Jumpers for Goalposts? Not with Selecta!

If art imitates life, then sport surely follows business. Mark Richmond, Sales Director of Selecta Systems draws parallels between football and the window industry.

Remember a few short years ago when Roman Abramovich first took over at Chelsea? Blues fans thought all of their birthdays and Christmases had come at once. A high profile manager, super star players earning monumental salaries and immediate success on the field was truly the stuff of dreams.

Fast forward five years and even Abramovich’s billions have not been sufficient to sustain success on the field. A succession of managers have come and gone and the ultimate prize of European glory still remains elusive. The same is true of the remainder of the Premiership’s self-styled “Top Four”. Whilst results vary between the clubs, two are under new owners (both with severe credit issues) and the third has mortgaged its future to the hilt to move to a fancy new home.

A similar theme can be identified in the window systems market. Although many companies would like to stake a claim to market leadership, there is no Manchester United winning trophies every season. Many companies are, however, hamstrung by huge debts. Some resemble Liverpool, trading on past glories and continually rumoured to be up for sale to the highest bidder, whilst others have followed the Arsenal route of building new premises when perhaps investment in front line staff would have been a wiser choice.

At Selecta, we like to think of ourselves as a team with the interests of our fans (or in our case our customers), close to heart. For example, Advance 70, our 5-chamber, lead-free profile suite was designed in close co-operation with our customers and has proved to be a real winner since its launch in 2008. It has also helped us to win new business, as well over 100 fabricators have switched to it in the last 18 months.

Unlike most of our competitors, we have enjoyed the same, stable, ambitious and private ownership for over 25 years. This consistency has allowed us to develop our business model and roll out a strategy that has helped both us and our customers to grow, every year, year on year. This can only be done if the long term view is taken and the strategy is allowed to develop to its full potential. The time afforded to Sir Alex Ferguson in his early years at Manchester United and the resulting success is the most spectacular demonstration of this approach.

The management team at Selecta has been in place for years and, during that time, we have built close relationships with our customers. It is true to say that we depend upon each other for success and, just as a vociferous crowd can raise the home team’s game, we all feel compelled to go that extra mile to make sure our customers get what they need, when they need it. This means delivering on promises right through the organisation, which in turn demands close working relationships and clear communication across the business, from production to customer services.

Considering the recent turmoil in the market, it would be easy to copy football and sack the manager or buy new players as a knee jerk reaction to the downturn. At Selecta, we chose not to do that. Instead of cutting costs (usually at the expense of staff in the form of redundancies), we have actually increased our investment across the business. We have launched seven new foiled finishes, introduced a range of pre-fabricated composite doors, upgraded our mixing plant and, in probably the most visible change, expanded our delivery fleet. Our customers have always told us how highly they value our consistently excellent level of delivery service and our newly extended fleet allows us to service new business without compromising standards for existing fabricators.

The old adage in football that you are only as good as your last result also holds true in business. Our market is influenced by a bewildering array of factors, from changes in consumer demand to government legislation. It’s practically impossible for small business to keep abreast of all these issues. There is no point trying to sell outmoded products at silly prices. That’s why Selecta customers all benefit from the full sales, marketing and technical backup that you would expect to be available from a marketleading company. We advise on how to deal with the impact of changing Building Regulations.

WER “A” ratings have been widely publicised but it seems much of the industry is still unaware of the benefits that energy rated windows can bring. Like a star striker, an “A” rating is a valuable asset, enabling fabricators and installers to upsell and realise better margins, whilst standing out from the competition. Advantage 70’s “A” rating enables Selecta fabricators to be part of a winning team.

In conclusion, whilst some may argue that the influx of foreign players dilutes a club’s tradition, we positively welcome our German heritage. The engineering quality so evident in the design of Advance 70 is blended to perfection with British manufacturing expertise. We can only hope that a certain Italian manager can bring the same sustained success to the national team that Selecta has enjoyed even in these tough times!