In Search of Synergy: Different approaches to stay ahead of the competition

When its Danish parent company demanded more from its UK subsidiary, the response from Carl F Petersen Ltd was to launch Carl F direct, a mail order tools business which echoes the Group’s activities in Denmark. Two years on, the UK continues to develop its hardware supply operation with Fuhr locking systems as a key product line, but Carl F direct is having an important side effect in promoting greater collaboration between relatively autonomous businesses.

While Denmark celebrates the bi-centennial of Hans Christian Anderson’s birth, a recent visit to the Group’s operations provided the opportunity to meet another Hans Christian: Petersen, who is credited with reviving the fortunes of this long-established family business. Many years ago the Petersen family saw the sense in appointing a Chief Executive from outside the family – Hans Christian. Today Carl F Petersen is seen as one of Denmark’s most innovative companies and forward-thinking employers – a happy ending if not quite a fairy tale.

Opportunities for growth

Developing new opportunities for growth has been a key strategy for the Carl F Group, against a backdrop of increasing competition and cheap imports. The Group’s most visible operations in Denmark are the chain of 12 Carl F shops, which are tools and components stores for carpenters and professional tradesmen. The largest is a 2,000 sq. metre facility with a key cutting counter and other services. Carl F also supplies direct to site, and a highly developed logistics operation means next day delivery on orders placed before 4pm.

Carl F’s legacy as a supplier of architectural ironmongery is upheld by d line, a range of architectural hardware which is distributed internationally. By working closely with architects in Europe and other regions, Carl F has brought many new designs of handles and fittings to market, and into high-profile projects. (N.B. d line uk ltd, tel. 01844 299 305, www.dline.com).

In both sectors, excellent service remains the key to Carl F defending its position in these markets against local and overseas competitors.

To the UK with Fuhr

In the late ‘80s the flourishing UK market for PVC-U doors and windows inspired the launch of Carl F Petersen Ltd and from its inception the Fuhr product range was established as a flagship line. Today, sales of the Fuhr range account for around half its turnover and the UK company carries far greater influence with Fuhr than Denmark.

‘Fuhr now enjoy an excellent share of the market, most notably on door locks’, says Business Development Manager Bruce Bradshaw. ‘On a product level they’re terrific, and the communication between Fuhr’s Klaus Becker and Dave Hill, our National Sales Manager, is extremely proactive.’

What we have now is a product that is secure, but releases with minimal load on a lever, pad or panic bar.

An important product to have recently come out of this working relationship is the 870 fire escape door bolt, which simultaneously meets requirements for security and also for fast but simple emergency egress, meeting the demands of EN1125 for panic devices. The bolt can be fitted with a panic bar and it is suitable for commercial and domestic applications.

‘We first talked to Fuhr about it four years ago’, says Bruce Bradshaw. ‘A conflict between security and safety had been identified by the police, insurance companies, and fire officers. What we have now is a product that is secure, but releases with minimal load on a lever, pad or panic bar. ‘ Bruce adds that this example of the proactive nature of the company’s partnership with Fuhr bodes well for the future.

The opportunity to acquire the Window Shop business from the late Chris Ratcliffe brought a tools and accessories division to the UK company, who were quickly sold on the telescopic Laddermatic. ‘It was one of those ‘Victor Kiam’ decisions’, relates Bruce Bradshaw. ‘The key marketing opportunity for what was then known as the ‘Window Shop’ was of course Glassex and the spin off which followed in the next few months. The experience of selling tools meant that when the decision came to set up Carl F direct in 2003, there was already some expertise on board. ‘We’ve gone from 25 products to 1,000 but the Window Shop really was the seed’, he adds.

Through its catalogue and website www.carlfdirect.co.uk a huge range of tools and accessories is supplied to the professional trades in England and Wales. Stock items range from workwear and cleaning materials to measuring devices and power tools, most notably the DeWalt range. The division has now reached a size where it has dedicated staff, and the range of products continues to grow. It’s here that there is obvious scope for synergies between ‘Limited’ and ‘Group’, which is how the management refer to UK and Denmark respectively.

Food for thought

The management of the Group’s Odense warehouse is most impressive in its efficiency. Storage space is optimised on a daily basis so that items in greater demand are moved to more accessible locations in terms of aisle and storage height, within a 12 metre high racking system.

A motorised cassette storage and picking system is used for smaller items. These systems and the powerful software that drives them have given the UK management food for thought.

On the products side, Denmark has been extremely successful in finding Chinese partners to manufacture the hardware that it designs together with architects. Carl F provides the tooling for its several Chinese partners to manufacture distinctive, high end designs. This is a resource that the UK operation will draw on in future.

The more we work with our Danish colleagues, the more we see the benefits of what they’re developing here

It’s a two-way street though, and the Danes recognise the efficiency gains that the UK has achieved. Two recent successes are the implementation of Customer Relationship Management, which involves monitoring external communications, and the use of Key Performance Indicators.

Cultural differences

The development of a flat organisational structure has been something of a triumph for the Danish business, and this has given the UK management lots of ideas, not all of them workable. To address the family business culture, a ‘value driven leadership model’ and mission statement was adopted soon after Hans Christian’s appointment. The aim is that with greater communication and involvement in decision-making, staff feel they are valued by the company, a feeling which is then reciprocated.

Achievable in Denmark’s utopian society perhaps, but the various Group companies outside Denmark have yet to adopt the model.

‘In England we have had a rather top-down management company and that has been extremely successful’, says Hans Christian. ‘But now, in order to move it further on, we need another kind of management style.’

Enthusiasm

The more we work with our Danish colleagues, the more we see the benefits of what they’re developing here, and the greater the enthusiasm we go back with to develop that same sort of attitude in the UK.’ says Bruce Bradshaw.

Clearly there is lots to come from Carl F Petersen, both in terms of products and developments in service.