“Too little is invested in renovation”

Die Presse: Do you disagree with me when I call you a winner in a crisis? 

Andreas Kraler: Our company has certainly benefited from the crisis: first through Corona and secondly through climate change. 

So a double crisis winner. 

But one has to first label the crisis: I believe that in spite of everything, everyone is not yet aware of the climate crisis and that a change has to take place. This also applies to transformation of buildings towards sustainability. 

This is within your business scope. But who has to become aware of it: private individuals or the state? 

Both. However, the point is: The transformation towards green is going to cost us, and it has to be clear who is going to pay for it all. Consumers and industry will not be able to do it on their own. Help from the public sector is also needed to achieve this.

Do you think too little attention is being paid to this? 

Yes. Especially in buildings, too little is being invested in renovation. This is also because many buildings belong to the public sector. They should actually set a positive example. Then many others will follow suit. The private home builder knows that if he invests in insulation and new windows, he will save on energy costs.

But private individuals can also plan for the longer term than politicians. 

One should always think in terms of the life cycle of a building. Buildings from the pre-war period are all still standing. They were built to be so long-lasting that they will still be standing a 100 years later. 

Back to the other crisis: Housing has become more important during Covid. 

Many people have invested in their own homes during the pandemic. Mainly because travelling was not possible and people wanted to beautify their homes. So that has definitely helped.

The earnings show a 13 per cent increase in turnover in 2022. Are the crises the reason for this? 

We wanted to break the 200 million turnover limit as early as 2021. Unfortunately, this did not work out due to the delayed supply chains. We would have crossed this mark that time itself if everything had been available as usual. This resulted in a backlog of demand, and this has now affected 2022. Prices have also increased. But, we have grown in all areas. I see that certain subsidies have definitely helped to press ahead with building renovation. 

So will the profit also increase in the same way? 

We are having a good year. But it is more difficult to generate good earnings this year than a good turnover. Increased prices and wages do not increase turnover. So profit falls by the wayside. There are some costs that increase during the year. They cannot be shifted directly on the market. It is not feasible

How much is paid out? 

100 percent of the profit remains in the company. This has been the case for the past 64 years. We do not work to just enrich the family that owns the company; rather, we want the company to grow to the next generation. However, our claim is that every family member who works in the company is entitled to a salary commensurate with the position. 

Aluminium prices have risen massively due to the war. How much is your business affected by this? 

It has hit us very hard. However, aluminium price on the stock exchange has levelled out again to some extent. However, the pricing policy also depends on the respective press plant: We conclude our contracts at different points of time. You have to try to keep the prices the same within a certain margin.

But that was hardly possible last year, right? 

We have tried to protect what we made. So price no longer played a role. With the supply chains disrupted, it was just a matter of getting something and making sure that the volume was enough so that we could deliver. That was the biggest challenge. But we could manage it well.

Do such crises result in new relationships with suppliers? 

Our strategy is that we only have suppliers from Europe. If I want to visit suppliers to see how production is going on, I want to be able to do that within a day. This would not be feasible outside Europe. 

Can you trace the supply chains of your suppliers? 

It is just an issue of availability of materials in many areas. Electronic components are not produced everywhere in the world. They are available almost only in Asia. One is then dependent on that. 

Can one remain competitive with European production prices? 

If you look at the whole process, from collaborative work to logistics expenses and after-sales service, I think it is cheaper to source the material from Europe. We also consider Europe as our main market. Therefore, we want to have our value creation over here.

Is this important to customers? 

Customers attach importance to where actual production takes place. We produce in Austria and Germany, and that is definitely a decision-making criterion. 

What is the level to which price increases can be passed on? 

Only to a limited extent. If there are no fixed contracts, there is naturally more room for manoeuvre. But prices can only be adjusted moderately. One must not forget - certain costs will continue to remain high in the future; for example wage cost. Even if inflation drops again, wage costs will not automatically go down.

Where is the pain threshold for end consumers in terms of price increases? 

That depends on the product and the market. But anything above 15 per cent will be very difficult.

Your production is energy-intensive. 

We have had our own hydroelectric power plant since 1996 and produce our own electricity with it. We heat with biomass. So our production is sustainable. 

Having your own power plant is unusual. 

My father was a visionary. Sun is the medium we play and work with. But when it rains, that was not an advantage for our sun protection. This gave us the idea of building our own hydroelectric power plant.

How much of your power requirements does it cover? 

We sell 100 per cent of the electricity. But we buy what we need and we still always have a surplus.

Family-owned business: How easy is it to take one over? 

It is still a transformation process that does not happen overnight. My father is still on the supervisory board. So we have good and intensive discussions on many topics. He has more than 55 years of experience and I am very grateful that he is still here. On the other hand, everyone has their own ideas, of course, and wants to realise them. In the end, it works through discourse and the willingness to take the company to the next stage. Both sides need to be open and be willing to discuss. 

So you never considered it a burden? 

No; it is a joy for me and a task that I have to continue. I have to handle the heritage with care. I want to take it further and not mess around with it.

You have two daughters yourself. How likely is it that the two will continue the business? 

My older daughter is currently studying management in Innsbruck, and my younger daughter is also attending a fashion school in Innsbruck. I hope that either one or the other will be active in the company. But as a father, I want them to have the choice to shape their own future. And I will support them in this. 

Have you made any plans in case either of your daughters take over the business? 

I think about that almost every day. But it's not just about my daughters. I have three sisters who also all have children. And they are of course also co-partners. The task will be to chaperone up to a certain point and then retire completely. Freedom is important for development, and also for making mistakes. It is essential to deal with mistakes properly and to learn from them.

What is your own error culture? 

We talk openly in the family about results and things that did not go so well. We want to learn from these things and never point finger at others. We always want to act in the interests of the company.