Freefoam has released a video of its Commercial Director, Colin St John, explaining the big changes to the roofline market over the last 20 years, and their implications for the future.
Having spent the last eighteen years with Freefoam, Colin has been a key witness to how the building industry and the market for building products have changed, particularly in the wake of the 2008 financial crash and the turmoil that followed.
Colin explains: “Up to 2008, the market for building products followed a traditional, very structured model, with manufacturers making and selling products to stockists, and stockists then distributing products to the installer marketplace and homeowners. After the crash in 2008, several iconic brands were lost and the marketplace began to shift. As people adapted to the changing market, there was a movement to a vertically integrated supply chain, where manufacturers have their own distribution channels.”
But Freefoam took a different path, focusing instead on developing customer relationships and adapting its product range and service offering, rather than trying to change the market. The last decade has seen Freefoam continuing to adapt and revise its product range, packages and extending guarantees in response to customers’ feedback.
Colin continues: “Our main aim is to grow by helping our customers grow. At the end of the day we want customers who can be our partners in business, so that’s why we continue to grow the range, make the product more relevant to the current market, and give our guys the chance to win business. While I can understand why some manufacturers have pursued a vertically integrated supply chain, the control exerted over independent companies isn’t always positive when you’re trying to influence their purchasing decision making process.”
The full video interview is available now on Freefoam’s YouTube channel at https://youtu.be/9q8Rzv3O4zc. For more information on Freefoam and helping you grow, visit www.freefoam.com.
