Everyone knows Miele is German right? And most people think that Miele is one of the very few German brands that make all their products in Germany but it turns out, that’s not exactly true.
Miele are reported to be looking to expand their washing machine production into Poland but it also has plants in Austria, the Czech Republic and Romania.
The move is to relieve pressure on the main washing machine plant at Gütersloh in Germany which is said to be running at capacity that is also due to get a facelift with investment into an expansion and modernisation program.
The reason behind this is said to be that Miele need the capacity to meet demand as turnover in the 2015/16 financial year climbed 6% to EUR 3.71 bn. In the current business year, the number of Miele washing machines sold could exceed the 900,000 mark for the first time.
Where the new plant will be located has not yet need finalised with a Miele spokesperson saying that, a “medium double-digit million euro sum” will be invested with plans to start building in 2017 or 2018 with the new facility coming fully online in 2020.
Miele have emphasised that there are no plans to relocate jobs and production plants from Germany to Poland.
In reply to an inquiry from Plasteurope.com, Miele also said the project will give it “greater scope in the model and pricing policy, especially in the entry-level segment”. Consequently, it is probable that, with the start-up of the Polish plant, the assembly of low-priced models will be moved out of Germany. The freed-up capacity would then make more space for high-end washing machines.
In other words, the way we see it and we suspect most people in the industry will is that, the lower end Miele’s are probably going to be “not as good” will we say. And, probably not built in Germany.
