elero has opened its tenth international sales office: elero AB in Malmö, Sweden. Since 1st November the managing director John Sandin and his team have been talking care of customers in Sweden. The focus is on roller grilles; the drive units and controls from elero comply with the toughest security standards. As Swedish insurance companies have of late stepped up their requirements in this area, demand for elero products has increased considerably. "This makes life easier for us," explains Sandin. "But we still see considerable potential with sun protection. With the control series ProLine we have competitive products with which we will gradually increase our share of the market."

Trend towards awning automation
elero Sweden will also profit from increasing motorisation in the sun protection segment. More and more house and apartment owners are acknowledging the benefits of automated awnings, equipped with weather sensors. The market for drive units and controls for venetian blinds, in contrast, is only developing slowly. While venetian blinds are quite common, the majority are hand-operated between-glass blinds. A change from hand operation to automated operation could be aided by the radio controls from elero, which have met with a positive response from customers thanks to their ease of use and the secure radio frequency.

Benefits of roller shutters largely unknown
Roller shutters, although excellently suited to the Swedish climate with its long winters and light summer evenings, are virtually totally unknown in this Scandinavian country. The development of this totally new market segment is also interesting for Sandin in the long term: "If we can make the benefits of roller shutters clear to our countrymen, I see a major opportunity here." Initially, however, the elero managing director in Sweden intends to concentrate on markets that have already been developed.