Annual Report 2009 - Husqvarna Group

10 Husqvarna Annual Report 2009 Strategy
Broad product offering
Husqvarna has a broad, competitive product offering. The
Group has particularly strong positions in handheld products
such as chainsaws, clearing saws and trimmers, as well as in
riders and garden tractors. Gardena is the European market
leader for irrigation products and garden tools. The Group also
today has a strong product offering in Construction Products,
both in terms of equipment and diamond tools.
The Group’s goal is to be the leader in its core areas. However,
maintaining a strong partnership with customers involves
providing a complete product range, which includes offering
competitive products also outside the core areas.
Focus on core areas
There is a good potential for growth within the existing product
offering. The Group aims to maintain a high rate of product
renewal, which is decisive for achieving growth and high margins.
Achieving growth also requires having the right product
offering for each distribution channel.
Products are becoming increasingly more global or regional,
which enables reducing the number of product platforms and
local variants. In order to make product development more
effective, the Group is concentrating its resources for development
in a limited number of competence centers in specific
parts of the world. A global process for product development
is also being established.
The primary focus is on strengthening the main product categories.
This includes improving the environmental performance
of the products, particularly in terms of emissions and
energy consumption. Investments are also being focused on
battery products, which comprise a growing segment mainly in
the consumer market.
Actions to strengthen operations
• Focus on core areas, no current need to increase
the number of product categories.
• Maintain a high rate of product development.
• Concentrate development resources to a few
competence centers.
• Develop a stronger range of premium products
for mass-market channels.
• Increase investment in battery products and
improved environmental performance.
The Gardena product offering
was expanded in 2009 to include
chainsaws and new lawn mowers
based on existing Group product
platforms. The new products
achieved very good market
acceptance and sales exceeded
expectations.
The Group launched Automower ® ,
the world’s first robotic lawn
mower, as early as 1995.
Gardena’s rotating Angled Tap Connector follows the movement
of the hose so that it doesn’t tangle. In 2009 the connector
received the Group’s internal award for innovation.