Gaggenau, the luxury brand for professional grade home appliances, has recently opened new flagships and showrooms in North America and Australia. The brand has seen an increase in demand for its products from high-net-worth consumers in both the areas and this has led to the development of a brand-new flagship concept starting with showroom openings in Vancouver and Toronto, and flagships in Sydney and Miami.

Gaggenau’s flagships in Sydney and Miami, are architectural marvels that seamlessly fuse the brand’s rich heritage with local cultural and design elements. These spaces serve as experiential hubs for culinary enthusiasts, architects, interior designers, and homeowners looking to explore the art of the kitchen. The flagships each boast a unique space and character, taking inspiration from the local neighbourhood; offering moments of reflection for the design-conscious individual and professional.

«In North America – the company explais – there’s a growing emphasis on a modern aesthetic, prioritising the kitchen as the central lifestyle hub of the home. Gaggenau’s “modern classic” design aligns seamlessly with this movement, offering timeless, sophisticated and elegant solutions for luxury kitchens. The Miami flagship pays homage to the city’s rich design and art deco heritage and Gaggenau aims to nurture and collaborate with innovative, emerging artists by providing them with a platform to showcase their work. As you step into the space, you’ll find an invitation to engage in curated art experiences that allow visitors to connect with the brand in a new way».

In order to pave the way for further growth, Miele announced in March that it would be setting up an additional production facility in the USA. The exact location has now been finalised: the German family-owned company’s first plant on the American continent will be built in Opelika in the State of Alabama. Production is scheduled to start by the end of 2024. In the first phase, 150 employees shall come on board.

«There are several good reasons for the decision to also produce in the USA in the future – the company explains –. The United States, where Miele has been represented by a sales and service company for 40 years, is the largest market outside Germany. At the same time, the company still sees a lot of potential here. The new site will enable Miele to produce the ovens and range cookers specifically designed for the USA, Canada and Mexico close to the market. Later, the matching Cooker hoods will also be produced here. This reduces the delivery time from up to ten weeks today to just a few days in a customer-friendly way and also reduces the impact on the climate».

Today, the Cooking business unit’s production is distributed as follows: Hobs and steam ovens as well as warming drawers come from the Bünde plant (approx. 730 employees), Cooker hoods from Arnsberg (approx. 250 employees) and cookers, ovens and Dialogue ovens from Oelde (approx. 670 employees). The steam ovens, i.e., ovens and steam cookers in one appliance, are produced in Bünde or Oelde, depending on the model. «The new site will give all three plants the capacity for future increases in production volumes for the other model ranges» – says Senior Vice President BU Cooking Brunkhorst.

Including the new plant, the Miele Group’s international production network will include a total of 16 locations, eight of which are in Germany and one each in Austria, China, the Czech Republic, Romania, Poland and the USA. In addition, there are the two plants of the Italian medical technology subsidiary Steelco Group.

Its name is “Spina-Dorsale” (Italian word meaning “backbone”) and is a solution conceived by PadiglioneB Architecture Studio for an apartment of about 90 square meters in northern Italy, in the province of Verona. It is a structure characterized by a piece of furniture that is articulated in a continuous form between the kitchen and the entrance, separating the living area from the sleeping one and becoming the central element of the house, like a sort of “backbone” which performs various functions: wardrobe, empty-pockets, seat with shoe rack and kitchen. The passage to the sleeping area takes place through a door obtained from a door of the wardrobe and perfectly integrated with the latter. «The client – explains the architect Alberto Bassi, founder of PadiglioneB together with Chiara Tenca, also an architect – wanted a renovation that reflected his own personality. We have tried to hit the target taking care to create, in addition to a project theme, also a piece of furniture that actually characterizes him. Thus Spina Dorsale was born, becoming the central element of the entire apartment, which concretely performs the “vital” functions of the building itself».

The kitchen
In the project, the kitchen environment was designed to integrate harmoniously with the space reserved for the living room. The appliances dedicated to cooking are built into the cabinet, which includes a 4 elements black glass induction hob and the combi oven, above which the built-in microwave oven is placed. With regard to the refrigerator, however, a freestanding model in stainless steel was chosen. The realization of the project, as far as the kitchen environment is concerned, did not present any critical issues at the plant level. «We didn’t encounter any particular difficulties in creating the kitchen cabinet and the relative electrical and plumbing connections – Alberto Bassi underlines -. In fact, the new floor made it possible to create suitable slopes for all the drains».

Spaces highlighted by colour The project is characterized by the combination of two colors that respectively define the internal and external spaces. «The theme of color – says Bassi – has been the subject of research. We wanted a marked contrast between the external partitions and the elements carved into the interior of the furniture, and we identified two pairs of colors to propose to the property: gray for the exterior and yellow for the interior as regards the first combination, and blue dark and lobster for the second proposal, which was then chosen by the owners. Furthermore, in our opinion, the color emerges in a marked form also thanks to the floor made of polished concrete».

Another store of Gruppo Lube opened in Saudi Arabia, bringing the Italian kitchen manufacturer to achieve six showroom in the country. The new store is located in Dammam, the capital of the province of Al-Sharqiyya, the richest in oil in the world.

It has over 300 square meters of exhibition, offering lots of compositions of the most famous classic and modern models of the Cucine Lube collection, from the traditional Agnese to the luxurious Pantheon and Flavour, up to the modern Immagina, Oltre and Clover.

«Saudi Arabia – the company said – is by far one of the most important export markets of the Lube Group, which thanks to the collaboration with the local official distributor Bayt Aleeba has numerous mono-brand stores in the area: in addition to Dammam, the Italian company is present with its brands also in the capital Riyadh, and then in Jeddah, Khamis, Musheit and Jizan».

Groupe SEB joins the Act4Nature International alliance, on the occasion of the launch of the European Business & Nature Summit 2021 (EBNS). The Group is now one of 13 companies to make public its commitments to the preservation of biodiversity. Groupe SEB has set quantified, ambitious targets which are sequenced into 4 priorities within a short timeframe: fight against pollution, preservation of natural resources, reduction of carbon emissions, development of projects in favor of biodiversity.

«For many years, and consistent with its values, Groupe SEB has always ensured that its business is conducted in line with its social and societal commitments – explained Thierry De La Tour D’Artaise, chairman and ceo of the company -. As a corporate citizen, we are convinced of the vital role we have to play for the future of our planet. We have already made concrete commitments in favor of biodiversity and are redoubling our efforts. More than ever, we are engaged in this approach which is a truly collective adventure».

The Group has also planned some proactive targets for 2023 including: zero plastic packaging; -20% water consumption per product produced (base year 2016); +90% of household appliance products repairable for 10 years; reaching a minimum of 50% of recycled materials in products/packaging; -40% carbon intensity of factories (base year 2016); -15% carbon intensity of products (base year 2016); -10% carbon intensity of the transportation of products (base year 2016), supporting a forest ecosystem restoration project with a label guaranteeing the preservation of biodiversity.

Glem Gas, the Italian company of cooking appliances, follows a path of sustainable development. Its industrial policy is strongly oriented towards environmental protection, via intensive research and experimentation aimed at continual improvements in appearance and performance that embraces the entire product life cycle, and thus also the eco-sustainable management of its components.

«The forecasts for the future of our planet are becoming more and more alarming – said Glem Gas -: the greenhouse effect and the consequent climate changes may soon change the scenarios to the detriment of our ecosystem and thus our wellbeing. Like others, the household appliance industry is being called upon to review its production cycles and offer an active response to the need to increase responsibility for the environment. We must manage finite energy resources intelligently and make optimal use of the energy available from free, renewable sources, in a process that combines technological innovations with a great sense of social responsibility».

«Glem Gas appliances are therefore manufactured with technologies that enable the recovery of their components – the company explained -, implementing a principle of reuse in line with a meticulous environmental strategy. The entire process is shifting towards environmentally aware design of products, built to last over time but also to be sustainable, using as many recyclable materials as possible and delivering more efficient, higher-performing solutions but with less energy consumption. Unused appliances and equipment enter a specific treatment process to recover most of their component materials and thus reduce environmental impact».

In addition, Glem Gas undertook a scrapping procedure on a lot of 112 tonnes of waste material. Each type of equipment was broken down into its various components and then recycled with impressive percentage results on the entire volume: 97% of raw materials reused 1% recovered in the form of energy. «We like to think – the added from the company – that every cooker is part of a shared project, avoiding waste and adopting reuse and self-recycling, aiding us on our way to a better future with optimal safeguards for the natural world».

Marco Fossataro is the new Chief Financial Officer of Haier Europe. In the new position he leads the Administration, Finance and Management Control function with direct responsibility for Accounting, Planning and Financial Analysis (FP&A), Treasury, Fiscal and Credit Management, playing a key role in ensuring adequate profitability in support of the growth path and in compliance with Haier’s strong performance-oriented culture.
Fossataro brings its long international experience to Haier in all aspects of corporate finance, financial planning and accounting, gained in various sectors, companies and countries.
After graduating in Economics at La Sapienza University in Rome and obtaining the Executive MBAs at the Columbia Business School and London Business School, the manager began his career in KPMG Consulting in 1999 before spending a brilliant career at Enel. He was also CFO and Vice President for the EMEA area of ​​Whirlpool Corporation from 2016 to 2018.
Now Marco Fossataro, who joins Haier Europe after a two-year experience as Chief Audit Executive and Supervisory Board Member of Terna S.p.A, directly reports to the CEO of Haier Europe, Yannick Fierling, and functionally to the CFO of Haier Overseas, Yu Yingbo. He will also be part of Haier Europe’s Senior Leadership Team.
In his twenty years of experience he has in fact held important roles such as CFO, General Manager, Member of the Board of Directors and Member of the Supervisory Board of international companies in rapidly growing markets, leading global teams within multinational companies.

Groupe SEB was selected among the European companies which offer a positive working experience, receiving the recognition by Great Place to Work®. This is a global people analytics and consulting firm that helps companies of all sizes produce better business results by focusing on the work experience for every employee. Through their certification programs, it recognizes outstanding workplaces and produces a variety of Best Workplace rankings in more than 60 countries. This year the recognition has a deeper meaning, coming amid the Covid-19 crisis, which has upended daily life and business operations worldwide. Organizations on the list are leading the way amid the pandemic, demonstrating care for their employees, their customers and their communities during this difficult time.

«Being a “great workplace for all” is the result of all the actions of the HR teams and all the managers, who act on a daily basis, to make Groupe SEB a company where it feels good to work and grow professionally. – said Harry Touret, Directeur Général Adjoint, Ressources humaines Groupe SEB – During this pandemic that affected us all, we saw, for example, resilient and mobilized teams in all the countries where we are present. Because the health and safety of employees are a priority for the Group, we set out to prioritize the employment and well-being of employees despite the difficult context. This recognition is therefore all the more impactful, as it will highlight everyone’s efforts and strengthen the pride and team spirit of employees.»

As underloned by PwC experts to satisfay costumers’expectations and needs, it is fundamental to analyse consumers behaviour through data and informantion of different kind.
«Brand manufacturers and retailers – the experts explain – in categories as diverse as housecleaning, personal care, home improvement, gardening, and crafts need to know which consumers to focus on for different at-home experiences. This requires bringing together and analyzing a broad set of first- and third-party data about consumption habits, loyalty, demographics, social sentiment, mobile location data, and other attitudinal and behavioral data. Getting this information will require new approaches, though, under regulatory requirements like the California Consumer Privacy Act in the U.S. and the Global Data Protection Regulation in Europe, along with limits on capturing consumer data from Internet browsers.» 
These data, together with surveys allow to focus on those, who PwC define “the highest-value consumers”. Building a stronger demand-sensing capability to respond to signals and to create a faster insights-to-action loop is key to success.
This way to operate has the great advantage to speed up any futere decision and investments.
«Manufacturers and retailers – PwC experts continue – need an agile, digital approach to brand building and commercial activation that better coordinates across paid media, promotions, and other direct marketing expenditures, such as content, social media, packaging, shopper marketing, sampling, coupons, experiential marketing, and sponsorships. Taking a digital-first approach helps optimize the right content and calls to action for different occasions because it makes it fast and easy to modify promotions at the digital shelf.

GE Appliances (GEA), a Haier company, announced the launch of some SmartHQ Solutions that unify the company smart technologies to improve the entire product life cycle. GE Appliances has more than 450 connected appliance products across brands, driven by its innovation leader, GE Profile. With SmartHQ Solutions, GEA will extend its footprint beyond smart appliances to improve distribution, fleet management, home usage, and service, giving its owners and partners total control of their headquarters, whether that is their home, office, or job site. 
«In today’s world, we are digitizing our behaviours more than ever before – explains Shawn Stover, Executive Director of SmartHome Solutions for GE Appliances-. That’s why we are launching SmartHQ – the first end-to-end smart solution that combines our full suite of smart services and appliances—making us the easiest appliance manufacturer to do business with, manage, use and service. With over 60 years of experience dedicated to the builder channel, we designed each of our pillars of distribution, management, home, and service to solve real-life issues and allow our partners to create a healthier business.»
SmartHQ is an advanced platform that will evolve to include: SmartHQ Distribution, a solution that makes it possible to reach 90% of the U.S. population, thanks to an innovative velocity warehouses and patented equipment, dedicated service team and robust product tracking system; SmartHQ Management thats keep track of one appliance allowing property managers to oversee hundreds of appliances from the comfort of their office to save time and money, increase productivity and enhance their guests’ experiences; SmartHQ Home, tool that makes daily chores easier—such as preheating the oven, starting a load of laundry from the phone or auto re-ordering detergent when the dishwasher runs low. SmartHQ Service, finally, allows technicians to plug in and communicate with our connected appliances for faster and more accurate diagnostics.