Geberit CEO expects construction industry in Europe to continue to shrink
Published: Monday, Jul 22nd 2024, 08:40
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Christian Buhl, CEO of the sanitary technology group Geberit, is maintaining his cautious assessment of the construction industry in the main market of Europe. "We continue to assume that the European construction industry will shrink in 2024, especially new construction," he said in an interview with the "Neue Zürcher Zeitung" (Monday edition) to mark the company's 150th anniversary.
In Geberit's core markets, it was one of the biggest slumps in new residential construction for decades. At the same time, Buhl qualified the validity of short-term forecasts: "However, short-term predictions are always difficult and often less relevant. For the long term, you need an opinion."
When asked about the increased investment in production facilities in 2023 despite the decline in sales, Buhl explained: "In crises, you have many more opportunities to set yourself apart from the competition. People need toilets, that's as certain as the Amen in church."
When asked whether Germany, where Geberit generates around 30 percent of its sales, is not a cluster risk, he replied: "Germany is a cluster. When the market is going badly, we talk about cluster risk. But when the market is doing very well, nobody talks about a cluster opportunity." It should also not be forgotten that Central Europe is still the most profitable market with the most attractive margins for the global sanitary industry.
Geberit was founded in 1874 and has developed from a small plumbing company into a globally active, listed sanitary group.
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