Informasjonen på disse sidene er beregnet for journalister Hvis du klikker NEI vil du komme tilbake til mynewsdesk.com the Villeroy & Boch Group generated record revenue of € 1.421 billion The significant increase in revenue was primarily due to the acquisition of Ideal Standard in March 2024 The company also managed to improve its operating EBIT by 10 % from € 88.7 million to € 97.6 million The targets for revenue and operating EBIT were thus achieved despite challenging market conditions The integration of Ideal Standard was the overall focus of the Group's activities in 2024 The development of a joint Group strategy and an optimised and integrated organisational structure enabled the first synergy effects to be realised we've created a new company that has successfully positioned itself on the market under the umbrella of the Villeroy & Boch Group with two strong brands clearly defined strategies for growth and an international organisation” commented CEO Gabi Schupp on the past financial year “Ideal Standard complements Villeroy & Boch's business model All assumptions regarding the complementary strengths in terms of product portfolio sales channels and regional presence have been confirmed and increased the Group's competitiveness.” Acquisition-driven sales growth in the Bathroom & Wellness Division the Bathroom & Wellness Division generated revenue of € 1,098.9 million up 89.7 % over the previous year due to acquisitions The Ideal Standard companies contributed revenue of € 512.1 million from 1 March 2024 onwards Despite the continued subdued development of the construction sector the previous year's sales level was slightly exceeded after adjusting for acquisitions The ceramic sanitary ware and the fittings business units in particular achieved the highest revenue growth The Bathroom & Wellness Division generated an operating profit (EBIT) of € 65.2 million in 2024 up € 7.9 million or 13.8 % over the previous year Stability despite weak consumer demand in Dining & Lifestyle the Dining & Lifestyle Division generated revenue of € 319.3 million Although the economic environment was difficult revenue remained stable at the previous year's level Revenue increased in the project business for hotels and restaurants as well as in e-commerce The company's own retail shops achieved almost the same revenue as in the previous year The Dining & Lifestyle Division successfully closed the 2024 financial year with an operating profit (EBIT) of € 32.4 million up 3.2 % over the previous year despite the difficult market environment the Villeroy & Boch Group invested a total of € 58.3 million in property The focus of investment was on the modernisation and automation of the production sites of both divisions and on brand presence with the opening of Villeroy & Boch World and the outlet at the Group headquarters in Mettlach as well as the modernisation of company-owned retail shops in Germany and abroad The Supervisory Board and Management Board will propose to the General Meeting of Shareholders on 9 May 2025 that the unappropriated surplus of Villeroy & Boch AG be used to distribute a dividend of € 0.85 for ordinary shares and € 0.90 for preference shares its integrated organisation and clearly defined growth strategies the Management Board of Villeroy & Boch AG believes that the Group is well positioned and taking into account the economic environment is therefore forecasting an increase in consolidated revenue in the high single-digit percentage range and a moderate increase in operating EBIT for the 2025 financial year The rolling return on net operating assets in 2025 is expected to be at the previous year's level Melanie SchnitzlerDirector Corporate CommunicationsPhone: +49 (0) 151 23 54 75 55E-mail: schnitzler.melanie@villeroy-boch.comAnabell WestrichCorporate CommunicationsPhone: +49 (0) 68 64 81 13 38E-mail: westrich.anabell@villeroy-boch.com The Villeroy & Boch Group is one of the world's leading premium suppliers in the Dining & Lifestyle and Bathroom & Wellness sectors which was founded in 1748 and is headquartered in Mettlach With its strong brand portfolio and its two main brands Villeroy & Boch and Ideal Standard the Group is represented by more than 12,000 employees in around 140 countries worldwide Gustavsberg er en av Skandinavias ledende produsenter av baderomsprodukter tidløs design og smarte løsninger som sparer vann energi og penger gjør det enkelt å lage et komplett baderom fra Gustavsberg Selskapet eies av den tyske gruppen Villeroy & Boch AG en av Europas største produsenter av baderomsinnredninger I konsernet inngår også varemerket Vatette ledende innen installasjonsmaterialer for baderommet Gustavsbergsgruppen har i dag rundt 400 ansatte og en omsetning på over 1,1 milliarder SEK Porselensproduksjon i Gustavsberg startet i 1825 De første baderomsproduktene ble produsert i 1939 og siden den gang har Gustavsberg stått for høy kvalitet I dag er porselensproduksjon erstattet av montering i Gustavsberg men fabrikken i Vårgårda produserer fortsatt kraner og har gjort det i over 100 år I dag er Gustavsberg ledende innen vannsparing og miljømessig arbeid - fra produkt til ferdig installasjon Når du velger å følge et nyhetsrom og opprette en brukerkonto vil dine personopplysninger bli benyttet av oss og av nyhetsrommets eier for å sende deg nyheter og oppdateringer i henhold til dine varslingsinnstillinger For mer informasjon, les vår Personvernspolicy, som gjelder for vår bruk av dine personopplysninger, og vår Personvernspolicy for Contacts som gjelder for nyhetsrommets eiers bruk av dine personopplysninger Vær oppmerksom på at våre Brukervilkår gjelder for all bruk av våre tjenester Du kan trekke tilbake ditt samtykke når som helst ved å melde deg ut eller slette din konto Excess heat from AstaReal’s algae cultivation is now being used for district heating for up to 2,500 apartments in Gustavsberg Vattenfall's innovative installation uses waste heat from AstaReal’s production process "AstaReal’s production process is energy-intensive and requires both electricity and cooling The excess heat is now being used for heating homes and premises and Gustavsberg's residents now get more than 20 per cent of their heating needs from the new technology," says Kurosh Beradari Sales and Marketing Director at Vattenfall Heat in Sweden for a specially adapted facility for heat recovery installed at AstaReal’s production facility in Gustavsberg "The technical solution is now in place and we'll continue to be responsible for operations and administration in the future We're proud of our collaboration with AstaReal a groundbreaking solution that will benefit both their business and the local area," says Lars Blomberg responsible for industrial customers at Vattenfall Network Solutions The new solution makes it possible to efficiently recover excess heat from the production process which means that more than fifteen million kilowatt hours of heat per year will be recovered and reused in the local district heating network in Gustavsberg is the first company in the world to produce natural astaxanthin successfully on a large scale This phytonutrient is used as a nutritional supplement for both humans and animals in Sweden as well as globally "Production of natural astaxanthin takes place through the cultivation of algae in unique indoor photobioreactors It's therefore important for us to use electricity and cooling as efficiently as possible Our extended partnership with Vattenfall fully aligns with our ambition to grow the algae as sustainably as possible and to be a positive force in society with a circular business We're really happy that the Excess Heat Recovery Project is now up and running," says Peter Worsöe Vattenfall and AstaReal have a comprehensive partnership for AstaReal’s energy solutions Vattenfall owns and manages high-voltage facilities such as transformers and switchgears and supplies AstaReal with climate-neutral electricity The plant has also been upgraded with a new significantly more climate-friendly refrigerant (R1234ze(E)) than in previous solutions Vattenfall is celebrating diversity month because we are part of something bigger: This month is not just an internal celebration It is part of a broader EU initiative that brings together .. Vattenfall reports a lower result in the first quarter of 2025 mainly related to the sale of the heating operations in Berlin and the Norfolk projects in the first quarter of 2024 Cement currently accounts for 8 per cent of the world's carbon dioxide emissions – but if you look at the research and the progress in the industry Contact us LinkedIn YouTube Instagram Facebook Vattenfall is a European energy company with approximately 21,000 employees For more than 100 years we have electrified industries supplied energy to people's homes and modernised our way of living through innovation and cooperation More about Vattenfall Thank you for downloading this report! You can view it at the link below:View PDFIf you can not access the report, please contact ariana.lynn@thefastmode.com Get updates and alertsdelivered to your inbox Sweden - They are ranked among the world's happiest citizens but now Swedes are taking lessons in positive living from a survivor of torture in President Bashar al-Assad's prison cells.  a quaint town famous for its porcelain production 20 minutes from Stockholm 21-year-old Omar al-Shogre addressed an audience of over 120 in a lecture with the title and that I would tell him everything he wanted,” Shogre tells his audience of his past as they alternate between groans and gasps of horror “I sat down and started to say anything possible I was afraid of going back to the torture if I stopped talking.” Shogre is perhaps not the likeliest speaker on positive living. He was starved and tortured in 10 different prisons in Syria after participating in the anti-government protests that erupted in 2011 He was electrocuted on all parts of his body and witnessed widespread rape of other prisoners But he speaks with confidence and coherence, having learnt to speak fluent Swedish within a year of his arrival in Stockholm “It is impossible for the human mind to understand Syrian prisons Nobody can imagine it,” Shogre told Middle East Eye privately I cannot believe how I am still alive'  Shogre has also spoken in Sweden's frozen north with the encouragement of people he first met in the country. Lisbeth Karbin's family was originally assigned as a guardian for Shogre's younger 12-year-old brother Ali I saw that Omar was frustrated when he tried to tell me about his past; he waved his hands and tried to demonstrate using body language picking up the phone and trying to translate with it But it took him only a few weeks to speak Swedish," Lisbeth told MEE.  she encouraged him to share it more widely. Just after the new year near Lisbeth's home and Sweden's border with Finland healthcare professionals [among the audience]; it was a great lecture," she said "Omar gives so much of himself; he gets people to listen which he organises in universities and public theatres across Sweden combine his experience in detention with facts about Syria's dark history of dictatorship Shogre's story of survival came as Amnesty International released a report on torture and execution in Saydnaya the notorious political prison in the mountains 30km north of Damascus In findings cumulating from a year of research the monitoring group states that as many as 13,000 people have been hanged to death there since 2011 “Thousands of people have been extra-judicially executed in mass hangings carried out at night and in the utmost secrecy,” the report finds “The bodies of those who are killed at Saydnaya are buried in mass graves.” In the report issued on Tuesday Amnesty said that it is “inconceivable” that these “large-scale and systematic practices” have not been authorised at the highest levels of the Syrian government.  Other prisoners saved his life on multiple occasions: by giving him their food rations to stop him wasting away According to the Syrian Network for Human Rights, there are 215,000 people held in detention in Syria nearly all of them by the Assad government where he contracted tuberculosis and which he describes as “horrifying” He fled to Sweden after his mother paid a $15,000 bribe for his release in June 2015 and electrocution,” Shogre told his most recent audience Although Shogre says he would never repeat his time in detention he says that it represented "the best days of my life" because it "taught me how to be human," calling it the "school of prison" He feels that he owes his survival to other prisoners' magnanimity He said that other prisoners saved his life on multiple occasions: by giving him their food rations to stop him wasting away and feels a responsibility to tell the world what is happening in Syria's prisons.  from the village of al-Bayda in Syria’s coastal Tartous province is teaching the need for gratitude and compassion Rather than through hackneyed advice about positivity he does so in a deft presentation of a dreadful past The Swedish public, citizens of the world’s 10th most content country according to last year’s UN-commissioned World Happiness Report After just a couple of months of public speaking videos of Shogre’s lectures are attracting more than 16,000 viewers on Facebook Live and it’s good that he can talk about it without being sad,” she told MEE afterwards “He teaches us to be open-minded because there are maybe things you would not dream of waiting in the future.” and it’s good that he can talk about it without being sad' After describing and demonstrating – with mid-air actions – the beatings he suffered in detention  Shogre makes the audience laugh with his tales of accustomising to life in Sweden He recounts the initial meetings with the couple who would eventually give him a safe home: “I used Google – I answered yes and no you feel a lot of inspiration,” said Olle Oberg a cameraman and YouTube video producer from Stockholm “The message is that you must never give up and that we must not take life for granted We must not ignore what is going on in the world It might happen to you; Omar was in that situation in Syria Audiences who attend Shogre’s lectures are also often confronted with details about Syria’s history that have been lost among images of Islamic State group militants and bombed-out cities 'The message is that you must never give up and that we must not take life for granted'  the intelligence and security services do not mean safety,” Shogre told his audience in Gustavsberg explaining the country’s rife corruption networks and state security apparatus The police in Sweden are not like in Syria – there is a vast difference The intelligence and security forces mean that you have got to run away Shogre is determined to recount the beginning of the Syrian uprisings in 2011, in an attempt to increase awareness of civilians’ fight for freedom, telling stories from the early days of the revolution.  "He [Bashar al-Assad] decided to send his forces and the security services went and arrested the boys They took them to a security branch and tortured them," he said 'Everything is easy for me in life except for prison Prison is the only difficult thing in life' “Children who had watched the news about the [revolutions in] Egypt and Tunisia and saw the slogans – ‘Freedom’ and ‘the people want the fall of the regime,’ took pens and wrote on walls: ‘Ijay’ik al-dour ya dok-tor’  (Doc referring to Assad's training as an ophthalmologist before his brother's death in a car crash saw him accede to the Syrian presidency.  “We don’t really think about the issues of the protests and the prisoners in Syria,” said Emil Monikander Omar’s story is very moving and he tells it so well that you can feel you are there It makes you realise our lives are not that bad compared to others.” Some people are shocked at Shogre’s willingness to talk about what happened to him and I am not thinking straight as I talk about thousands of bodies and organs being cut out,” Shogre explains “I laugh and act normally as I talk about these things Everything is easy for me in life except for prison Prison is the only difficult thing in life.” Local authorities have helped Shogre achieve his aim of spreading the message about Syria’s detention facilities “I met Omar for the first time in the library and was asked if I would like to set up his lecture,” said Ann-Helen Johansson head of the library at the municipality of Värmdö Was she concerned about disturbing the audience although children under 15 had to be accompanied by an adult to attend “It’s important to try to understand what is going on in Syria I did not know about the government prisons I hope he can find a good life here in Sweden.” Does Shogre himself not find the process of reliving the traumatic experiences he lived difficult Would he not prefer to forget it and try to build a new life in Sweden without the memories of a painful past “There are two kinds of people who leave prison,” Shogre says But there are people who cannot forget what happened to them and their lives and families in Syria Shogre carries the weight of responsibility of a free man who can speak out knowing there are still tens of thousands of people incarcerated in Syria “A lot of prisoners come out of prison very tired physically and psychologically and cannot talk about what happened to them That gives prisoners a reason not to talk about it speaking publicly is therapeutic for Shogre Knowing that sharing his ordeal can help others deal with challenges in their lives as well as raise awareness about the grim situation in Syria He tried seeing a therapist to help him deal with what happened in his past but he said that this did not help him much Many Swedes cannot help but notice that this young man's enthusiasm for life is taking him places.  “We Swedes are not that enthusiastic and he is so positive about things I think Omar is only just beginning; I think we are going to see more from him,” Dedering said This article is available in French on Middle East Eye French edition Copyright © 2014 - 2025. Middle East Eye Only England and Wales jurisdiction apply in all legal matters Middle East Eye          ISSN 2634-2456                      Jenny O’leary talks cruising the Stockholm archipelago onboard her and her partner's electric yacht Are we now able to rely on an electric drive as an auxiliary engine for a sailing cruiser? Having mused over this for a few years, my husband Niall and I decided to stop vacillating and we are now the proud owners of a beautiful new Arcona 385 equipped with an Oceanvolt all-electric Servoprop I had been feeling increasingly uncomfortable about using a diesel engine for a non-essential purpose The idea of motoring from here to there when the wind or tide is against us just doesn’t appeal This sense of unease has crept up over the last few years as we have been trying to become more environmentally responsible We also have had some experience of adjusting to living with limited range Range anxiety was a term that became very real to us in 2013 when we became an electric car family In late May 2023 we turned up for the handover in Gustavsberg I felt like I was back racing a performance dinghy The interior finish of the boat is beautiful – carefully burnished solid wood well thought out layout and plenty of light It was immediately clear that the 385 is a fast boat responsive and easy to keep on track with a single deep rudder Would Niall and I be able to handle this on our own Our first independent outing was a passage from Gustavsberg to Wasahamnen marina in central Stockholm This is a typical archipelago trip involving a mixture of narrow canal-type passages and some relatively open water sailing and motor on and off gave us a bit of practice We were also trying to understand the way the electric motor worked: how far could we motor and at what speed Surprisingly the most memorable part of this first trip was not anything to do with the electric drive or even the boat it was remarkable to float silently past families of geese and be able to hear the bird orchestra as we ‘motored’ through the affluent watery suburbs of Stockholm we had plenty of battery power left when we finally arrived at the Wasahamnen marina But our unforgettable moment happened at the very end of the outing This was our first time visiting the Stockholm Archipelago The Swedes have their own preferred mooring systems threading your mooring lines though metal eyes on buoys or through eyes on low lying floating pontoons There are various gadgets available for sale in the chandlers to help you with all these approaches Electric and hybrid yachts are growing in popularity; we outline the current options for those making the switch Hydrogen is the future of energy – everyone says so Billions of pounds of funding have been unveiled as part… We had equipped ourselves with an expanding boat hook and a clever boat hook invention that allowed you to thread a line through a mooring eye by using a devious rotating hook which seemed to magically thread itself The mooring system that is preferred in Wasahamnen turns out to be one which is very common in the archipelago There are large mooring buoys positioned about 20m from the pontoons or harbour wall you thread your stern line through the metal eye on the top of the buoy and continue bow first towards the pontoon we ended up moored the wrong way around (stern into the pontoon) with one of us swimming in the icy Baltic It was free entertainment for everyone watching A family of geese float by undisturbed by the quiet purr of the electric engine But to answer the question of how far can we motor and at what speed We are still on a learning curve trying to assess this There is a balance between how fast you want to travel and how much power you are happy to use A digital display beside the throttle gives a reading showing watts being used We find that we get something like 800 revs with about 1kW of power output We have a bit more than 22kW of battery power so at this rate we can keep motoring for 20 hours or so we seem to get about 3 knots using 1 kW of power so theoretically we can motor for 60 miles in this scenario if we motor sail and keep the motor running at constant revs then the amount of power used drops as the sails start to help drive the boat Once we go over about 6 knots our Servoprop can be switched to a mode where we regenerate power which is what we have mainly experienced to date allowing plenty of time when passage planning So far most of our trips in the archipelago have been short hops but for our longer trips in mainly open waters planning for an average of 6 knots wouldn’t be too far off As you approach the mooring buoys at Wasahamnen marina in Stockholm you thread your stern line through the metal eye on the top of the buoy with a special rotating boathook we were able to see how we could manage motoring into headwinds We joined the CA’s Baltic rally around the Åland Islands Getting from central Stockholm to the Åland islands involved picking up our crew at Furusund and then sailing out of the archipelago across the open sea for about 30 miles We had no shortage of wind and flew across to the Ålands on a close reach throwing in reefs in a rising fresh breeze The trip culminated in a 5-mile upwind motor into 25-knot northerlies to get into Mariehamn West It was great to see we had more than 75% battery power remaining despite thrashing into the wind under motor for an hour or so for us it’s definitely possible to enjoy our cruising without a diesel engine as back up A subscription to Yachting Monthly magazine costs around 40% less than the cover price Print and digital editions are available through Magazines Direct – where you can also find the latest deals YM is packed with information to help you get the most from your time on the water Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. The June 2025 issue of Yachting Monthly is out now Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker Smart algorithms enable optimisation of district heating in an apartment building Vattenfall's digitisation project in Gustavsberg shows lower costs reduced carbon footprint and more satisfied customers In the fast-growing urban area of Gustavsberg near Stockholm the residents are both close to the city and close to the nature of the archipelago the tenants of VärmdöBostäder have also had access to the latest technology in district heating as the site is a test bed for Vattenfall Heat's various digitisation projects new solutions are being developed to raise the efficiency of heat consumption for the property owner and The projects are run in collaboration with Vattenfall Research & Development and external partners One of the pilot projects has taken as its starting point in the fact that the indoor temperature often varies considerably between different apartments in a building This leads to an unstable heating system that has to operate with an unnecessarily high consumption rate in order to meet everyone's needs Replacing the radiator thermostats with sensors and remote-controlled valves has now made it possible to control the heating remotely to achieve the tenant's desired temperature This is because the heating system of the entire building will no longer be affected when the residents alter the temperature individually Only the individual apartment will be affected The purpose is to achieve balance in the system and better energy efficiency and to provide customers with a digital tool to help them achieve their goals effectively Head of BU Heat Sweden at Vattenfall and Hanifi Atceken operations manager at VärmdöBostäder and an investigation shows that both property owners and tenants can see clear advantages "One of the clearest results was that we received fewer calls to our customer service Our tenants received an app that they personally could use to alter their temperature and track their heat consumption this freed up time for the customer service staff who also had better tools to work with when receiving calls about the heating in the building they could see the exact temperature in the apartments which gave them a sound factual basis to work from The sensors also sent warning signals if there was anything wrong for example if someone had gone away on holiday and left the window open and it had become cold in one of the apartments.  Sensors in staircases and basements also showed many opportunities for energy efficiency improvement for example where open windows or doors had been leaking heat "Both we and the tenants are positive about saving energy and becoming more climate-smart I really believe this is the right way to go and I will be following the development with great interest," says Atceken digitised district heating system is more energy-efficient that we can reduce the amount of fuel we use in our plants "I am pleased and proud that we have now shown how we can achieve more satisfied customers and at the same time reduce our energy consumption," says Ulrika Jardfelt The next step will be to move from testing to enabling Vattenfall’s district heating customers to take greater advantage of digital tools The pilot project in Gustavsberg is now entering its next phase in which the broader market interest is to be tested and evaluated Which is why it may become increasingly important to reuse residual heat from places such as metro stations and data centres Vattenfall launches structured bidding process for its Berlin heat business Germany's largest heat accumulator is expected to be commissioned at the start of next year The heat storage is located on Vattenfall's site at the Reuter West CHP plant in Berlin and is no.. Police have dug up the body of a man whose wife is suspected of murdering her father to examine whether there was any foul play in his death too The 41-year-old woman’s father was found dead and her mother injured at a summer cottage outside of Arboga in Central Sweden in August this year The woman and her 18-year-old boyfriend were later arrested in Norway on suspicion of murder the police brought up the remains of the woman's late husband and no suspicious circimstances were found during a post mortem examination after the woman was arrested on suspicion of murdering her father and the attempted murder of her mother the Prosecution Authority decided to take another look at the husband's death The 42-year-old's body was exhumed this morning and was taken away for examination plus weekly summary on Fridays at 4.30pm on P2 (P6 89.6FM in Stockholm) Kontakta gärna Sveriges Radios forum för teknisk support där vi besvarar dina frågor vardagar kl a eating-and-drinking emporium in Stockholm's trendy Södermalm Tjoget is one of only two bars in Sweden currently on the World's Best Bars list This interview is part of The World Made Local a global collaboration between the seven international editions of Condé Nast Traveller in which 100 people in 100 countries tell us why their home turf should be your next destination Tell us about your connection to Stockholm We really feel a close connection to the city and especially the neighborhood of Södermalm It is also where two of our three restaurants are located Where should we go for a less-touristed Stockholm Leave town for Gustavsberg and eat great pizza and drink natural wine at Il Porto Dal Storko It's only 25 minutes by bus from town and a beautiful area and don't miss the Gustavsberg porcelain outlet There is some good Swedish architecture out there Go to Hellasgården for a swim and walk in nature for a sauna and a dip in the ice-cold water Södermalm is the southern island of Stockholm. There you can go to Mariaberget or Skinnarviksberget to chill, enjoy an epic view over town, and bring some food to enjoy in the park. A good spot to bring food from is Abowl a Middle Eastern restaurant with the best takeaway in town but nowadays it's just a great place to chill Vitabergsparken is a great park in the eastern part of Södermalm The marketplace isn't the best but Viet Kitchen makes it worthwhile We really love Symbios on Skånegatan Some old friends of ours from the industry teamed up with some young chef and opened a Swedish French bistro They serve the only tacos to eat in Sweden in their basement plus Mexican beer and tequila to wash it all down Use of this website constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Service (updated April 1 2021) and Policy and Cookie Statement (updated April 1 The material on this site may not be reproduced except with the prior written permission of Condé Nast The Local Europe ABVästmannagatan 43113 25 StockholmSweden Please log in here to leave a comment View upcoming auction estimates and receive personalized email alerts for the artists you follow Berlin Art Link shines a spotlight on international exhibitions and events with our Worldwide Hit List Down Иorth: North Atlantic Triennial and CHART suggest a model of regional exhibition-making that teases out threads of particularity to refute essentialism common in contemporary art Informationen på denna sida är avsedd för journalister press och media.Klicka ja för att komma till nyhetsrummet Klickar du nej kommer du tillbaka till mynewsdesk.com Villeroy & Boch has successfully completed its acquisition of all operating companies of the Ideal Standard Group Ideal Standard will be integrated as a separate part of the Villeroy & Boch Group now that all necessary approvals by antitrust authorities have been received Through the integration Villeroy & Boch will join the ranks of Europe’s largest manufacturers of bathroom products with around 13,000 employees and a global production and distribution network Ideal Standard complements Villeroy & Boch’s business model excellently The complementary strengths of the two companies in terms of regional presence sales strategies and product and brand portfolios will increase the Group’s competitiveness The composition of Villeroy & Boch AG’s Management Board will remain unchanged under CEO Gabi Schupp Jan Peter Tewes will continue to manage the Ideal Standard business and will report to Gabi Schupp we are systematically pursuing our strategic growth path expanding our core business and enhancing our international presence We firmly believe that the two companies will also be a good cultural fit including a dedication to quality and service an appreciation for exemplary design and the constant pursuit of innovation We would like to welcome our new colleagues and we look forward to shaping our future together,” commented Gabi Schupp “The acquisition of Ideal Standard represents the biggest transaction of this kind in Villeroy & Boch’s history The integration will enable us to increase our resilience in a consistently challenging market environment leverage synergies and establish optimal foundations for future profitable growth,” added Andreas Schmid Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Villeroy & Boch AG “We are looking forward to working together as part of the Villeroy & Boch Group our bundled expertise in private consumer and project business and our excellently positioned fittings business are just some examples of the vast potential we will realise with our customers our partners and our employees,” said Jan Peter Tewes The joint company will retain its established brands in future Ideal Standard will be integrated into the organisation as a separate arm Mettlach will remain the headquarters of the Villeroy & Boch Group while Ideal Standard will continue to be managed from Brussels Photos for download: https://cs.villeroy-boch.com/o... Media contactNicole Bard Corporate Online and PR Tel: +49 (0)151 16173421 E-mail: bard.nicole@villeroy-boch.com Anabell WestrichCorporate CommunicationsTel: +49 (0)6864 81-1338 E-mail: westrich.anabell@villeroy-boch.com About Villeroy & BochVilleroy & Boch is one of the world's leading premium brands for ceramic products which was founded in 1748 and is headquartered in Mettlach/Germany Villeroy & Boch offers products from the sectors Bathroom & Wellness and Dining & Lifestyle About Ideal StandardIdeal Standard International is a leading manufacturer of sanitaryware and fittings products in Europe providing a broad range of branded products for residential and nonresidential end-markets in more than 100 countries The company manufactures products for all product categories in the sanitaryware and fittings markets and its multi-category offerings have positioned it to be a ‘one-stop shop’ solution for its customers Ideal Standard International sells its products under a series of well-known international and national brands including Ideal Standard Sedan 1825 har Gustavsberg varit en del av samhällsbygget och spelat en viktig roll för människors välmående och livskvalitet Idag är Gustavsberg en av Skandinaviens ledande leverantörer av badrumsprodukter Ett badrum från Gustavsberg håller i generationer tidlös design och innovativa lösningar som sparar vatten energi och pengar gör det enkelt att njuta livet i badrummet till fullo Villeroy & Boch Gustavsberg ägs av Villeroy & Boch Group med säte i Tyskland Koncernen är en av Europas största producenter av badrumsinredningar och bordsporslin Villeroy & Boch Gustavsberg är verksamt i Norra Europa och representerar även varumärket Vatette som är ledande inom installationsprodukter för kompletta tappvattensystem Företaget har ca 400 medarbetare och omsätter över 1,1 miljarder SEK När du väljer att skapa ett konto och följa ett nyhetsrum kommer dina personuppgifter behandlas av oss och av ägaren av nyhetsrummet för att du ska kunna motta nyheter och uppdateringar enligt dina bevakningsinställningar För att läsa mer om detta, var vänlig läs vår Integritetspolicy som berör vår behandling av dina personuppgifter, och Integritetspolicy för Contacts som berör behandlingen av dina personuppgifter från ägaren av nyhetsrummet du följer Vänligen notera att våra Användarvillkor gäller alla våra tjänster Du kan dra tillbaka ditt samtycke när som helst genom att avregistrera dig eller genom att ta bort ditt konto Villeroy & Boch AG has today signed binding agreements to acquire operating companies in the Ideal Standard Group The two companies are a strong strategic fit given their regional presence sales strategies and product and brand portfolios laying the foundations for a stronger market position and additional growth In an industry with global growth potential join the ranks of Europe’s largest manufacturers of bathroom products The Ideal Standard shares are being sold by corporations under the management of Anchorage Capital Group and CVC Credit The acquisition price is based on a company valuation of approximately € 600 million The revenue of the Villeroy & Boch Bathroom & Wellness Division will double to € 1.4 billion as a result of the merger Including the Dining & Lifestyle business this represents an increase to over 1.7 billion euros (around € 995 million in the 2022 financial year) for the Group as a whole “This merger means that we will now catch up with the largest players on the European market in the bathroom sector in terms of turnover,” explains Frank Göring Our complementary strengths also make us more competitive and significantly improve our starting position for achieving additional growth.” sales channels and product ranges interweave The merger will create a powerful combination of complementary established brand and sales strategies Villeroy & Boch has a strong geographical basis in Central and Northern Europe as well as Asia while Ideal Standard enjoys an excellent reputation with its brand portfolio in the UK Italy and the Middle East / North Africa region in particular While Villeroy & Boch’s sales strategy focuses primarily on a high-end private customer base Ideal Standard possesses particular expertise in the project business the healthcare sector and for developers of large residential alongside a broad range of ceramic bathroom ware and other products Ideal Standard comes with an established fittings business which generated more than a third of its revenue last financial year says “Villeroy & Boch and Ideal Standard complement each other in terms of products but also in terms of brands and will gain mutual benefit from their different sales channels Both companies will play a key role in charting the future course of the industry We look forward to this development!”In addition to the strategic fit Frank Göring points to the cultural similarities between Villeroy & Boch and Ideal Standard: “We are characterised by strong brands steeped in tradition and share similar values These include a pronounced service orientation a flair for good design and a constant striving for innovation We are delighted that the employees of Ideal Standard will become part of our global organisation after the closing of the transaction Our clients will benefit from this combined expertise and an expanded offering.” New expertise opens up prospects for growth Villeroy & Boch is not only elevating its bathrooms business to a new level in terms of volume but is also gaining access to significant additional growth potential Ideal Standard’s manufacturing base in the fittings business expertise in the project business and strong market positions in the UK MENA and Italy will grant Villeroy & Boch improved market penetration and coverage of specific regions and product segments These long-standing brands are now combining their strengths.“The bathrooms sector remains a fast-moving global growth market but it is a market in which scale effects will be increasingly important to remaining competitive and attracting future investment the acquisition represents the right strategic step for Villeroy & Boch Ideal Standard is an excellent extension to our own business model This heralds a new era for the Bathroom & Wellness Division and for Villeroy & Boch as a whole,” states Andreas Schmid Chairman of the Supervisory Board at Villeroy & Boch Villeroy & Boch is financing the transaction from its own liquid funds and with borrowing of € 250 million The transaction is subject to the usual regulatory reviews and approvals as well as the successful redemption of the EUR 325 million bond issued by Ideal Standard International S.A In contrast to the usual pension and other obligations from the operating business the bond and various financial liabilities are not part of the transaction.“The merger is taking place on the basis of a solid financing structure The existing loans at seller level are also not part of the transaction scope and will not be taken over by Villeroy & Boch at closing,” explains Villeroy & Boch CFO Dr Markus Warncke The transaction is expected to be completed in early 2024 Consultants retained by Villeroy & Boch for the transaction:J.P E-mail: westrich.anabell@villeroy-boch.com Villeroy & Boch celebrates its 275th company anniversary Few if any premium brands with a global reputation can look back on a comparable history and such lasting success Founded in 1748 and headquartered in Mettlach the family-owned company stands for innovation Villeroy & Boch is represented in 125 countries with products in the Bathroom & Wellness and Dining & Lifestyle Divisions Our heating system is trapped in an addiction to fossil fuels Discover how we’re helping it to break free by transforming our heating with the help of algae and recycled heat How we heat our homes impacts not only our comfort at home That’s why Vattenfall aims to transform home heating.  the heating sector currently accounts for almost a third of the country's annual carbon footprint One reason for this is the fact that around 85% of UK homes have a gas boiler which has resulted in 92 million tonnes of carbon dioxide being produced each year Making progress on decarbonising heat in homes is a priority if the UK is to stay on track to meet its net zero targets.  Vattenfall is working with UK cities to help them break free from their reliance on fossil fuels We’re developing low carbon heat networks to serve homes and businesses with heating and hot water in Bristol Heat networks are a more efficient and low carbon way of providing heating and hot water to homes and businesses at scale especially when the heat comes from renewable and low carbon sources The goal for our networks in the UK is for our heat sources to be low carbon and where possible reuse heat that is readily available in towns and cities the plan is for our heat networks to serve over 20,000 customers in the UK – a large first step towards breaking cities free from fossil fuels Vattenfall has inaugurated a new biofuel heat plant that will halve the climate footprint for the around 170,000 Uppsala residents who are connected to Vattenfall’s district heating grid in the Swedish city but what’s also impressive is the fact that this plant will create a significant reduction in carbon dioxide and fossil carbon emissions compared to when peat and other fossil fuels were used when it comes to phasing out fossil fuels from the heat production in Uppsala Carpe Futurum is considered a milestone in Vattenfall's work to phase out fossil fuels in its Swedish heat operation by 2025 and to reach net zero emissions within the entire company by 2040 The facility was inaugurated in 2022 and is a major step to replace peat with new fossil-free heat production that is based entirely on renewable and recycled fuels this became a reality in spring 2022 through Vattenfall’s SamEnergi service Vattenfall supplies Gustavsberg residents with more than 20 per cent of their heating requirements through a solution that uses excess heat that comes from AstaReal’s algae cultivation It’s a partnership that in an innovative way provides 2,500 new apartments with this algae heating solution.   By installing reversible heat pumps at AstaReal’s plant it is possible to recover excess heat from the algae production process This means that more than 15 million kilowatt hours of heat per year will be recovered and reused in Gustavsberg High-temperature heat pumps can change the trajectory of home heating in the Netherlands – a country that’s highly dependent on affordable natural gas.   The high-temperature heat pumps not only have the possibility to break the homeowners and tenants free from gas-fired central boilers that can range up to and around approximately EUR 25,000 they’re also normally energy-cost neutral and makes the resident independent of the rising gas price.  “A single-family home can be made natural gas-free in two days with this new To heat these homes with traditional heat pumps that supply low or medium temperature heat expensive preparatory measures are required this means installing underfloor heating and/or extensive post-insulation of the home the 'hassle' of the work and the long lead time are a major obstacle for homeowners to make the step to fully electric heating,” says Cindy Kroon Head of Customers & Solutions Vattenfall in the Netherlands Wind power is a core ingredient for decarbonisation A metal so valuable that it can reduce global CO2 emissions by up to 7% A fossil free society needs fossil free transport Lisa Larson and Saltkråkan – the Astrid Lindgren Company – have embarked upon a new collaboration; the creation of a series of figurines based on Astrid Lindgren's characters Lisa Larson's and Astrid Lindgren's collaboration began in the late 1960’s When the first Pippi was about to be produced Astrid Lindgren visited the factory in Gustavsberg outside Stockholm she suggested that Lisa should also recreate the character Emil in Lönneberga Lisa recalls Astrid telling her she was writing a new book about a young boy called Emil “when I was requested to make new Astrid Lindgren figures I became so inspired I started working on several of them at the same time.” Many of them have become international design classics treasured by collectors and antique dealers around the world Lisa Larson and Saltkråkan have now embarked upon a collaboration and agreed on producing a series of Astrid Lindgren’s characters The first item to be launched is Pippi Longstocking contribute to what Astrid Lindgren always wanted The decor is hand-painted and the figures will all differ slightly from each other “We are honoured to produce the new Pippi Longstocking I remember working at the factory in Gustavsberg where they produced the old Pippi figure” is being auctioned at Swedish online auctioneer Tradera (http://www.tradera.com/item/302283/259982830/unik-pippifigur-av-lisa-larson-till-forman-for-sos-barnbyar-) All monies raised will go to SOS Children's Villages and the new village “Bullerbyn” in Atakpame to bring together the past and the present and to contribute to the new Children's Village currently under construction” The new Pippi Longstocking figure can be purchased this summer at Astrid Lindgren's Näs It will also be available from Lisa Larson Shop (http:// https://lisalarson.myshopify.com/) Prime Minister Fredrick Reinfeldt has announced plans for tax cuts worth SEK 16 billion will be a central part of negotiations with coalition partners in the run up to next year’s election “People with ordinary incomes will get a few hundred more crowns per month and it will create jobs,” he said adding that the threshold for paying tax should be raised along with a billion krona tax reduction for pensioners The announcement came ahead of a political speech in Gustavsberg aimed at setting the tone for his party’s election campaigning During the speech the Moderate Party leader said he would use “the strength of the Swedish economy to secure jobs” He criticized the Left-Green opposition parties which he lampooned for being an uncoordinated and ill-prepared orchestra “You don’t get any good music when you haven’t even rehearsed together;” he said Green Party spokesman Gustav Fridolin responded that there was no popular support for Reinfeldt’s tax cutting plans pointing to a Novus opinion poll which found that only six percent of Swedes thought tax cuts should be a priority “When more and more children are not getting what they need in school does Sweden really need a new tax cut?” he wrote in a press release