AVZ Group looks ahead: 'From customized products, to customized service'

The companies within AVZ-Group - AVZ, SunStock, Hylas, Smits Rolluiken en Zonwering and Sunpoint - have long been no strangers within the sun protection industry. Cooperation between the companies has taken more shape in recent years and now they are facing a new step together. "Now that the roads are almost paved, we can look to the future and open the doors to also really function as one group organizationally," says Martijn van Dijk, director of Smits Rolluiken en Zonwering. Together with CEO of AVZ-Group Niels Beerens he talks about the transition AVZ-Group is in, where the group wants to go and what the sun protection world can expect in the near future.

"Perhaps it's an open door, but the past few years have been incredibly special for our industry and actually for everyone. Many times for reasons we would rather not repeat every time. Add to that our own internal developments, especially the decision to renew and merge outdated systems and ways of working. A hefty undertaking beforehand, and with today's knowledge we can say that has been the case," Niels said. "By now we have entered calmer waters as an industry, but also certainly as a group, which gives us the opportunity to look more forward again," he continued. "It makes us proud that despite all the challenges, we are still the same companies and joint group we want to be. Only in an improved, new and fresh version. The transition is not quite complete yet, but we are already working hard on the next phase."

Investing in business processes

"The most significant and eye-catching investment we have made is implementing one ERP system, an Enterprise Resource Planning system, for all entities, or rather, for our entire group. For those less familiar with what such a system does for an organization: it controls all digital processes. All processes are processed in one, integrated system, from purchase order to stock in the warehouse and from logistics packing slips to invoice processing. In the old situation we were working with different systems within AVZ-Group, so in the new situation it's just one, integral system," Niels explains. "We can beat around the bush, but the fact is that we have had to eliminate a lot of backlog maintenance in recent years. Investing in data was initially a necessity, but now we are at the point where we can make this data work for us - and for you, our customers. The temptation to move too fast in this is great, but we haven't. After all, we want to grow both healthily and responsibly. Only then can we continue to guarantee quality towards our customers."

Visible changes for the customer

"About six months ago we strengthened our desire to provide better customer service from within the group by opting for one point of contact and/or representative per customer, depending on where they are most active," explains Martijn. "We noticed a positive response to this from the customers and internally we also noticed that this was a good step."

"In addition to the internal organizational changes, we are also changing our approach to our customers. People are used to us delivering customized products and we will certainly continue to do so, but we are taking this a bit further, namely that we want to deliver 'customized service' based on the philosophy. We then think of a so-called hybrid construction, in which we offer customers more opportunities to work as suits them or their business operations. For example by helping the self-assembler with assembly during the busy summer months by transferring - possibly part of - the assembly work to Smits, so that all products are ready for assembly on time and they can focus on that. But also by offering the opportunity to self-assemble one product and buy another product ready-to-assemble."

Strong together, respecting origins

"The fact that we operate as one group does not mean that the individual companies lose their own identity or specialties," Niels explains. "AVZ and SunStock remain the component specialists they have always been, Hylas is the fabric confectioner and Smits the turnkey specialist. Investments we make at the individual companies strengthen the group, and are of course well matched."   

"These different areas of expertise have always been our lifeline and have allowed us to invest in recent years where it was needed. We also believe that blinds entrepreneurs are still the linchpin of the market. Awnings, no matter how modern, are and will always be crafted products that should be assembled that way. And perhaps more importantly, people buy from people. The personal relationship that the sun protection specialist builds with the end user is essential. We still believe in local companies that are close to the consumer. In doing so, we value quality and are proud of our Dutch origins. We find it important that our products are Dutch-made, and remain so."

Trust

"We notice that from France, from our parent company StellaGroup, the will and willingness to invest is also there," Martijn hooks up. "They are fully behind the path we have embarked on and have even added strength to their vision in the sun protection field with the recent acquisitions of Biossun of France and Pratic of Italy. Biossun specializes in bioclimatic pergolas, better known to us as slat roofs. Pratic focuses more on everything to do with sun protection and outdoor living. We are getting excited about the products they are adding to the group, which we will also be presenting to our dealers in the near future. Thus, our international ties provide us with additional opportunities. Ultimately, that means more choice for consumers in the Netherlands!"

Safeguarding data, knowledge and expertise

"All in all, all the puzzle pieces are falling into place," Niels believes. "We are very grateful to our employees, who have used their knowledge and skills to make these steps possible! In addition, we have recruited new employees with additional qualities and competencies to take the organization to an even higher level."

"An additional benefit of digitization is that our employees are increasingly relieved of administrative tasks," Martijn adds. "That offers the opportunity to give our customers more attention and provide more service. Service, innovation and also knowledge sharing are important aspects of this. AVZ-Group stands for a sustainable relationship, in which we strengthen each other as customer and supplier, so that the end user and/or consumer can also reap the benefits."

Innovation

"An important pillar for AVZ-Group is innovation," Niels continues. "To stimulate this, we started early this year to put together three innovation groups. These include not only technicians, but also people from other departments, such as marketing, logistics, purchasing and sales, with representation from all companies within the group. The first fruits of these innovation groups are about to be brought to market, or may have already passed by. It is a strategy that we only intend to build on in the coming years."

Knowledge Sharing

"For AVZ-Group, knowledge sharing is one of the focal points in its relationship with clients," Martijn adds. "This is why the AVZ-Group Academy was established. Many an employee has already followed training courses here internally, among other things to get to know our new products better and thus be able to give the best advice. Soon we will take this a step further by also inviting you, our customers, for training sessions, focusing on our products, installing and adjusting them, help with sales and so on. For this purpose, a beautiful, multi-purpose training room is currently being built at our large showroom at AVZ in Best for all AVZ-Group customers."

"All in all, the changes that have taken place in recent years give us the opportunity to become even more customer-oriented. And by starting to function as one group, synergy effects arise that enable us to serve our customers even better. Driven by data, but always respecting the human touch," Niels Beerens concludes. "Whether you are a self-assembler, blinds dealer, project developer or 'a little bit of everything,' you can come to AVZ-Group for all your blinds needs. We have customized products, but above all, we put our faith in customized service!"