customers. We know them well. We’re in the process of implementing a new sales management system. This will optimise our sales potential even further.

We’re the first mover in the market. In December we introduced a smart phone application. It got a lot of media attention – more than 14,000 downloads.

It’s was on the list of the ten most downloaded apps in Den-

mark. That indicates that if we introduce something, people have confidence in the quality.”

“What I expect from staff is rather simple. We have to improve every day and we can be better. Specifically better at working together. In the local branches as well as the branches in between them. When we stand together, we have tremendous market strength.

Here’s where there’s

DT Magazine // Spotlight

stark and their visions for the future

a lot of potential that we can exploit to our advantage.

Team work, team play - will make a difference. We’re operating in a simple industry. It is not that hard for people to see and understand what can be done better - and what they can do better.

We’re achievers, we want to be the best of the class. But to stay there, we need to be critical about what we do.”

“Customers love us because we’re the best generic shop for professional construction material in

the country and because of our local approach. We want to take this to the next level. We also want to become the best in specific product categories, like for example sewerage, security equipment and so on. We’ll increasingly adept to the supermarket look and feel, with shop-in-shop concepts.”

No limits for STARK

“We can become anything we want.

There are no limits.

Only our imagina-

tion. We have a really good reputation in the industry. This is a great asset, especially in a time of recession. We have an edge compared to our competitors.

Large customers like Siemens, HusCompagniet, MTHøjgaard and Tryg Insurance want reliable and sustainable suppliers and small customers want us because we understand their daily challenges better than anyone else.

They choose us and that makes me very proud. There’s a lot of potential here.”

“Last year I visited Ferguson in the US. Compared to the US, Denmark is a minor market and compared to Ferguson, we’re a tiny company. What was striking though, was that we were doing things pretty much the same way. That strengthened my confidence in our approach.”

“I consider myself lucky. I get to try a

lot of different things - both in STARK but also In Wolseley. We launched a large branding campaign in 2004. We have launched our Green concept and we have gone through the crisis better than others. There’s a lot of energy in the organisation. We have a lot to celebrate but we have to stay hungry.

Not become complacent. Improve where we can. All of the time. Being the number one in the market means we have to.”

e-commerce

Lars Hansen DT MAGAZINE

11

You want to be a part of

our family

Starkki has 14 percent marketshare. In Sweden or Denmark, that would make them the market leader. In Finland, the situation is different. The market consists of a few large players. The market leader, KGroup, currently has 37% of the market and it focuses on DIY customers. Starkki employs a different market growth strategy. Focusing on the segment it is best at: B2B customers, together with private house builders and renovators.

Starkki strengthens professional services “Our competitors have a retail background,” says Juha-Pekka Pöntinen, Starkki’s managing director. “They are good at serving private customers and therefore they focus on DIY. They invest heavily. In the past years, S-Group has established eleven so called DIY big-box stores. We have a different pedigree. For the past 150 years, Starkki has been catering mainly to B2B customers. They make for 75% of our business. This will be our focus for the years to come and this is where we will gain market share. At the same time we will strengthen our po-

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focus on staff

We’re training people to be serviceminded

sition within private customers by focusing on house builders and renovators.”

“The future is looking good. The crisis in Europe also hurt the Finnish economy. But things are looking up for construction. There was a building boom in the 60s and 70s.

The buildings from that era are due for renovation, now and in the years to come.

This will be good for our business.”

We have the finest business in the industry

Even though Starkki is focusing primarily on professional builders, Juha-Pekka expects increased business from DIY customers as well.

“But probably more

indirectly. Building legislation has become more strict in Finland. Nowadays, it is almost impossible to build your bathroom without a licensed professional. Therefore, even though in principle the projects are initiated by private customers, professionals carry out the projects and buy the supplies. In Starkki.

Because we can offer our network of professional customers to serve our DIY customers!”

“Today we have 21 branches. The average turnover of a branch is EUR 25 million. I expect that in the coming years we will open four, maybe five new branches. We grow through green fields. We will

also invest in refurbishing some of the existing branches.

We have a good grip on the B2B segment and have improved service for DIY segment. Here we differ significantly from our competitors. But it also requires a different staff profile.

I feel we have the most knowledgeable people in the industry working here.

They have experience with building projects and they are excellent sounding boards for our B2B and DIY customers.”

“We’re training people to be service minded”

grow b-b

DT Magazine // Spotlight

e-commerce

“When it comes to service though, we still have to improve.

It is hard to find people who are both knowledgeable AND service-minded.

We use out customer surveys to create awareness among our staff so they know what the customer demands from us.

We also invest a lot in the training of our people, to make sure their product knowledge is up to date and to train in specific service parameters - and we measure whether we’re actually developing on these parameters.”

Bad news travels fast

“Health and safety

also has gotten a lot of attention lately.

I expect this will increase even more.

We have a lot of very loyal employees. They are a part of the Starkki family.

We have an obligation as an employer to create a healthy and safe working environment. Increasingly, this is also a requirement from our customers. International customers like NCC and Skanska require safety certification from their suppliers. We have to comply to their requirements, otherwise we will lose their custom. This has become an element in our training program as well.

We’ve always had a lot of focus on training but now we’re increasing that focus.

We have the best people in the industry and by training them properly, we also ensure that we stay the best.”

“E-commerce will start playing a bigger role in our business. For the first time in the history of the Finnish postal services, the post offices were overloaded with packages at Christmas because of the boom in electronic shopping.

Dealing with professional customers, we have to look at the entire electronic package. Not only the E-shop. This includes electronic ordering, tracking and tracing, invoicing and so on. Regardless of your platform or whatever device you use. We also have to think social media. People increasingly share their DIY projects, experiences and knowledge through social media. There will be opportunities for Starkki. But also dangers.

Bad news travels fast. It is more important than ever that we do not make mistakes in customer service.”

“I have been the managing director of Starkki since

starkki and their visions for the future

Juha-Pekka Pöntinen 2008. But I have been a member of the Starkki family for 30 years. I started my career here in sales.

I have had many different functions. Now I am the captain of the ship. I believe in the company and the organisation. It’s a very strong company.

We’re the most profitable company in the market. That makes me proud. I am a part of a winning team.”

DT MAGAZINE

13

Better than yesterday

“The recession is hurting us at the moment,” says Managing Director Anders Jakobsson of Beijer Byggmaterial. “We can take consolation from the fact that we are one of the most profitable business units in the entire Wolseley family. But the market situation in Sweden has turned sour.”

Beijer Byggmaterial on course for aggressive growth “We saw it coming.

The economic foundation in Sweden is healthy. What’s more, there’s a need for renovation and new buildings. We were planning six percent growth. But looking at the past three months, consolidation is a more realistic scenario.

We’re seeing private customers postpone projects. B2B customers want more security before they initiate construction. Normally for a planned project they would start building once they had sold 70% of the apartments. Now they aim for 80-85%. Basically all of the indicators point to a slowdown for 2012 due to the economic uncertain-

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ties.”

“We have a plan: P20A and P45. This will helps us to lower costs and restore profitability and balance the business when the business environment changes,” Anders says.

“This is necessary because we operate in a cyclic industry. Something we need to remember so we don’t panic but keep focusing on our targets. For Beijer Byggmaterial, this means consolidating our position as Sweden’s market leader.

We’re aiming for aggressive growth via organic growth (5% on annual basis) and by acquisitions (4-6 branches a year) and we own our strong position with our competent staff and

continuous improvement

excellent customer service.”

“The challenge is to keep the team motivated to deliver world-class service every day. We have been successful for some years, so complacency is a real danger. We need to keep the team sharp.

The competition doesn’t rest. They battle for marketshare, just like us.”

Day by day, better than the rest

According to Anders the key for Beijer Byggmaterial’s market growth is to intensify the focus on execution. “Progress in our business is to be found in continuous improvement of our service. We’re not there yet. The last customer sur-

We need to create a serviceand sales culture that is truly unique in the market

vey shows that our B2B customers are satisfied but our B2C customersexpectations differ from what they get. Our staff have to start work every day with an attitude where they want to do things better than they did yesterday. This is a leadership responsibility.

Therefore we have invested in leadership training and measuring. It’s starting to pay dividends: survey results show that management has improved and the communication about our goals is perceived moreclearly.”

“Front line staff will experience that

DT Magazine // Spotlight

buying branches we expect them to be proactive. What made us unique a couple of years ago, large product assortment and availability - is more or less the standard today. Our competitors offer this too. It’s not a big deal for customers any more because they can get this anywhere. If we want loyal customers we need to create a service culture that is truly unique in the market. It starts with geeting the customers who enter our branches, asking them whether we can help them.

It sounds like a nobrainer but we’re not doing it enough. In our existing training programs we will therefore increas-

open new branches

beijer and their visions for the future

ingly address the importance of a proactive approach. What helps us right now is that our competitors are not doing any better. It won’t stay that way.”

“Planning ahead in a volatile market is close to impossible.

We have build up the current network of branches in the past 25 years. A lot of the branches require refurbishment. This we have scheduled, with individual plans for each branch. But how fast we can execute depends also on the development in the current market. You have to apply a flexible mindset if you want to survive in this market.

The market can turn

sour, which requires an adequate reaction immediately. But the market might also improve and then you need to be ready too - with expansion plans.”

“What motivates me on a personal level is that I feel I can make a difference. I love this company. Even though it can cause me sleepless nights from time to time. I am results driven. Which is a good thing being a part of DT Groups’ leadership team. Everyone here hates to lose. I know it sounds like a cliche but the fun factor is important to me. I need to laugh at least once a day.

That helps.”

Anders Jako bsson

DT MAGAZINE

15

About Private Label

DT Magazine // Private Label

atrick Stuart Kilp Group

ager, Brand Man

DT

bacho raptor beats

Byggnadsarbetaren (“The Construction Worker”), a Swedish trade magazine, has recently tested 6 spirit levels where Bacho won with 15 points but where our Raptor level came in second with

new ucts prod

14,5 points! The Hultafors 1360 level scored 12 points.

The comments from the testing group about the Raptor level were: “Good grip” “Reliable” “Feels right”

DT MAGAZINE

But Raptor beat everyone else – including Hultafors!

up there with the best and can be compared in quality to the market leaders.

You can read the complete test (in Swedish) on the homepage www.byggnadsarbetaren.se/files/ Pdf-tester/2012-02test.pdf

This shows that our Raptor level is right

Article courtesy of Byggnadsarbetaren, Sweden.

RAPTOR hand tools We already have quite a large range of high-quality Raptor hand tools but this spring we are adding another 24 products. The new Raptor hand tools include hammers, knives, measur-

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Private Label is an important part of our strategy and these pages will give you an insight into new additions and give you inspiration and hard-core knowledge about the Private Label products we sell in our stores. The continuing development of these products and brands helps ensure a healthy economy in the group. Product ranges and brands may vary from division to division.

ing tapes, bit sets, socket sets, keyhole saws, staple guns and staples.

Raptor tools are sold in Beijerbygg, Starkki, Stark, Neumannbygg and ÖAG in Austria.

Level

Points

Bacho

15

Raptor

14,5

Hultafors 1360 Cocraft D600 XP Digital

12 14

Cocraft D600 XP

11

Ironside

11

Awarded by “The Construction Worker”

Solid Home Security A new sub-brand for the Solid brand, which is sold in Silvan and Cheapy stores, is Solid Home Security which covers products that make

your home safer: locks, safes, child protection, alarms, etc.

We have introduced this subbrand to emphasise the area that these products cover. Along with the sub-brand we have designed a

new logo which shares some of the characteristics of the Solid brand logo in a houseshaped figure.

Solid Home Security will be sold primarily from Silvan and Cheapy stores.

Safes

Locks etc.

A new addition to the Solid brand is a complete range of doorlocks, cylinders, window restrictors, padlocks, etc., which are compatible with products from Yale / Ruko / Abloy locks.

The range has already been introduced in Silvan stores in Denmark and is a huge success, according to Product Manager Klaus Dolmer. Both staff and customers have been positive about the new

products which are selling well with a higher margin.

One innovative lock in the new Solid Home Security range can be seen in the photo below.

This one lock can be used in door thicknesses up to 11 cm (just in case you live in a medieval castle!). Usually, you have to stock several products in order to be able to do this. The lock also comes with an optional thumb-turn or key cylinder.

A range of 9 different Solid Home Security safes is presently on the way to the Silvan stores. This new range, which is sourced from China, comprises standard safes and fire-proof safes of different di-

mensions, a specialised safe for laptops and a money-box.

All the new safes have digital locks and one of them also has a fingerprint reader that can store up to 20 different fingerprints.

new

prod ucts

new ucts prod DT MAGAZINE

17

Blue Mountain Barbeques We already have 3 gas BBQs, a kettle BBQ, a half-drum BBQ, a picnic BBQ and a small range of accessories like fire starters, briquettes and tongs. But this range will be greatly

new ucts prod

expanded in 2012!

We are introducing a wide range of traditional charcoal BBQs as well as many new accesso-

ries. There will also be a number of products especially for pizza lovers, including baking stones, pizza knives and a calzone maker.

Blue Mountain barbeques and accessories are sold primarily in Silvan and Cheapy. The launch will be followed up with a brochure.

Raw Composite Decking This spring we are introducing our own range of wood-composite terrace decking from China. These products are manufactured from a mixture of wood and plastic and are very durable and 100% waterproof.

Product Manager Kristian Fribo from

Stark has laid a terrace with the decking and he believes they are the easiest product he has ever worked with.

The boards are held down with special metal clips, screwed onto the joists, in which the boards are inserted.

The clips also ensure the correct distance between boards.

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DT MAGAZINE

Some of the advantages of using this material instead of traditional wooden decking are:

• Easy and fast installation with no visible screws • No splitting No splinters No warping • Maintenance free – cleaning only • Limited colour fading in sunlight The initial range will include two colours: brown and dark grey (anthracite) boards

availabe with a smooth or grooved surface.

Joists and baseboardsare also made from the same material.

The launch in Stark will be followed up with a brochure and an instore display.

private label brands

Low-price budget brands used in Private Label in the DT Group.

DT Magazine // Private Label

in DT Group

Basic.

Center Product range, quality and price Center is the brand we use for low-price products aimed at the professional user, which we sell in our professional stores like Starkki and Beijerbygg.

Center is not the same as Basic! Center products are meant for builders and other professional users.

The quality is reasonably high and so they will cost more than Basic products.

The range, like Basic, can in principle comprise all the products in our stores. We use the Center brand when we want to market lowprice products without diluting our high-quality brands like Raw or Raptor.

Product range, quality and price Sales arguments If your customer is looking for a cheaper alternative, you can safely recommend Center products because they have been approved for professional use by our product managers. Bearing in mind, of course – you get what you pay for.

Basic products are primarily sold in Silvan and Cheapy and are aimed at DIY customers. The range is quite broad, as all low-price products in our stores can in principle be labelled Basic.

This means that you can find products like Basic paint, Basic garden equipment, Basic powerand hand tools, Basic grill briquettes and Basic faucets among others.

The quality is good, compared to the price and we promise that a Basic product will do its job - as long as that job doesn’t include major construction!

Basic products are aimed at DIY customers who are looking for a cheap product to do a simple job. If we didn’t stock these products, the same customers

would go to a supermarket or discounter with their money.

Another reason to stock Basic products is impulse buying, as we see with the hand-tool market in Silvan and Cheapy.

Sales arguments Basic products are as good as you can expect at the price – and often better. If your customer needs a drill for hanging a picture once or twice a year or some tools for their summer house, Basic products will do the job. If they have more demanding needs, you should advise them to pay more for better, more sturdy quality.

Correction: Basic Tool Market In certain translations of the text in the last issue of DT News, it seemed that the Danish wholesaler Millarco is the supplier for the new Basic Tool Market in Silvan and Cheapy. This is wrong!

The old tool-market was supplied by Millarco but the new tool-market is sourced directly in China and Taiwan via our sourcing office in Beijing, resulting in better profit margin and better control over the supply chain.

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Sick and tired of being sick and tired

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Surveys show that every fifth employee has knowledge of a colleague with an alcohol problem. But less than half act upon this knowledge. Talking about alcohol or substance abuse at work is not easy for us. We tend to feel that it is a private matter and addressing this makes us feel uncomfortable.

But inaction can have disastrous consequences.

Individuals suffering from alcohol or substance abuse could lose their jobs and families and irrevocably damage their health.

Action, however uncomfortable can prevent this from happening.

DT Magazine // Health and safety

Brian Meling, forklift driver in STARK Glostrup, has had his share of hard times. “Low self esteem together with the wrong friends got me into substance abuse at an early age. It started rather innocently when I was twelve.

A few years later I found myself taking amphetamines and from there on in, it went downhill fast.

I started training to become a butcher which I messed up. I got married. We had a son. But it didn’t last because of my addiction. When I was sober and clean, I couldn’t deal with life. My addictive brain with the warm-

Be a good pal When alcohol or drugs begin to affect productivity, it is often too late. Most of the times though, you suspect something before it even gets that far. “If you have a suspicion, you’re right,” says Kenneth Wegner, DT Group’s HR Direc-

est of voices told me that within a few minutes I would feel good again if I only gave in. And give in I did. Again, and again”.

Alcohol policy

The authorities estimate that in Denmark there are 33,000 people with a drugs problem. It is estimated that 500,000 Danes drink more than the recommended limit set by the national health agency. Half of those who drink too much are considered to have a serious alcohol problem.

The figures for the other Nordic countries are the same.

The numbers are alarming. People

I’m happy I got a second chance at STARK in Glostrup

AC CT T

tor. “Confronting a colleague might be awkward. You might think it is none of your business. However, inaction means that your colleague will probably end up losing everything that is dear to him or her. Be a pal get it out in the open. Initiate the dialogue. Tell your

colleague that you can talk to the manager together. Don’t wait and see what will happen because it will not get better by itself.”

According to DT Group’s policy, drinking or taking drugs on the workplace is a sackable offence. So is work-

who abuse alcohol are less productive at work. Official figures show efficiency decreases by up to 25%. People working while under the influence of drugs or alcohol in our industry is dangerous and it can have catastrophic consequences. This is why DT Group has a strict

ing under the influence of drugs or alcohol. “We have to draw the line somewhere,” Kenneth explains.

“I think it’s only reasonable that you are released if you cannot do your work. Saying that, we’re not interested in losing loyal and otherwise very well functioning employees.

So in most cases we offer support. Since each

alcohol policy: taking alcohol or drugs during working hours is forbidden. It is also forbidden to come to work while under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Ulti-

More on next page

case is different, we do not have a blanket policy but evaluate each case individually.

What is important though, is that we act at an early stage. We have positive experiences with this.

A job is the last bastion for people who are becoming seriously addicted. They don’t want to lose their job. They want to avoid that no matter what.”

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21

Continued mately, you can lose your job.

“In hindsight, I have done things I am not proud of,” Brian confesses.

“When I was in the army, I worked with explosives. Half of the time I was stoned or drunk.

Things could have gotten very messy.

Then there’s my son.

He’s twenty now. I haven’t been much of a father. I regret that. I can’t get the lost years back. Never. In 2000 I was sick of wasting my life.

I made an attempt to become clean. It didn’t last for long.

I fell of the wagon. I tried different treat-

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ments, four or five, but nothing worked”.

I am a different person

“In 2004 I got a job at STARK Helsingør. I was clean and doing fine. I met a woman and we had two children. But the pressure of my new life started stressing me. So I did what I was best at: drinking. But while normal people go to the pub and drink a few beers, I smoke and drink for three weeks. My boss at STARK was understanding. He offered me a holiday to deal with things. But in 2006, it all went wrong. I was back to square one. I lost my job. I lost my family”.

We interview Brian a few days after

the New Year. He has been clean now for 3 years and 250 days.

No drugs, no alcohol.

He spent New Year’s Eve together with his two youngest kids and their mother.

He’s happy for the chance he was given at STARK in Glostrup.

But in spite of the fact that he’s been clean for so long, he still doesn’t dare to make plans for the future. “I am saving up for a new car. And it would be fantastic, if, at some point, I can get back to being a family.”.

Inspiring other people

“I am sick and tired of being sick and tired all of the time. I never faced the personal problems that got me in an addic-

I have thought about how this story in DT Magazine might change the way colleagues look at me.

But I have a need to get the story out.

tion to start with.

The programme I am following includes twelve steps that help me to acknowledge who I am. It helps me to take responsibility for my situation for the first time in my life. That is new. I am working on myself. I attend Narcotic Anonymous meetings, I have a sponsor and I am a sponsor to several other addicts as well.

An addiction isolates you. Your regular friends keep you at a safe distance.

Your new friends are addicts and pushers.

Getting out of that vicious circle is the hardest thing to do.

Being together with former addicts helps.

They have a different understanding.”

“I have thought about how this story in DT Magazine might change the way colleagues look at me,” Brian says. “But I need to get the story out.

It’s hard work getting clean and staying clean. But I managed it. I hope that my story can inspire other people who have an addiction, whether it’s drugs or alcohol.”

DT Magazine // News

Never before have we had so many applicants

Silvan expands In March Silvan opened the doors of a new branch in Odense. It is their second outlet in H.C. Andersens’ birthplace and the expectations are high. The new branch is ultravisible: part of the building has a 22 m high silo that has been turned into a gigantic advertisement column. There’s every indication that the branch has captured the attention of locals with or without the silo. Silvan received 1,600 applications - an all-time record.

It took HR Manager Morten Elbro and three colleagues two and a half months to get through all of the applications. A luxury problem, as he likes to describe it, since it allows the company to pick the very best people for the job.

“The immense interest in Silvan suggests that we are an attractive employer,” Morten

says. “Which is confirmed by the results of our latest Employee Satisfaction Indicator, also called value gauge. Every year we

measure Silvan staff satisfaction. Participation was at an all-time high this year, 93%, and the results are very positive”.

According to Morten the success can be explained by the company culture. “Silvan is a values-based workplace. We do not have guidelines, regulations and systems that direct staff. We want the staff to able to make their own decisions and in doing so influence their own development and the development of the company. We call this frontline competence. While interacting with customers for example, Silvan staff are

empowered to make decisions without having to consult a manager first. Additionally, anyone who has something on their heart or has a good idea or observation, can call or email Freddy Lauritsen, our CEO, and they can expect to be taken seriously.”

“On average, our staff have scored us at around 4.23 out of five in the past few years,” Morten says. “97% of them say they expect to be working at Silvan in two years from now. 95.1% say they will happily recommend Silvan as an employer to friends and acquaintances. We want to offer a workplace where staff look forward to coming to work and who are still happy when it’s time to go home. The results from the survey tells us that we’re succeeding in this.”

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DT Magazine // HardTalk

HardTalk with Steen Weirsøe

In an enterprise with more than 8,300 employees and 440 branches, the top management can seem very distant.

With HardTalk, you get close to top management, because here we put you in contact with DT Group’s most senior manager.

Steen Weirsøe answers you and your colleagues questions, however searching they are.

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What decisions have you made in your career that with hindsight, you feel were mistakes?

What have you learned from them?

There were decisions that I postponed for too long. I mean, in some cases it might have been wiser to have acted faster. You give people, ideas, product categories and so on, an extra chance.

You postpone firing a colleague who isn’t performing.

You might postpone closing down a company that is not performing and which is losing money. But these are conclusions I can draw only when I look back at events. The thing is, when you’re in the situation, you do not always have the ability to make decisions that are 100% rational. There are

personal sentiments involved as well. You want people to succeed. Even against better judgement. I thinks it is a dilemma every leader has. You have the responsibility for the business.

And you have the responsibility for the people. Those two things sometimes conflict.

Where do you get your motivation and inspiration from to run the daily business?

I wouldn’t say that there’s one place or person that inspires me. Inspiration is everywhere.

But each industry and each business has its own characteristics. You can be inspired but that is not the same as being able to use what works for others in your own business.

Recently we have been on a working

excursion to Ferguson in the US. It has been very interesting to see how they successfully run their business. They have a market with more than 300 million consumers. The sheer numbers are dazzling. In Denmark we are less than 6 million people. That makes a big difference in your business approach. But there’s no doubt that it was a very inspiring visit. What impressed me most was the strong company culture. People working there cared for each other and were committed to helping each other. We have that kind of commitment as well, but Ferguson is an organisation with 20,000 people.

It was impressive to see how they have been able to organise people and turn this workforce into a team.

What would you like to ask Steen? Send your question to steen@dtmagazine.dk – Don’t mince your words as you will remain totally anonymous.

How stable is our organisation? Will it pull through the recession?

You have to realise that we are in a cyclic industry. Take a look at the past ten years. We started the millennium with major staff reductions. Then the good years came and we were able to expand, also in staff numbers. Now it looks pretty bad again.

What you have to remember is that we’re doing well. If you turn on your TV you get the idea that everything is black and negative. But our situation is different. We are well trimmed - a lot better than any of our competitors. At the same time we are the biggest player in our market. We have been a reliable player in the industry, also during the crisis.

Our customers reward us for that. Our large customers expect us to be able to manage larger projects better than our competitors. They choose us as their preferred supplier.

All of the business units in the DT Group have growth ambitions. Is this realistic in a time of recession?

Yes. A lot of our competitors have been showing negative results for several years now. Their financial situation is weak. The current recession means that financial institutions are very hesitant to loan money. What you will probably see is that some of our competitors will have to take a step back - maybe even sell.

However, we have been adapting to the consequences of the recession long before it began hurting.

We kept extreme focus on our cash flow.

As a result, we have hardly any debt. We’re well consolidated and are able to stick to our growth strategy.

We’re ready to open new branches and acquire existing ones. At a lower price, thanks to the consequences of the recession.

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Part time

hero “Neumann supports my spare time activities” Most of us know the Red Cross organisation from the help and aid it gives to disaster areas - typically far away from home. Or from the collections during the year, when Red Cross volunteers knock on our doors and ask for our support.

Espen Jørgensen from Neumann in Tromsø can show us another, perhaps less well known side of the Red Cross.

He’s been in the corps since 1991 and has some exciting stories to tell.

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DT Magazine // Resume

Neumann’s stock manager in Tromsø, Espen Jørgensen, has been working for Neumann Bygg for 17 years.

When you talk to him, it becomes obvious that he really loves his work. In his spare time, Espen is the closest thing to a hero you can get: he’s a volunteer for the Red Cross rescue squad. He’s specialised in avalanche accidents - he and his team rescue people who are caught off guard by the snow.

Espen does not consider himself a hero. But he does admit that it gives him a tremendous adrenaline kick to

get out and find missing people. “In Norway the Red Cross rescue corps is a welcome addition to the official rescue services. In fact, the Red Cross support team has thousands of volunteers all over the country and we’re by far the largest rescue corps in the country.”

Espen has been a member of the corps since 1991. “One of my friends encouraged me to tag along to an information evening. We thought it sounded really cool and we decided to join. First with the youth organisation and later on in 1994, I entered the rescue squad.

You are given amazing training so you can join rescue missions. You start with basic training, which takes a year. After which you specialise.

I am specialised in avalanche missions.

Once you’re trained, it’s really important that you keep on practicing - both to make sure that you are fit for the fight but also that you keep up to date with the newest insights and technology.”

A man’s dream

“Our own security comes first, but there’s always a risk - especially when working with avalanches. You learn to cope in various dangerous situations.

Rescue actions are not without risk

You can learn to drive snowmobiles, get to fly helicopters and the like - which is pretty much every man’s dream I think.

Under normal circumstances, I’d never get to try those kind of things. For me, this is definitely one of the good perks of being a part of Red Cross. For seven years I have been driving a voluntary ambulance in Bergen. You learn to work with dogs and you learn to work in teams. The latter is very important, as you find yourself joining complicated missions that can be dangerous. You need to be able to trust each other.”

“I have been involved in a lot of dramatic rescue missions. Some people might still remember the catastrophe with a big cargo ship in Bergen in 2007.

The ship capsized.

We had to search for both survivors and bodies. I’m very

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27

Continued proud of the fact that I helped to start up a special task force to find suicidal people. We had a few cases in Bergen some years back and the police had a hard time dealing with it. We put together a special force and our experience and knowledge really paid off. I have rescued a lot of people during my time in the Red Cross.

It makes me proud when my education and my training pay off and I find people.

People’s lives are in your hands. It’s a huge responsibility.”

24/7 standby

“Sometimes the mission is about finding a body. It’s very satisfying being able to let a family bury their loved one in a proper funeral and afterwards have a place where they can go

to remember the deceased - it gives me a warm feeling inside, although it is a sad situation. Red Cross volunteers were also involved in the Breivik massacre on Utøya. I wasn’t personally involved but I definitely sympathised with my colleagues who were a part of the search team and who offered psychological help to the survivors afterwards. I feel we make a difference.”

“We’re on stand by 24/7. That means that from time to time I have to leave my job and join a

mission at very short notice. When I started working for Neumann, I told my boss about this. He was very understanding and we actually made a contract where it says that I can spend a certain amount of days per

It makes me proud when my education and my training pay of

year on rescue missions. It’s not all employers who have that attitude. It’s really great. I consider myself lucky.”

“I don’t get out as often as I used to. I have a job, a house and a family which keeps me quite busy.

Does my wife worry when I am out on a mission? I guess she does. But then again she’s in the corps as well and joins missions too. I met here at the Red Cross. We take turns going on missions. One of us needs to stick with the kids.”

NRK facts The Norwegian Red Cross Rescue Corps has 12,500 voluntary members, divided over 320 units.

More than half of them are on call 24/7, ready to support in finding missing people, evacuate people from hazardous areas and for onshore and off-shore rescue operations. In 2010 - they offered support in more than 230 missions involving more than 9,000 members using more than 45,000 man hours.

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p DT Girsou

DT Magazine // News

ng expandi

Beijer Byggmaterial: One new branch – two places Beijer Byggmaterial acquires Trä & Bygg in Kiruna and Gällivare - strengthening its position in Norrbotten, the northernmost county of Sweden. Trä & Bygg (formerly part of competitor XL Bygg) had a revenue of SEK 70 million in 2010. The branch has 16 employees: nine in Gällivare and seven in Kiruna.

STARK: Two new branches STARK is strengthening its market position - expanding its network of local branches with two new acquisitions. STARK acquired Tommerup Trælasthandel on Fyn and Printz Ringsted Tømmerhandel on Zealand. Both acquisitions increase STARK’s local presence, providing STARK with new customers and offering existing STARK customers an even larger network of shops. Tommerup Trælasthandel was established in 1976 and has revenue of DKK 120 million. It

caters mainly for professional customers. The acquisition is waiting for approval from the relevant authorities. Printz Ringsted Tømmerhandel (formerly part of competitor XL Byg) was founded by John Printz in 1956. It has revenue of DKK 32 million and has mainly DIY customers.

It will be managed by Henrik Carlsen, who had been working as a Sales Manager at STARK Slagelse and who is now promoted to Branch Manager.

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DIY adopt drive-in cs oncept

Cheapy to complete their

new new concept by 2015 The first branch with the new interior opened in October last year in Mariestad. The branch has an area of around 3,800 m2, the ideal size for the new concept. The shop is 2,200 m2,

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slightly smaller than what we are used to.

The yard is around 600 m2, slightly larger. What is radically different, is that there’s no stock but instead there’s a 800 m2 drive-in.

This change is a consequence of eight

DIY chain Cheapy wants to increase sales volume by doubling the number of branches in Sweden.

The interior of the branches will be quite different from what Cheapy customers are used to. The store will be somewhat smaller, the outdoor yard bigger and something that is completely new; a drive-in for customers to pick up their orders.

years of experience with the current store concept combined with customer comments from recent surveys.

High expectations

“The new set-up has been created to in-

crease convenience for our customers,” says Pär Rampe, Cheapy’s operational manager. “It’s the fast in - fast out idea which is the foundation for our business. In the future, DIY customers will increasingly use the

DT Magazine // Backstage

internet to browse and find what they need, place their order and pick it up in their local store. I believe traditional retailers will increasingly lose market share to businesses like ours. I expect that online business will be 5% of our entire business by 2015.”

The branch in Mariestad is expected to deliver positive results within the first twelve months.

The new branches are also expected to perform better than shops with the original Cheapy formula. The branches are bigger and will be able to attract larger numbers of customers. “One of the things that will be a major improvement compared to the existing situation is product availability,” Pär explains.

People won’t come here in vain. The additional square meters will allow us to have more prod-

ucts. On top of that we’re working with with Silvan, Beijer Byggmaterial and Starkki on a new IT infrastructure that should improve our ability to plan the availability of products.”

Ready to launch the next three branches

Currently Pär’s map has 30 small flags marking towns that might be interesting to establish a Cheapy. “We’re looking for medium-sized towns and we’re aiming to move a little further north. So we actually move closer to the middle of Sweden. The current branches will, where relevant and possible, be updated to the new concept as well. The next three branches are hopefully coming soon. We have identified the towns and are basically ready to roll out. We’re waiting for an offi-

When I heard that Cheapy had plans to open a branch here, I didn’t hesitate one single second.

cial green light from Wolseley before we can start. I expect that the next branch will open in October.”

The opening of the first ‘new’ Cheapy in Mariestad (Västergötland) has been perceived as a huge victory for the organisation. It’s the first step for Cheapy into a total different future. Mariestad is home to 240,000 residents, the perfect size for Cheapy.

Tomas Kapturowski, Branch Manager in the new Cheapy, has lived in Mariestad his entire life (29 years). “It’s one of those cities where people know each other. People talk to each other. Rumours travel fast. Both the good and the bad ones,” Tomas says.

“When I heard that Cheapy had plans to open a branch here, I didn’t hesitate one single second” “I was working for the competitor in Mariestad be-

fore I joined Cheapy.

I heard that Cheapy would have a drivein. I felt that it was the right concept.

Besides, the quality of the products is better and the prices are lower. The entire set-up makes it easy for customers to shop. Knowing the competitor, I feel Cheapy is the future. A lot of the customers that I greet in Cheapy, I know from my former working place.

The support I get from the organisation is great. Everything is well thought through. I really like working here. Actually, I almost feel sorry leaving the branch in the evening. Working and living in a small town, that is important. Good relations here are important.

Some people come here three, four times a week to shop. We do our best for every single customer. You have to. Like I said, news travels fast.”

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And the winner is ...

The winners of the last editions’ quiz are Lars Jonsson, Beijer Byggmaterial, Bollnäs and Michael Simonsen, Controller, STARK. Congratulations with your Samsung Galaxy telephones.

Micha el Sim onsen

sson Lars Jon

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How many people applied for a job at Silvan in Odense?

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Cheapy recently opened a new branch.

Where?

Why is Roald Amundsen famous?

What is STARK’s biggest asset?

A He started Neuman Bygg

A Brand

A Mariestad b Malmö c Ängelholm

b He invented the paperclip

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c He was the first man to reach the South Pole

c Distribution network

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