Door Industry Journal - Winter 2020

17 THE door industry journal winter 2020 Also online at: www.dijonline.co.uk industry news their homes. This is coupled with increasing demand in the housing market, which is being driven by the freeze in stamp duty and still low interest rates. Refurbishment markets throughout Europe are seeing similar growth and Hörmann is in an ideal position to supply these. Many parts of the UK Building and Construction market are under considerable strain with a shortage of materials and equipment and this is starting to hold some markets back. Through careful planning and access to a multi-national manufacturing Group we are consistently able to show our customers healthy stock levels and lead times. With the final play of the Brexit negotiations now underway and the transition period finishing at the end of December, we have also invested in additional stock holdings both here in Coalville and at a satellite warehouse. Our customers can be well assured that our supply chain is robust and multi-channeled and that we have invested heavily in ensuring that our processes will work whatever the outcome. With so much emphasis being placed on keeping our business running through the pandemic it would have been only too easy to forgo plans to introduce new initiatives and products to the market. Since coming out of lockdown we have continued to develop our Hörmann Partner Standard initiative, which was launched in September. The Partner Standard has been created to reward and recognise official Hörmann dealers that continuously provide customers with first class service when supplying, installing and servicing Hörmann’s range of products. So far, interest and enthusiasm amongst our customers has been exceptional and we are busy planning further enhancements to the scheme over the coming months. On the product side, October saw the launch of a new roller garage door to the market – the RollMatic T which complements the existing RollMatic range, offering installers a quick and easy product to install with the Hörmann badge of quality. Service and training continue to remain high on our list of priorities and we are currently looking at innovative ways of re-introducing our Academy training sessions for 2021 using the wonders of virtual media – watch this space! No doubt, 2021 will bring its own surprises and challenges. However, I am confident that even during the difficult times we have faced this year we have continued to provide unrivalled product and service to our customers. After all, it is all about our customers who have proven to be resilient, innovative and great fun to deal with and I hope that they can see the improvements we have made and how we are moving the business forward. However, as is always the case, an organisation is only as good as the people who work for it. I am still relatively new to Hörmann, but this year has shown everyone in my team what they are capable of and I am extremely proud of the way they have all responded and kept smiling even when things looked bleak. For further information on Hörmann (UK) Ltd, call 01530 516880 or email doorsales.lei@hormann.co.uk Coastal ‘Shapes the Future’ with a Rebrand and New Website Following on from a review of their company and brand with brand strategy specialist Benubi, Coastal Group took the plunge at the end of last year to invest in a rebrand and in a new, more advanced ecommerce web platform. Coastal MD Loren comments: “We had a growing portfolio of own brand door and window hardware and were concerned not to dilute their presence, or confuse our customers, with multiple brands. We also service a wide spectrum of customers – from joinery manufacturers, aluminium system houses, fabricators, through to the PVC and composite door market and architects/specifiers – all with differing needs online and we wanted to give them the ultimate online experience.” “Our Technical and Marketing Teams have been working hard since the start of the year on build for the new website and a complete rebrand for the company, bringing together our BLU, DURATIQUE and GLACE product ranges under one strong brand identity. We’ve listened to the needs and wants of our customers and the end result of new website and brand is pretty spectacular, with great feedback coming in from our customers now the site is live.” added Loren. It’s well worth a visit to see for yourself at www.coastal-group.com A more detailed version of this article has been published on the Door Industry Journal Blog - bit.ly/CoastalWeb