Cleaning the Queen's dishes

Meiko Maschinenbau is a leader in the development, manufacturing and distribution of dishwashing machines and systems. With subsidiaries all over Germany, the company rules the roost in its domestic market. But while branches in France, Austria, Switzerland and China give it a considerable presence on the world stage; Meiko is still looking to expand its global operations.

The content of a company's customer portfolio is vital. When trying to enter new markets, for instance, it's always nice to be able to quote a few famous names, especially when potential customers are unfamiliar with your brand.

But if, like Meiko, you can name the Queen of England and many of her most celebrated subjects among your clients, even the most skeptical of potential customers cannot fail to be impressed by your credentials.

Last year's leap in sales has given Burkhard Randel reason for optimism in the Japanese market.

Managing Director Burkhard Randel is very proud of these achievements, but he is even more anxious to detail the company's activities abroad "Our export orientation is paramount because it is a source of growth," he explained. This is not an easy strategy to maintain. Good partners are sometimes difficult to come by and there is a multitude of regulations that companies have to adhere to in export markets. The biggest stumbling block involves corporate orientation and this may still take some time to clear, according to Randel. "We need to change Meiko's orientation here in Germany, turning it into an export-oriented company. This is difficult because the company is 74 years old and we are a little set in our ways. But, we are increasingly seeing a change in mentality, especially among our younger employees. So, I feel it's just a matter of time before the transformation is completed," he predicted.

Japan is an export market that shows promise for Meiko. The company has seen some success in the bedpan washing and in-flight catering sectors. Sales to Japan increased by 50 percent last year. Randel believes that more is to follow.

"We are optimistic for the Japanese market although we currently have a very low profile there. The reasons for our optimism are simple. The Japanese population takes cleanliness very seriously and with 130 million inhabitants there are a lot of dishes to be washed. We have many Japanese competitors in this market, but we also have some new partners and our approach is getting more and more creative," he explained.

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