KITCHEN LIFESTYLE Miele
KITCHEN LIFESTYLE Miele Consolidates High- Level Growth Worldwide Exclusive interview - Dr Reinhard Zinkann, Managing Director and Co-Proprietor - Miele Group Steffen Nagel Managing Director of sales, Liebherr Dr Reinhard Zinkann Managing Director and Co-Proprietor, Miele When Miele's 2016/2017 financial year came to a close on June 30, the family-owned company was able to further consolidate its high-level growth on a worldwide scale. We asked Dr Reinhard Zinkann, Managing Director and Co- Proprietor of Miele Group to tell us more. Turnover amounted to €3.93bn around the world. This equates to growth of almost 6% compared with the previous year. Built-in appliances and vacuum cleaners saw above-average gains. What key market trends are you experiencing at the moment? Connectivity and the Smart Home are still trends for the future. But we are also seeing strong consumer demand for convenience, ergonomics, good design and ease of handling. Consequently, appliances should provide a sense of well-being and increase the feel-good factor. One example: Cooking, or more generally, food preparation. In line with this trend, a number of innovations have emerged such as automatic programmes, steam cooking, flexible induction or smart, personalised cooking guides – tailor-made for your specific appliance. Cooking and lifestyle are major topics for the future. IFA IS AN IMPORTANT TRADE SHOW FOR US, PROBABLY EVEN THE MOST IMPORTANT OF ALL, AND IT HAS BEEN THAT WAY SINCE 2008 What will the kitchen be like in 10 or 15 years' time? What will be different? The kitchen is likely to assume a different function to today. It will increasingly become integrated into the living environment. This is often already the case today, but more can be expected as life itself undergoes change: This will be the place where things happen and we will also work from the kitchen, too. After all, who doesn't already check their emails or other text messages over breakfast? And appliances will have to adjust to the changing environment in the kitchen where people will cook, live, relax and work. This is where the challenge to manufacturers will lie. In designing their appliances in such a way as to integrate seamlessly into this environment. As I said at the outset, much of this is already reality Hall 2.1 Stand 101 Playing Smart With all devices getting smart, premium appliance brand Liebherr is showing its connected range at IFA Unlimited access to the mobile internet is connecting the virtual world with the real one, and users are also benefiting from more exciting and interesting features. This is also true of the Smart Home, says Steffen Nagel, Managing Director of Sales (Global) at Liebherr Appliances. In the connected world, our intelligent refrigerator will be assuming a key role in the future: Equipped with the SmartDevicetechnology from Liebherr, it opens up new dimensions in grocery storage. The entry ticket to this interconnected world is the SmartDeviceBox, which is easy to connect to the Internet using Wi-Fi. Complementing this, the FridgeCam and the MIA VoiceControl system are turning the Liebherr refrigerator into a control centre for intelligent food management. What is the aim of your presence at IFA 2017? “Making your life smarter” is the motto under which we are showcasing our solutions for joining an interconnected world. Connectivity and the smart refrigerator are a key vehicle driving many of our new developments. The SmartDevice-technology makes it possible for our customers to spend more time cooking together using healthy foods. It is straightforward to integrate into existing SmartHome solutions. As experts in refrigeration and freezing, today we not only provide the option of operating the refrigerator from anywhere at any time, but also taking a look inside, even when we’re not at home. How does the SmartDevice work? When combined with the SmartDevice app, the refrigerators can be operated at any time while you are out and about using a tablet or smartphone. The Liebherr FridgeCam, powered by Smarter, and which can be integrated as an additional module, provides images of the groceries in stock. These are sent to the app by means of the cloud. Visual food recognition allows a list of foods in stock to be created. This makes it easy to maintain an overview of which groceries are in stock, to create shopping lists and to avoid buying things twice after forgetting a grocery is already there Hall 2.1 Stand 201 32
KITCHEN LIFESTYLE SMALL APPLIANCES PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT The World of Small Domestic Appliances @ IFA Innovation is key word - trending to convenience, health and connectivity 8.4% SDA sales grew 8.4% in the first six months of 2017, according to GfK Source: GfK 4.1% Sales in Europe – the largest SDA market – grew 4.1% in the first six months of 2017 versus the same period last year Source: GfK Demand for small domestic appliances continues to grow. From January to June 2017, the global market (excluding North America) showed positive growth – with an overall market value increase of 8.4% to €21.5bn. There is no doubt that we are living in a golden age for small, single-purpose kitchen appliances and the statistics back up that rather bold statement. Creating healthier foods for wellbeing in a convenient way is the key theme driving demand for blenders, kitchen machines and soup makers. This segment of the market has been strong, taking over from juicers and food processors which had been on trend in the previous couple of years. Meanwhile demand for premium coffee makers remains high, as consumers continue to want to create coffee shop quality at home. GfK expects global sales growth of 6-8% for the year 2017. Over half of this global growth is attributed only to the sales in the cities tracked by GfK in China (including online sales). The largest small domestic appliances market – Europe – grew by 4.1% compared to the same period the previous year. The sales volume is now €9.5bn. Stand blenders with an integrated cooking function are in demand, for example. Driven by the Chinese market, this product group has grown considerably (up 96%), achieving overall revenue of €116m. Hot air fryers that promise healthier food thanks to the use of less fat are also selling strongly, with global sales growth of 20%. Connectivity with smartphones is becoming more and more important for small domestic appliances. The value-based market share of connected appliances in Western Europe is currently 26%, compared to 9% the previous year www.ifa-international.org IFA International • Saturday 2 nd & Sunday 3 rd September 2017 33
