Delivery problems, price explosions, war and Corona – there is still “cheating”. The Swabian manufacturer of high-pressure cleaners continues to defy the crises with record sales.
Winnenden (dpa/lsw) – The Swabian cleaning and gardening equipment manufacturer Kärcher benefited from an upturn in business with corporate customers in 2022, despite inflation and the Ukraine war. The manufacturer of high-pressure cleaners and sweepers increased sales to almost 3.2 billion euros, as CEO Hartmut Jenner told the German Press Agency. This is a new record. At 2.2 percent, growth in the past year was significantly lower than in 2021. The value at the time was 13.6 percent.
According to Jenner, despite satisfactory numbers, it was a challenging year for the family business. “We still have delivery problems today,” said the Kärcher boss, who has been at the helm of the company for more than 20 years. Freight costs are still high, as are the costs for unloading operations in the ports. In addition, the chip supply remains problematic.
Not only supply chains were an issue for the device manufacturer in 2022. Because of the Ukraine war and general price explosions, consumers bought fewer cleaning devices, Jenner noted. “In the end, people notice that in their wallets and then just order less,” he said. Corporate customers compensated for this. In the first two years of Corona, the business with professional devices had declined, for example due to limited hotel operations or closed event halls. According to Jenner, however, sales in this area will have increased again in 2022.
The company made most of its revenue abroad. According to Jenner, Kärcher is planning to set up another production site in Southeast Asia. In general, investments in the past financial year remained at a high level of EUR 170 million. The Kärcher boss announced that investments had been made primarily in the logistics sector.
According to Jenner, 14 percent of sales come from Germany. “Germany is still the most important market for us,” said the CEO. As usual, the Kärcher boss did not give any specific information about the profit. However, given the circumstances, it was satisfactory.
The device manufacturer recorded another record for the number of employees. This increased by more than 900 to 15,330 employees worldwide. But that’s not all: “We are currently looking for 300 employees in Germany alone,” announced Jenner.
