Hamide HANGUL Consumers, accustomed to spending more time at home and in the kitchen during the Kovid-19 process, started to prefer innovative solutions where they can move without bending and twisting. Hafele, a supplier of home and office furniture accessories based in Germany, increased the demand with its “Hafele Concept” solutions, which made even small square meters more functional and even saved them from being bent over when purchasing products such as pots, pans and ironing boards. Hafele Turkey and Regional Countries Chief Executive Officer Hilmi Uytun said that both consumers and business partners showed great interest in this business idea, which provides convenience in the home, kitchen and bathroom. We add value with 1 percent of the sale price of the house Uytun said, “We have business partners who want to export to Europe and the USA. This is a business idea that originated in Turkey and will now be implemented in the world,” he said. Saying that Hafele, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year, is a global player, Hilmi Uytun emphasized that they produce solutions for general use and special needs, and that they increase functionality in housing with the Hafele Concept brand they developed to write new standards in housing. Uytun explained the details of functionality as follows: “To provide comfort to people of all ages, all physical conditions, pregnant or elderly people. We see something above coming down, a folding dining table in the kitchen, a tray holder as functionality and comfort. In other words, solutions that provide comfort at home without being double-crossed and worth life. Then we harmonized the hardware colors behind the drawers. It then became a perceived value. We add value with 1% of the house.” Hilmi Uytun, who said that consumers showed great interest in the solutions and product variety they developed and the demand increased, said, “We see that we will grow by 150 percent on a Euro basis this year.” Explaining that they will add Hafele 2.0 to their Hafele Concept solutions this year, Uytun said, “We are also adding white goods and sanitary ware. We are present in all bathrooms and sinks. As of July this year, we are now present in white goods. There are a lot of dealership applications,” he said. Pointing out that women are the decision makers in consumers, Uytun continued as follows: “Women are the decision makers all over the world. He has an instinctive interest in keeping fit and orderly. There will be systemic integrity in the whole house. There will be color and style throughout the house. Woman, alpha user. It decides on housing and decoration all over the world. The world where women are selective also increases our growth.” The supplier country of the group will be Türkiye Hilmi Uytun, who is also the Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee of the Hardware Industrialists’ and Businessmen’s Association (HISIAD), said that Turkey is one of the 5 countries in the world in hardware production. Himli Uytun said, “There are incredible investments and an increasing export in Turkey. The next production base is Türkiye. My belief is that as Hafele Group, we will supply more products from Turkey. We are working for the group to become a supplier country.” “Turkey becomes the new China in production” Hilmi Uytun pointed out that Turkey has a very young population today. Uytun said, “There are not that many young people in Europe. When you look at its demographic structure and the fact that it is a Chinese alternative to the yen, Turkey produces everything today. Toy, carpet and olive oil. It takes a while for this to reach world markets, but Turkey will only grow in the next 50 years.” Pointing out that hardware is a very successful industry in Turkey, Uytun said, “Exports are also increasing. Exports in 2022 are 11.8 billion dollars. 14 thousand 550 companies have 880 thousand employees. I think that the sector will be an important sector such as textile and automotive in the next 5 years. It is a sector that takes sustainability seriously and embraces its scrap and waste. It does not throw the sawdust in the trash, it saves the economy,” he said. Hilmi Uytun, who said that they serve in every segment from middle income to premium, explained the color preferences according to the regions in the kitchen and bathroom as follows: “Gaziantep likes the color of bright brass. Kitchens in Diyarbakir are bigger than Istanbul. Istanbul, on the other hand, prefers stainless steel and black. Şişli and Osmanbey, which are districts of Istanbul, love antique bronze.”
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