Solero Parasols moved in early 2022

New location supports international growth

Earlier this year, Solero Parasols moved to a more spacious location at De Maas 34-36 in Best. From this attractive and interactive inspiration center, the parasols specialist will focus even more on international growth. Also, a new generation is ready to gradually take over at the Brabant family business. However, nothing will change in the success formula - always wanting to be the best. 

In 2004 Helga van Keulen stood at the cradle of Solero Parasols. After decades of managing an awning company, she decided to take the plunge and start for herself. "Thanks in part to the help of our - mainly regional - awning dealers from the very beginning, the idea of having our own parasol company soon became viable," says her 28-year-old son Pim. Together with his two-year younger brother Sam, he plans to gradually take over the family business of his parents Helga and Jo van Keulen in the coming years. This will not involve major changes, Pim expects. "Of course we will continue to modernize the company, such as in the areas of automation and online marketing. But otherwise we want to continue the family tradition on the same footing. This means that we do not necessarily want to be the biggest, but always the best. We do not see growth as an end in itself. In our view, growth follows naturally if you do something well."

Revolutionary parasols

Solero specializes in mid- and high-end parasols. From the very beginning, the family business has been working hard on revolutionary innovations. "For example, when we started in 2004 we were one of the first to market parasols with built-in lighting," says Pim. "Initially, by the way, that lighting worked on solar energy. But because that system was somewhat damage-sensitive anyway, we subsequently replaced those solar panels with an ordinary battery." In the year 2022, Solero's professional garden parasols are distinguished primarily by their ease of operation and high-quality O'Bravia cloth that is both water-repellent, UV-resistant and colorfast. "Our showpieces in particular are the Solero® Fratello, a tiltable 3 x 3 meter floating parasol and the Solero® Palestro Pro, a floating parasol that, thanks to its size of 4 x 4 meters, is a great alternative to a patio canopy."

Internationalization

In recent years, Solero Parasols has increasingly focused on the international market. "Because at some point we were at our ceiling in terms of growth in the Netherlands," Pim explains. "In addition to resellers in the Netherlands, we now supply awning companies, garden furniture companies and home furnishing stores in Germany, France, Spain and England." With an eye on the future, the company moved last spring from a 2,500-square-meter location to a brand-new 7,500-square-meter facility. "In this attractive and interactive inspiration center, we can welcome our customers even better. Another big advantage is that we can store much more stock here, so that we can deliver every order to the customer within one or two days," Pim concludes.