Repositioning and new name for Competec

Mägenwil, 28 August 2024 – The Competec trading group (with 1300 employees and 2023 annual sales of CHF 1.14 billion) is restructuring in a move that is set to ensure more focus and efficiency for its two strong brands, Alltron and BRACK.CH.

The Competec Group has seen constant growth over the last 30 years, and experienced an additional injection of momentum during the pandemic. It is also operating in a space in which the trading sector is going through a period of upheaval, with foreign players aggressively pushing their way into the market. As is the case elsewhere, consolidation is continuing to advance in Switzerland. In this environment, the Competec Group is holding its own and seeing an increase in the number of parcels it is dispatching.

However, its organisational development has not been keeping pace with the market: due to various acquisitions and rapid growth, the complexity faced by the Group in its day-to-day business – as a result of special processes and structures – has grown in recent years. A review conducted by new CEO Stefan Fraude and the company management reached the conclusion that the company’s operations required, but were deficient in, an organisational approach that was both effective and efficient. The decision was therefore taken to adapt the organisation so that it is better able to satisfy the needs of customers and improve day-to-day cooperation in the management team.

The holding structure comprising the various companies poses a challenge in everyday business. At an overarching level, the Group communicates as the Competec Group, yet its recognition in the market is based primarily on the Alltron AG and BRACK.CH brands. Going forward, the company as a whole will bear the name Brack Alltron AG or the Brack Alltron Group – named after the two strong brands that act as equal partners in forming the core of the company. From an outward-facing perspective, the two renowned brands of Alltron and BRACK.CH will primarily continue to be positioned as before – with Alltron as a distributor for trade customers and BRACK.CH as a retailer for private and business end customers. The overall strategy will remain unchanged, with strong positioning in all four sales channels: private customers, business customers, specialist trade and retail. Across all channels, strategic initiatives are set to boost customer satisfaction and enhance the company’s market position.

“We want to play a key role in shaping the Swiss trading landscape – now and into the future. To do this, we need to move forwards”, said Stefan Fraude, CEO of Brack Alltron, adding: “We will achieve this by treading new and different paths, without forgetting the strengths that have provided our foundations for thirty years. This will be an exciting journey, yet undoubtedly also a challenging one. An effective organisational structure is key to keeping us on the right path”. Accordingly, all portfolio expertise is now being pooled in the Commercial department and all sales expertise in the Sales department. From now on, Marketing will be incorporated into the company management. The new structure involving units organised by function is set to reduce complexity and enhance the responsiveness of Alltron and BRACK.CH.

Personnel changes are taking place at management level. Stefan Fraude will act as CEO of Brack Alltron AG. Thomas Gasser, the current CEO of Competec Logistik AG, will now take on the role of Chief Operations Officer for Brack Alltron. Andrej Golob, the current CEO of Alltron AG, is taking over the leadership of the Sales department and, associated with this, the role of Chief Sales Officer for the company as a whole. As the Executive Director of Alltron, he will continue to be the face of the Alltron brand for partners, suppliers and the media, and will represent the interests of Alltron partners and Alltron itself within the organisational matrix across all departments. Tobias Grüner, the current Chief Transformation Officer, will become Chief Commercial Officer. From mid-September, Roman Reichelt will assume the newly created position of Chief Marketing & Communications Officer. The role of Chief Information Officer is currently vacant and a recruitment process is underway.

Marc Isler, the current CEO of BRACK.CH AG and departmental manager for end customers at Competec, has decided to leave the company of his own volition. Both the board and company management have expressed their sadness at his departure. “Marc Isler has played a vital role in shaping the company in many areas over the past 15 years and has given outstanding service: first as a product manager, then as a category manager, later as our marketing manager and, for the last six years, as the CEO of BRACK.CH. He and his team deserve our gratitude for bringing BRACK.CH to national prominence and achieving constant growth in the market, and for the many successes that he has been able to celebrate alongside his team thanks to his foresight, leadership and encouragement of innovative ideas: these include the successful establishment of the private labels and the various jury-based and public awards for the online shop and customer service. Marc has played a vital role in shaping the forthcoming organisational changes and has influenced the realignment of the company. I wish to express my sincere thanks to him in this regard too”, said Roland Brack, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Brack Alltron.

Internally, Brack Alltron will be operating with its new organisational structure from 1 September, and the official process of changing the company name is due for completion in the first quarter of 2025.

___

The Competec Group is made up of online merchant BRACK.CH, wholesaler Alltron, home and living products distributor Jamei, private label manufacturer Furber, logistics service provider Competec Logistik and the centralised services delivered under the umbrella of Competec Service. The Group is Switzerland’s largest online provider of goods and services to private, business and retail customers which operates independently of major distributors and is entirely Swiss-run. It employs 1314 people (as at the end of 2023) and achieved sales of around 1.138 billion Swiss francs in 2023.

competec.ch

en français | in Deutsch