Astigarraga Kit Line visits the Eisenwarenmesse Trade Fair in Cologne

The International Hardware Fair Cologne (Internationale Eisenwarenmesse Köln) has once again become the central meeting place for the international hardware industry. More than 3,200 exhibiting companies from 55 countries presented their latest products and innovations; from tools and accessories to hardware and fittings, fasteners and connection technology, including building and DIY supplies. Astigarraga Kit line has rolled out its stand in the DIY Boulevard space, under the slogan “Feel. Create. Act in a circular way”, to present our ecological furniture made of sustainable and local wood.

From left to right, the Marketing and Markets Director, Izaro Astigarraga; Frank Roos, sales representative for Northern Europe; and key account managers Facundo VILLAR and Ander Mutiozabal.

For Astigarraga Kit Line, Eisenwarenmesse always provides an invaluable platform for establishing connections with leading distributors in the industry, strengthening our existing business relationships, keeping abreast of the latest trends and opportunities in the sector, and also sharing our sustainable practices. “The assessment of this event is positive. It is a leading trade fair in Europe where we always expect to see all the major DIY chains. It is a good platform as it allows you to expand into Eastern and Northern Europe and to make the leap to those more distant countries that are difficult to access. The aim is to be known and recognised as a brand“, explained Izaro Astigarraga, Astigarraga Kit Line’s Marketing and Markets Director.

The purchasing managers of the Italian chain TECNOMAT, Marco Colombo, Pierpaolo Civello Elio Cariboni and Valerio D’onofrio, along with Ander Mutiozabal and Izaro Astigarraga.

Not only did a large number of German companies take part, but the international response from the industry was also excellent,” said trade fair director Sebastian Hein. “The proportion of exhibitors from outside Germany now exceeds 90 percent, a clear sign that Eisenwarenmesse is indispensable as an international business and communication platform and the hardware industry’s place of reference,” he added.

Target countries, Northern European countries

In this sense, the marketing and markets director has indicated that for Astigarraga Kit Line, “the target countries are those of Northern Europe, Germany, Holland, Denmark, Czech Republic, Austria, Scandinavian countries… Countries in which we do not have a strong presence and that this fair makes possible to reach”. “For the first time a DIY chain from Iceland has shown interest in our entire catalogue”, Izaro Astigarraga pointed out as a curiosity. The novelty is that it will start working directly with DIY chains in the Czech Republic: “Until now, they were customers who bought our trestles from our warehouses in Germany, but now that they are interested in the rest of the ranges in our catalogue, we are going to distribute directly to them,” he explained.

Our team on a visit to the stand at the Cologne Trade Fair.

Many established customers from Spain, France, Greece and Italy attended the stand. “Many customers who visited us two years ago at this same fair have come back to visit us again, especially Italians. For us, maintaining face-to-face contact is very important; it is the best way for us to strengthen the relationship with our customers and build greater trust and credibility”, said Izaro Astigarraga.

Packaging prepared for online sales

As always, the utility trestles, Astigarraga Kit Line’s flagship product and the rest of the Dinamic and Gala ranges were exhibited at the fair. The NOVA collection, which “has been very well received”, also had its place on the stand. The new ready-made packaging of the Dinamic series for online sales also attracted a lot of attention. “At the fair there were many companies from different countries involved in online sales. As a novelty, we presented a range of Dinamic products packaged for distribution in the online channel”.

Ander Mutiozabal, Izaro Astigarraga, Frank Roos and Pedro Carvalho, the Portuguese sales representative.

A stand that is much more than a direct presentation of our products, but where we also wanted to show that “we are nature”. “Our slogan has attracted a lot of attention. Not just customers who know us already, but also those who do not yet know about us, are surprised to hear that we are nature and that nature is the origin of our activity and source of our inspiration. That’s why our forests take up half the walls of our stand. We like to explain to them how our wood is locally sourced and how we control the entire supply chain of our products”, says Izaro Astigarraga, Astigarraga Kit Line’s Marketing and Markets Director.