01.03.2025

markilux takes stock of the 2024 season

The German economic barometer has painted a gloomy picture for some time now. Sentiment remains subdued as many sectors once again suffered a decline in sales last year. This was also true of the solar protection market. In the case of awning expert markilux, annual sales levelled off at around EUR 91.5 million after years of growth in the past. Nevertheless, the company remains optimistic about the future. It sees itself as resilient in crises and well equipped for the next economic upturn.

Rain, rain and even more rain. This is how you could sum up 2024. The sun barely made an appearance and the good days fell short of many people’s expectations. According to awning manufacturer markilux, spring and summer did not offer the right conditions for a strong sales season.

“We live in a time when very little can be planned. In which many things change quickly. And last year we unfortunately had to scale back our sales expectations for 2024,” concludes Klaus Wuchner, Director of Sales and Marketing. In addition to the damp, unsettled weather, he cites the ongoing difficulties in the German economy, particularly in the construction industry and construction-related trades, as the reason for this. And the solar protection market is naturally affected too. “End customers’ willingness to buy hit a new low last year. Durable consumer goods were particularly affected by this,” Mr Wuchner explains. At most, money was channelled into longer planned investments. Impulse buying, on the other hand, experienced a downward trend both in Germany and abroad. The only positive development was in the contract business in Germany with the large area shading product group. Sales growth was not feasible under these circumstances and the previous year’s result could not be maintained. The company therefore closed 2024 with a total annual turnover of EUR 91.5 million.

Michael Gerling, Director of R&D and Production at markilux, adds: “Ultimately, all you can do is accept a low level of consumption, which extends across many sectors, and concentrate on the future.” This is why markilux continued to invest in the automation and digitalisation of work processes. Because, as Mr Gerling says, the situation regarding skilled labour has not eased despite the economic slowdown. “However, employees need specialised knowledge to be able to control automated processes, which is why training and further education was once again an important topic for us in 2024,” says Michael Gerling. In the wake of this development, the company also put a new robot system into operation after a three-year project phase. It manufactures awning arms and is now operated by just one skilled worker per shift. Furthermore, an additional automatic transport line has been started up in the cover manufacturing department.

Klaus Wuchner also believes that investments of this kind are the right way to deal confidently with challenging times such as those we are currently experiencing. “Our strengths today include a highly flexible workforce and extremely well qualified specialist partners - both nationally and internationally,” he emphasises. On this basis, he explains, the company is well prepared for the economy to slowly pick up speed again. Until then, however, it is important to keep an eye on costs. “Naturally, we hope conditions for business will improve significantly in the coming year. In other words, that the new government is firmly committed to reducing bureaucracy and giving companies more room for manoeuvre again,” stresses Mr Wuchner. In his opinion, however, the most important thing is that 2025 witnesses plenty of days of sunshine. After all, good weather is a key selling point for awnings as a product. 3,909 characters

As was the case for many other companies, 2024 did not bring the hoped-for upturn for awning specialist markilux. Sales figures fell short of expectations as the consumer climate continued to deteriorate. Nevertheless, the company is positive about the future and is hoping for better results in 2025.

with reference: photo: markilux. Photos of markilux please only publish with picture credit.

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