THE NEW ONE – the New Brand Image of the SWISS KRONO GROUP
This corporate group ranks among the world’s leading manufacturers of engineered wood products. Eleven plants in eight countries make timber construction, flooring and decorative products and provide customer-focused services which optimally meet the requirements of each region and its customers.
Until recently, each site operated with its own company name and image. Now, however, the Group is closing ranks, pooling its expertise and forging a common identity. In 2016 the names and logos of the individual sites are being replaced by a single, unified brand image. From this point on, all of the Group’s plants will bear the SWISS KRONO name. This, together with a new logo and the slogan “Wood at its best” (translated into each local language), will enable all of the firms to clearly signal their membership of the SWISS KRONO GROUP. “This consistent image and our modern, visually striking new logo are giving the Group a single face with a clear profile,” says Max von Tippelskirch, CMO of the SWISS KRONO GROUP. “They will let us clearly differentiate ourselves from our competitors and strengthen our presence in the global marketplace. As a result, we will remain competitive while continuing to meet international needs in today’s globalised world.”
“By unifying our brand image, we are going to signal to our customers that we belong together and are able to offer integrated, holistic solutions,” says Ines Kaindl, President of the Administrative Council of the SWISS KRONO GROUP. “Our sites will continue to have a certain degree of independence, as we definitively want to preserve the different cultures in their countries. But we will now be presenting ourselves as one enterprise.”
Letting the sites grow together in this way will drive more intensive joint R & D activities with the goals of becoming more capable and dynamic and getting even better at flexibly implementing solutions to serve individual customers. “Our sites will benefit from new synergies and inspire one another to develop further as a team,” says Maciej Karnicke, CEO of the SWISS KRONO GROUP. “The name of the game is ‘think globally but act locally’. Our new, coordinated brand presence will also help us offer our business partners greater security by ensuring that the same high standards apply to every SWISS KRONO plant.”
Reorganisation and Consolidation of the Product Brands
Innovative, high-quality products will continue to be the pillars of the SWISS KRONO GROUP. Looking ahead, the portfolio will be divided into three segments:
SWISS KRONO Interiors – products for furniture and interior finishing
SWISS KRONO Building Materials – products for timber construction
SWISS KRONO Flooring – products for floor coverings
Step-by-Step Consolidation
The Group will implement this reorganisation within three to five years by following a schedule that has been agreed on with all of the responsible managers.
The new look will debut in public at DOMOTEX 2016. Instead of the red stand design used in the past, the new SWISS KRONO GROUP exhibit will sport modern white-red livery.
In addition, replacing the corporate website at www.krono.com, the SWISS KRONO GROUP can now be found on the internet at www.swisskrono.com. The new website is organised into sections corresponding to the product segments. Hyperlinks let users jump to the existing websites of the member firms, which will be gradually brought up to speed and harmonised.
An International Brand for the Future
This year the SWISS KRONO GROUP is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its 1966 founding by Ernst Kaindl in Menznau, Switzerland, which marked the start of its trajectory towards becoming the globally operating corporate group which it is today. The Group wants to take advantage of this jubilee to send a clear signal and redefine itself as a strong new brand with international reach for the future. “We are convinced that we are on the right track for preparing our enterprise to face the challenges of the next 50 years and become even more competitive,” says Ines Kaindl.