In an Australian first, BLANCO CEO Frank Gfrörer visited the local Shriro head office at Kingsgrove in Sydney’s south-west to strengthen the relationship between the two companies.

Shriro Australia has been the sales representative for the high-end kitchen sink and tap brand since 2011 when Shriro purchased Hagemeyer.

Joining Gfrörer was BLANCO managing director for Asia Pacific, Hans Nasemann, who has been working closely with the Australian team to rollout the BLANCO brand across retail partners, including Bunnings, Harvey Norman and selected Narta members.

Shriro sat down with the senior leaders to discuss the BLANCO brand, future product innovations and global trends that will emerge in Australia.

Gfrörer said one long-standing consumer trend is cocooning – people want a comfortable and cosy life at home. “In the kitchen, we see a couple of emerging trends including a move to colour and smart features that make everyday life better.

“All BLANCO sinks and taps are designed in house and produced in our own factories in Germany, Canada and Turkey. BLANCO is constantly improving its portfolio and we are working on new colours, new materials and new features.

“We are looking for complete new product solutions that help people enhance their kitchen. BLANCO differentiates itself in quality, material, finish, form, function, design, customer service and delivery.”

L to R: Hans Nasemann (BLANCO), Gerard Gill (BLANCO), James Cocking (Shriro), Frank Gfrörer (BLANCO) and Carl Pauling (Shriro)

Nasemann said Australia is one of the company’s lead markets in the Asia Pacific region with a striving culinary landscape and edgy design scene.

“BLANCO was the first company to introduce composite sinks, namely our Silgranit, into the Australian market. This is backed by over 30 years of research and development, German engineering, design and quality.

“Concrete has been around in interior design for quite a while, so we took the best out of granite and combined it with the best features of Silgranite. You can cut on it, put any kind of material on it, its more hygienic and it literally pushes dirt away.

“Ceramic has been a favourite material for centuries and BLANCO ceramic sinks feature inspiring colours, fascinating surfaces and premium quality, all paired with a uniquely matched tap in exactly the same colour.”

BLANCO divisional sales manager, Gerard Gill said the visit marked the importance of Australia to BLANCO.

“We have been a long-standing partner of the kitchen brand and have helped to grow its presence across a vast store network. The teams were able to share their vision for the future, with exciting new production additions to the market.”