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Many companies have a problem: the transport from abroad and the raw materials are becoming more expensive. The cookware company Kuhn Rikon is also noticing this.
Metals from abroad are currently 45 percent more expensive than a year ago, according to the latest figures from the Federal Statistical Office. The kitchenware manufacturer Kuhn Rikon is not spared from the high prices either.
In the factory hall in Zurich’s Tösstal, 225,000 pans and other cookware are produced every year, more than anywhere else in Switzerland. Hundreds of pots are carefully lined up on pallets. Metals are needed for production, a lot, according to Kuhn Rikon boss Tobias Gerfin.
“We need stainless steel that can then be used for cookware. This steel comes from Europe, from Finland. The amounts are negligible for a steel mill. We’re not big. But we process many tons every year,” says Gerfin.
Legend:
First the pans and lids are formed, then they have to be polished inside and out, the surface treated and the handle fitted. The floors are important, with additional steel.
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The production of pans and lids has been in full swing over the past few months. During the pandemic, people have been cooking a lot more at home, using pots and dishes like never before. It was precisely during this period that raw materials became expensive.
Higher prices and lack of materials
“Prices have increased massively since the pandemic began. In the steel sector between 15 and 30 percent. They are very volatile. You never know exactly at what price you will get the products, »emphasizes the Kuhn-Rikon boss.
In the Kuhn Rikon factory in the Tösstal, not only does production take place, but the goods are also sent straight to the end customer – in another hall within the building. An employee wraps a pot with insulation material and puts it in a package for shipping. Because the packaging material was missing in the past few months, the company had to postpone several product launches, which annoys the company boss.
Legend:
A total of 210 people work at Kuhn Rikon worldwide, most of them in Switzerland. The company is still owned by the fourth generation of the founding family.
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A problem at the moment is not only the expensive raw materials, but also the costs of transport. Kuhn Rikon has to pay up to five times more for a container from China. The high costs for raw materials and transport are passed on to the customers.
Kuhn Rikon plans to increase the prices of its products. In the end, the customer pays for the increases. Gerfin says: “We try to keep it as low as possible. In 2022, our prices will increase by five to ten percent.”
In 2022, our prices will increase by five to ten percent.
The example of Kuhn Rikon shows that those companies that can will probably pass on the high production costs to consumers in the coming weeks.