Swiss toothbrush manufacturer Trisa faces many challenges due to the inflation that has hit the West in recent months. Despite the shocks, the company maintains its strategy.
Gregory Remez / ch media
More than 90% of the toothbrushes manufactured by Trisa in the canton of Lucerne are exported. Western Europe and North America are among the main export markets. The company is therefore dependent on the consumer climate in these countries. And persistent inflation has made this situation difficult.
In the United States, for example, consumers have had low morale for months. In April, it reached its lowest level since July 2022. Among the reasons given by the institute which surveys consumer morale every month is the fact that consumers judge the current situation of the labor market less positively.
At Trisa, these trends are confirmed. Looking ahead to the past financial year, officials speak of a “challenging market environment with high inflation rates in many markets and a weakening economy.” While the Swiss market was solid, sales figures fell on the export markets. The strong franc did the rest.
As a result, the Trisa Group’s turnover in 2023 decreased by 4.5% compared to the previous year, reaching 217.7 million francs. Net profit also fell significantly, going from almost 12 to 7 million francs.
“The biggest investment in years”
Adrian Pfenniger, who has headed Trisa since 2005, says the start of the year was a good omen. Faced with the uncertain economic and geopolitical environment, the company is maintaining its strategy without wavering. The group’s orientation towards different sectors of activity and markets has proven itself. In addition to the key sector of oral care, which represents almost 70% of turnover, Trisa has long focused on care and beauty products and distributes them in almost 80 countries.
Adrian Pfenniger, CEO of Trisa.
The faith in the future is underlined by the significant amount of investment that Trisa made last year in the modernization of the company headquarters and production in Triengen. The family business has invested around 30 million francs in product development, new machines and several building renovations. In addition, Trisa subsidiary Ebnat acquired an existing industrial building at the St. Gallen site in Wattwil in order to simplify logistics.
Adrian Pfenniger points out:
“These are the biggest investments in years. Following renovations and moves, production even had to be reduced on an occasional basis. We had to partly pre-produce and store products.”
More products made from recycled materials at Trisa
For years, the modernization of the Trisa production site has also included the expansion of the solar installation. It has been more than two decades since the Trisa company screwed the first photovoltaic system onto the roof of a production hall; she was thus one of the pioneers. Last year the largest expansion of photovoltaic installations took place. Adrian Pfenniger calls it the “second solar wave.”
The goal is to continually expand the solar surface area “until all the roofs are full.” Projects are planned accordingly for the current year.
When it comes to the product range, Trisa also wants to stay the course. The increasing use of recycled materials in products and packaging in the oral hygiene, hair care and household cleaning segments is very well received by customers, explains Adrian Pfenniger, who cites interdental brushes as an example. paper handle launched last year.
“In this area we will soon present new innovations, but they are not yet ready to be announced”
