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MASTERS TO WATCH: Rogier van Dis

26 juli 2021Door Fleur de Jong5 min lezen

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Rogier van Dis, leader of North West Europe LIXIL EMENA at GROHE, talks to MASTERS about his challenges, sustainability and the future.

Rogier van Dis, leader North West Europe LIXIL EMENA at GROHE, talks to MASTERS about his challenges, sustainability and the future. Text: Bart-Jan Brouwer | Online editor: Fleur de Jong
Image: John van Helvert

Challenge

“After studying Commercial Engineering at the HTS, I first added Philips and then at Schneider Electric worked. Approached in 2014 GROHE me. And they worked so hard on it: within a week I was sitting at the table with the CEO and it was arranged. Nice brand, nice company, but I didn't have anything to do with plumbing. That only made the challenge greater. At the time, the emphasis was not on creating demand, but the market had to do its job. That surprised me: now that I was working there, I suddenly saw what beautiful products GROHE has. That is why we switched as a company from sell-in to sell-out. This resulted in the fact that when the latest version of the Grohtherm 2015 was released in 1000, we had 30 percent growth on that thermostatic tap in that year alone. The key was to get it sales team To make you believe 100 percent in the marketing plan: we together as a team can do this. That enthusiasm is palpable. We show what difference we make for consumers.”

Design

“Since GROHE was acquired by LIXIL Corporation, We no longer only sell taps and showers, but also sinks, bathtubs, toilets... Just not yet the tiles and bathroom furniture. In the past, the bathroom was mainly functional - brush your teeth and you're done - but nowadays it is much more about experience and relaxation. Previously, people were satisfied with a tap and a hose with a hand shower, but now they want a shower system with a large overhead shower. The demand for comfort has skyrocketed. Just like the design. About five years ago, Russian colleagues asked why we only sold chrome and not colored taps. We then thought: they are perfect wappaThere is no demand for that at all. Now they are impossible to drag! GROHE now offers ten different color finishes for taps, showers and accessories, among others. These taps are also ten times more scratch-resistant thanks to a PVD coating.”

Sustainability

“We not only want to make progress in innovation and design, but also in the field of sustainability. All our factories have been CO2 neutral since the end of last year. Point. If you buy a shower system from us, it will contain five to ten plastic bags with parts. We have come up with a new way of packaging, a project that should be completed by the end of 2021. From then on, we will save 35 million plastic bags per year. That is insane! But the key to sustainability lies in our products. How do we ensure that on the one hand people say 'I want a shower that makes me feel like I am standing under a rain shower', while on the other hand we ensure that as little water as possible is used? When you open the tap, it initially goes up to 6,5 liters per minute. If you want more, you have to press a button and keep turning. Then you consciously take a step towards a maximum of 9,5 liters per minute. When it comes to showering, there is only one thing that really helps: In the Netherlands we shower for an average of 9 minutes. If we reduce that to 5, we will save stadiums full of water and much more gas. We communicate this on our website and to consumers.”

Shower toilet

“A shower toilet is nicer, more hygienic and more sustainable. It uses almost as much water as a regular toilet and does heat electrically, but that is nothing compared to the savings in toilet paper. In the Netherlands we use – hold on tight! – 25 billion rolls of toilet paper. Just the trucks that drive around with them and the CO2 emissions that that entails! A shower toilet remains a niche, because we Westerners grew up with toilet paper and such a toilet is a bit more expensive. When I suggested the idea of installing one at home, my wife and children said, "You're crazy." Now they are my best ambassadors. Another development is the GROHE Blue: a kitchen tap that transforms water into filtered, chilled and still, slightly sparkling or sparkling water. We live in a country where the quality of tap water is very good, and yet we continue to carry plastic bottles of water home from the supermarket. One liter bottle of mineral water costs seven liters in production and CO2 before it reaches the store. The active carbon filter also improves the taste of the water and reduces limescale.”

Future

“The GROHE Red, our boiling water tap, also has a positive effect on the environment. Our boiler is made of lime-repellent titanium and does not lose heat. An electric kettle, on the other hand, uses a lot of energy and wastes water. Next year, GROHE will launch a tap that combines boiling, filtered, chilled and still water. Furthermore, we are increasingly moving towards digital techniques and connections, which can provide useful feedback for the user. Take the shower toilet: it could do a stool test. This way you can detect ailments in time. You have to be extremely careful with the data, of course, we haven't gotten that far yet, but there are opportunities here. GROHE not only looks at innovation, comfort and sustainability, but also at the future.”

Grohe.nl