markilux takes stock of 2024 season

A year with few sunshine hours

The mood barometer of the German economy has been deteriorating for some time. Thus, many sectors were again faced with declining sales last year. The sun protection market was also affected. At sun protection specialist markilux, annual sales stalled at around 91.5 million euros after years of growth as a result. Nevertheless, the company remains optimistic about the future. It considers itself crisis-proof and well prepared for the next economic upturn.

Rain, rain and more rain. That's how you could sum up the year 2024. The sun hardly showed itself and the beautiful days fell short of many people's expectations. Spring and summer therefore did not offer good conditions for a peak season, according to sun protection manufacturer markilux.

Consumer willingness to buy at low point

"We live in a time when very little can be planned. And in which many things are changing rapidly. So we unfortunately had to adjust our sales expectations for 2024," concludes Klaus Wuchner, Director of Sales and Marketing. As a cause, in addition to the damp, unsteady weather, he cites the still difficult situation of the German economy and especially of the construction industry and related disciplines. This also includes the awning market. "Consumers' willingness to buy reached a new low last year. This was particularly true for durable goods," he said. At best, money went to investments already planned for some time. And precisely in the area of impulse purchases, there was a downward trend both at home and abroad. Only non-residential construction in Germany experienced a positive development with the product group "shading of large areas." Under these circumstances, revenue growth was not feasible. The previous year's result could not be maintained either. All in all, the company therefore closed the year 2024 with annual sales of 91.5 million euros.

Continued investment in process automation

Michael Gerling, Director of Production and Technology, adds, "At the end of the day, you can only accept such a low point in consumption that continues in many sectors and focus on the future." This is why markilux continues to invest in the automation and digitization of work processes. Because when it comes to skilled personnel, the situation has not improved despite the deteriorating economy. "But for arranging the automated processes, employees need special knowledge, which is why training and further education was again an important topic for us in 2024," says Michael Gerling. As part of this development, the company also put into operation a new robotic system after a three-year project phase. This system makes screen arms and is operated by only one employee per shift. Furthermore, a new automatic transport system has been started in cloth making.

Well prepared for improving economy

Such investments are also the right way for Klaus Wuchner to deal confidently with the challenging times we are currently experiencing. "Our strengths today include a highly flexible workforce and highly qualified specialist partners, both nationally and internationally," he emphasizes. On this basis, the company is well prepared when the economy picks up a bit. In the meantime, costs must be watched. "We hope, of course, that the climate for business will clearly improve in the coming year. To be more precise, that the new government makes a bold commitment to cutting red tape and that companies are given more creative leeway again," Wuchner emphasizes. But crucial, he says, is above all whether the year 2025 will have enough sunny days. After all, nice weather is an essential selling point for the "Screen" product.