Firmly in control Strix

FirmLy in controL

Strix is a global leader in the design, manufacture and supply of kettle safety controls and other components and devices involving water heating and temperature control, steam management and water filtration. Last year, the company was floated on the UK stock market and expects growth across all segments. Romana Moares spoke with CEO Mark Bartlett about recent developments and plans to further reinforce the business worldwide.

Strix, founded as ‘Castletown Thermostats’ by Eric Taylor on the Isle of Man in 1951, has evolved into a business that today is at the forefront of the development and manufacture of safety control systems for small domestic appliances and filtration products. The company maintains its international presence with its head office on the Isle of Man and sales offices across Europe and China. It employs almost 900 people and markets its products in over 100 countries worldwide.

In 2017, the company achieved two important milestones – it was admitted to London’s junior market AIM and, in November, a new sales record of 2 billion products was achieved. “Last year brought significant changes meaning that we now have a lot of flexibility within the organisation,” says Mr Bartlett. “We can focus much more on the technology side of the business and develop it further.”

Growth across the range

Mr Bartlett explains that the product offering is generally divided into three main areas. The core range is a variety of safety controls for small domestic appliances, primarily kettles.

Following years of extensive research into the properties of water, in 2000 Strix developed its second pillar, the Aqua Optima range of advanced water filtration systems that significantly reduce unwanted substances from tap water such as limescale, chlorine, heavy metals, herbicides and pesticides. The range includes water filter jugs, water filters as well as a filter kettle, which may be filled straight from the tap and – thanks to the in-built filter – reduces water impurities as well as limescale, thus prolonging the life of the kettle.

The third area includes other technologies such as steam boilers, instant flow heaters and turbo toasters as well as any sort of different heating element. Outstanding examples are the IFH (Instant Flow Heater), capable of bringing water to the boil from cold in around five seconds and used within the famous Perfect Prep branded by ‘Tommee Tippee’.

“We expect growth across all three groups,” say Mr Bartlett. “The kettle controls have been steadily growing over the years, while the filtration products show significant potential in both the UK and China. The same growth potential is seen in the other technology segment, given that a lot is happening from the environmental point of view. Our focus on the environment and sustainability is expected to further increase and our products are just right to meet those requirements.”

All Strix products are defined by their fusion of functional design, safety, aesthetics, materials and support services across the value chain, incorporating unique features and benefits for customers. Consumer safety is of paramount importance to Strix, which works closely with its safety partners around the world to continually develop, monitor and enforce international safety standards. All Strix products are designed to comply with relevant safety standards. It works with leading brands and key OEMs to design appliances that meet the changing demands of the consumer market.

Continued leadership

Mr Bartlett confirms that more investment is expected in the company’s state-of-the-art Chinese facility located close to Strix’s offices in Hong Kong. “The level of automation is already very high,

for example the latest line has reduced the number of manual operators by 75 per cent, but will be further enhanced. This is one area of planned investment. The second will go into the range of new products that we have been working on in the last few months, the U9 Series designed for fully automated production – a range that will be competitive across all the market segments.

“We are based in the right place. China is by far the largest kettle producer in the world and a huge market. Our customer base in China includes around 200 OEMs,” says Mr Bartlett, adding that appliance manufacturers often adopt a collaborative approach with Strix by designing a specific control into their products.

Geographically, Strix is today well represented all over the world. The company has a dominant 38 per cent market share in a highly concentrated market. It stands strong in the regulated markets where quality and reliability are crucial and has a c.50 per cent market share in China, which is perhaps less regulated but shifting additional focus to safety along with an increasing use of kettles. Kettle penetration is growing also in other less regulated markets, which Strix intends to serve with its new range of products.

“One of our competitive advantages is that we provide the whole range of services and have strong relationships across the entire value chain. Of course there are plenty of cheap alternative manufacturers in our sector, but it is not so easy to produce a good quality product meeting the stringent safety and endurance requirements. There are over 1000 critical measurements we measure on each control. Tolerances are very tight,” Mr Bartlett points out.

He confirms that focus on further increasing quality as well as capacity will continue in the future. “We are doing a lot of work on safety testing at the moment. We are introducing new ranges of controls that allow us to be more competitive and get into the smaller markets that still use some potentially unsafe products. But as I said before, we expect continued growth across all three product areas, not just in the less regulated markets but globally, including the US. We are set to embrace future challenges as well as opportunities.” n