The year 2020 has been a very special one for Zünd. In addition to the sanitary measures due to the covid-19 epidemic, the cutting machine manufacturer has started a repositioning on the French market. Benjamin Launay, sales manager of Zund France, presents us the results of the past year and the changes in progress in the French subsidiary of the Swiss manufacturer.
Zünd realizes about 45% of its turnover in graphic arts (POS, signs, stickers, covering...) and 55% in various fields such as technical textiles or leather goods. "That's actually the very philosophy of Zünd: versatility to meet any die-cutting requirement. By the way, when trade shows and events were cancelled in 2020, our graphics customers were able to do subcontracting for other industries."
On the French market, after a 15% drop in sales in 2020 to around 8 million euros, 2021 sales are currently back to pre-covid levels. "We feel an enthusiasm from the industry to move forward." notes the commercial director.
Zund France, a workforce that has doubled in one year
And this "infatuation" comes at the right time. In January 2020, Grafitroniks, one of Zünd's two historical resellers in France, was acquired by the Zünd parent company and the small private company based in Vitry-sur-Seine became the Zund France subsidiary.
"We are now working to reorganize and improve our service to provide a quality service that matches the Zünd machines." explains Benjamin Launay.
It states: "From seven employees, we have grown to 19 people. The technical department, which consisted of four technicians located in Paris, now includes nine technicians spread throughout France," explains the sales manager. We are able to offer a physical intervention time of less than 24 hours."
In addition, the subsidiary's showroom in Vitry-sur-Seine has been renovated and expanded and will soon be inaugurated.
