Tees Valley based CVO Fire's first showroom in Munich
A COMPANY that defied recession to see sales rise 25% last year, is setting the German market for flueless fires alight with its first showroom in Munich, supplied from its Tees Valley base.
It will be the third outlet in mainland Europe after Italy and Holland for Newton Aycliffe’s CVO Fire, which will open a flagship store in southern England within weeks following a massive spike in UK demand for its upmarket, designer gas heaters.
MD, Andrew Munro, said: “The launch in Germany was a fantastic success and the new showroom looks amazing with some stunning new fireplaces designs.
“All of the CVO products on display were incredibly well received and we are very excited about continually increasing our European presence, which is helping to increase production and create jobs.”
The German launch took two years of painful preparation before the authorities were prepared to license the company as the only flueless fire retailer in the country.
Its latest showroom was launched in front of more than 200 architects, interior designers and property developers.
Claimed to be 100% energy efficient with no heat loss, CVO’s gas fires appeal to a mature green consumer market in Germany, but closer to home it has the endorsement of British celebrities, footballers’ wives and major brands, such as Hilton and Marriott, Greene King, Carlton and Sheraton.
Nearly three-quarters of its domestic customers are currently based south of Birmingham.
Rescued in 2006 by former employee and design engineer Mr Munro, who bought the intellectual property rights of CVO from the official receiver, the company said last year that it planned to more than double its turnover to £5m and establish a manufacturing base in the US with outlets in “every major city in the UK”.
The local workforce has grown to 20 on the back of new designs and improved sales performance, enhanced by a 50% spike in inquiries during the cold snap in January.
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