Resumé of the ISO Congress 2005, Copenhagen.

 

International Shopfitting Organisation held a successful annual congress in Denmark-Sweden (Copenhagen-Malmoe/Oeresund Region) 14^th – 17^th April with 66 participants from 12 countries.

 

The highlights of ISO's congresses that changes between the member countries, are the business studies focusing on all aspects of interior contracting and fixture supplies, design and economy, commonly named "shopfitting". In recent years the congresses has among other taken place in Germany, France, Holland, Turkey and USA.

 

But shopfitters, as everybody in today's competitive industries, value time and cost higher than ever before, and cannot easily tear out 3 days from their calendar, particularly a Thursday to Sunday in the busy months of spring. The consequence has been decreasing participation, reaching a low thirty-odd last year. But ISO's answer is to offer more value for money, increasing the quality and entertainment, just as the ISO members do for their customers, the retailers, when designing and supplying their stores.  

 

The high quality of the professional part of the congress was the obvious reason why almost double as many as last year invested money in the participation. The fun-factor encouraged them to bring their partners, and stay till Sunday! The combination of both was a huge success, and ISO has plans for the future congress concepts to follow this trend.

Next year's event will be in Poland, wait and see, there will really be something to look forward to!

 

IS-O-Lympic Games??

The conference hotel facilities in Copenhagen DGI Byen includes a sports center, why the get- together evening (after a management committee meeting) was arranged as an IS-O-Lympic Games competition. The participants from all countries were climbing walls (British victory, a tough lady of the shopfitting industry won Gold), riffle shooting, Bowling, Pétanque and card playing, Swimming and even "shopping" (Gold to France, click on the complete list of winners on this home page). And it worked! Everybody, actually competitors in shopfitting as well as "wall climbing" got in contact and developed a team spirit across language and nationality that bedded for a successful business conference beginning early next morning.

 

Factory visits

The modern Danish chair factory FRITZ HANSEN A/S, known for their manufacturing of the famous designer Arne Jacobsen's designs, gave an impressive presentation of their modern factory. Robots take care of 95% of the production and handling, people think, plan and do the quality finishes. A staff of 35 can in theory make 400.000 high quality chairs per year! Chairs you find world wide, a recent success delivery was for the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

 

Next stop ITAB, which is the Danish branch of Scandinavia's largest shopfixture manufacturer and ISO member, with headquarters in Sweden but established in all of Scandinavia, Finland, Holland and the new East Europe: Estonia, Latvia, Tjeckia, Slovakia, and Russia (St. Petersburg). In Denmark they presented a showroom with shops of their leading customer's profiles as well as check-out assembly for the local market. Their headquarters and main factory in Jönköping, Sweden is on the program for the coming ISO Incentive tour in November.

 

JUNCKERS is Europe's largest sawmill for solid wood floors, and has a patent on the treatment, hardening and humidifying of beech which is still unsurpassed after more than 40 years. The mill has reorganized and automated in recent years, and reduced staff to approx. 700 people, which has turned the company around into an effective, profitable modern manufacturing plant.  The visitors got a very convincing demonstration of the advantages with Junckers floors of all types: They can be laid immediately upon delivery to the work site and you can start walking on them immediately when they are laid. This due to the patent, the humidity and whole concept, and imperative to shopfitters, who are ALWAYS in time need.

A high quality production that for many reasons, obvious to the visitor is not feasible to outsource.

 

While visiting Junckers, the companions had an interesting tour of old Koege, next to the sawmill.

Apart from a good lunch near Denmark's oldest house still in use (part of the library) the original plaster model of The Little Mermaid is displayed in the "Sketch Collection". Except ISO claims the plaster model from 1910 is the original, the bronze version at the Copenhagen seaside is a cast "copy" from 1912!

 

Flash-Light was the last stop on a busy tour of Greater Copenhagen. Flash Light is a shop lighting specialist, member of ISO and marketing and distributing a wide range of spotlights and other special store light fittings and illuminations including the latest news in LED lighting. The majority "made in China", but all up to European standards and approvals (VDE, CE etc.), and most of them with Philips ballasts. A very successful operation, based on sourcing from the Far East.

 

TIVOLI's opening night

But the busy day was not over. Dinner was served in TIVOLI on the opening night of the season. Now that is good planning! And to be prosaic, what is Tivoli except an exquisite example of entertaining shopfitting? Well, it is also Denmark's largest tourist attraction, idyll, charm, romance, flowers, music, millions of light bulbs (no fluorescent tubes allowed by regulation) and a wonderful evening for everybody.

 

Saturday morning was dedicated ISO business and seminars. The General Assembly acknowledged the new initiatives and activity plans that are introduced to revitalize the old organisation, and the theme of the whole conference was summed up and discussed:

 

Sourcing/outsourcing or productivity improvement?

We are all forced by competition, by the demands of the larger and larger retail companies, to cut costs to grow or even survive. What do we do, and what are the challenges or opportunities?

 

Hans Jorgen Dalum of ChinaConsult A/S happens to be the president of the Danish Shopfitting Organisation, as well as the successful owner and CEO of Ergonomic Solutions (fixture manufacturer) plus the owner and managing director of ChinaConsult, offering sourcing assistance from China. He and his Chinese assistant Audrey gave an interesting lecture of sourcing from and outsourcing to China, and the pro's et con's. It is not easy, particularly for small shopfitting companies, that cannot import large volume and quantities. But Hans Jorgens advice is to find the right partner, and try! The most interesting point was, that in the past 2 years, when Hans Jorgen Dalum himself has imported increasing numbers of parts from China, he has improved his products' competition so much, that he has more than doubled his staff at his own factory in DENMARK, from 30 to over 60, and still expanding!

 

Troy Abrahamsen, managing director of Samuelsons Polska in Warszaw gave an equally interesting lecture based on his 7 years of experience with manufacturing in East Europe.

 

(Please find separate resume on this home page)

 

His conclusion and answer to the crucial question: "What can go wrong?" was: "Everything!"

But as for China, his best advice was: Ask somebody you trust, and who knows! And get on with it!

 

On the panel afterwards, managing director Jakob Hauptmann of BAC Metal sia in Latvia, fully confirmed Troy Abrahamsens report, adding that Latvia may even be a little worse, but also cheaper, and therefore offers attractive prices to West European customers. Jakob has worked with  metal components, shopfixture manufacturing and powder coating in Latvia since about 6 years. At present he is employing about 50, expanding into new premises.

 

As an introduction to the panel discussion, Mr. Winfried Lambertz of EHI (Euro Handels Institut), Germany summed up the trends of shopfitting after EUROSHOP 2005.

 

The big question, that the panel and audience thereafter tried to solve was, how do we manufacture and supply those stores and designs in the years to come? The conclusion of the ISO Congress was:

 

Parts are manufactured where ever the costs are lowest.

In the global world of today, communication and  transport costs are insignificant. The cost and availability of labor, plant and energy is dominant.

I.e. the manufacturing takes place in China (or rather "Chindia"), East Europe (for USA mexico?) and, in case of demand for other qualities than materials only, or when fully automated: Denmark or similar societies with highly developed infrastructure and a population of innovative individuals.

Installation, i.e. the actual delivery of a store will always be local! depending on local know-how, and human relations, personal contact, which is what ISO is all about!

 

Landmarks of shopping and archtecture

Saturday afternoon was the proof of theory. The party visited Field's, Scandinavias largest shopping mall, near Copenhagen Airport and the Oeresund bridge to Sweden. Field's is very successful, after one year the sales are more than 250 mio Euro. At the later World Summit in Istanbul it won the award for Best Opening, Refurbishment & Extension. A Shopping Center real worth the visit, and of course of extra interest, as the ISO members had probably taken care of 75% of the shopfitting?

From there to Sweden  across the impressive 16 KM tunnel-bridge connection, that has changed the whole region's retail pattern. Visit to Center Syd near Malmö, only 45 minutes drive from Field's. The Center Syd Market Place offers a retail parc and shopping center with even more sales area than Field's but completely different. At Field's the shopping is entertaining, and expensive, but closed on Sundays (Danish law). At Center Syd in Sweden (open 364 days a year) it's rather dull BUT CHEAP! The Center Syd is undoubtedly the most competitive retail area in the region, attracting price conscious customers from far away. A contrast to Field's but just as important to the retailers as it is to the shopfitters! Going home, there was a photostop at the almost finished TURNING TORSO in Malmö. Scandinavias tallest building, 56 floors of apartments (top half) and offices (below) with a view over Sweden and Denmark, and the strait of Oeresund. Amazing architecture and engineering by Santiago Calatrava of Spain. A new landmark.

 

After so many impressions and so much business relevant information concentrated in 3 days, it was a tired but satisfied group of ISO members that met in DGI Byen Saturday evening for the final Gala dinner and dance. The well deserved and hard earned Gold, Silver and Bronze Medals of the IS-O-Lympic Games were handed to the winners under cheers and applause, to be brought home as memories of an interesting, professional conference and study tour, and a lot of fun with colleagues from so many different countries. They all promised to meet again, see you next year in Poland!

 

 

Preben Bailey