“You just make people feel good !”

Following the 10th Carrefour International du Bois, 02nd to 04th of June 2010, exactly two years ago, the timber industry fell into an economic crisis. Demand slumped, the partnership between the suppliers on the one hand and importers, large wholesalers and major users on the other weakened. This perilous situation impacted France, Europe and almost all consumer countries. Since then, operators have mainly worked on their stocks. This valuable indicator in the form of the Carrefour du bois illustrates a technical upturn and a reversed supply/demand ratio today, without showing a significant improvement in the sector. In contrast to this trend, a group like ours, having done the right things at the right times in this troubled period, has all systems on go, which bodes well for success in the future.

In order to place the Carrefour du bois in terms of its impact and sphere of influence, it is necessary to explain that it is part of dynamic growth which is only open to "timber-people", i.e. to specialists. Some big names were not able to take part, as the spaces were booked quickly. This year 500 exhibitors have come together to welcome 10,000 visitors from 60 countries.

Sawn timber, parquet, packaging, timber construction solutions in line with the concept of the wooden house, woodwork, wooden furniture, the specialist trade…; the Carrefour in Nantes brings together the most important selection of wooden products in Europe.

Central, Eastern and Northern Europe, together with Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia set the dominating scene of the event.

This Carrefour is the get together for the entire French timber industry; there is an atmosphere of extreme conviviality. A major subject is the aspect of sustainable wood, focusing on the topics of traceability and legal issues. The more down-to-earth aspects deal with supply difficulties and the advent of new solutions to combat the lack of materials.

In order to let you feel the spirit of this event, we would like to give you a taste of the commentaries you can find here, those of our visitors and the team which has contributed to a warm atmosphere, full of good humour and positive feeling.

Clients and prospective clients came back several times during their stay, continuing to plunge again into the stand’s atmosphere. Students who visited were encouraged to work together with our Danzer Group. The atmosphere of the stand placed a spotlight on the fact that Interholco likes Africa and represents it well and that the Danzer Group has a close relationship to this continent.

Salesmen attitudes prove that we have mastered the crisis. Interholco has benefited both in terms of terrain and mentality, with new impetus which is conveyed by high confidence in the future.

Presenting new products, Reholz and Vinterio, alongside the classics, has a positive impact on sentiment; we talk about the Group in a new way, it arouses new interest, a new dynamism, it is a different approach to a trade show.

Our almost friendly and open concept of business relationships with customers was at the core of these days. Discussions do not only focus on the product, price, buyer and seller, but also on the people behind it who we appreciate and value.

We rely on the concept of a win/win relationship with our clients and exchange useful information (contacts, addresses, key market points…) in concrete terms.
In the last years we have established ourselves as a market leader in our sector, often doubling the market share of our direct competitors.

Our contacts appreciate...

• honesty, frankness, the ability to listen and advise;
• the clarity of our decisions, the respect of our dedication and our word;
• our clear positioning on the market;
• the privileged contact with exhibitors and the friendliness of the team ;
• our ability to integrate and the showcase which represents our inter-generation team; from Marjorie the youngest, to Christophe, Yvon, Ulli, Christian, Timothy, Marc and finally Jean-Pierre, the dean, as he calls himself;
• our professional quality and that of our champagne Briaux Lénique…

The IHC-logo is regarded as a gauge of quality.

We have the impression that this way of communication is adding value to the Danzer Group and vice versa. We tried to deliver an enthusiastic message with confidence. A customer said while talking to us

The company that likes Africa, serving the Danzer Group We are keen to return to this trade fair, this not-to-be-missed event that we are happy to attend. We particularly appreciated the thanks we received from all the visitors, clients and colleagues who were present. Let’s meet again in two years from now and let’s find the same atmosphere of "savoir-vivre" in order to once again try to achieve the goal expressed by a loyal client: “You just make people feel good !” Christian Morgenroth / Marjorie Quéré Article as PDF-File in English (106 KB) Article as PDF-File in French (120 KB)