The Krone Group can look back on a successful financial year 2022/2023 (Aug. 22 to Jul. 23). Despite achieving sales of around 3.2 billion euros, marking the strongest year in the company’s history, the Krone Group is confronted with a clouded forecast and conservative business expectations for the near future. The generally very difficult economic situation, characterised by uncertainty among farmers and transport companies regarding new investments and extensive cost explosions, is forcing the Emsland-based family business to make consistent savings in all business areas.
“The exceptional economic situation of the past year with a continued increase in sales, fueled by the great support of our customers, the outstanding commitment of our employees and solid relationships with our financial partners, stands in sharp contrast to the current challenges. The Krone Group was able to consolidate its strong position by strategically investing in future technologies and automation, which made a decisive contribution to increasing efficiency and quality management. Investments, such as in our new spare parts centre in Spelle and robot-assisted production, set important milestones for our future,” says Bernard Krone, Chairman of the Supervisory Board.
However, the current economic uncertainty and the associated difficulties, such as international political crises, an unfavorable European interest rate policy and high energy prices, are prompting the company to adopt a cautious stance. The Krone Group remains stable, independent and owner-managed, but needs to respond to the emerging difficulties. The first areas at sites in Lower Saxony have already gone into short-time working for this reason, and other parts of the company are examining this possibility due to stagnating market expectations, particularly in the otherwise strong domestic market.
Dr. David Frink, CEO of Bernard Krone Holding SE & Co. KG, adds: “This situation underlines the need to maintain our flexibility and adaptability to technological changes in order to ensure long-term success. We would like to thank all our stakeholders for their continuing support and trust in these challenging times. The Krone Group is determined to use today’s difficulties as an opportunity for growth and strengthening to create sustainable value for generations to come.“