The Future Needs the Past


Dr. Robert Hartel	Dr. Andreas Buske

What was your greatest challenge on the way to the top? Dr. Buske: The greatest challenge for me was to earn our co-workers’ trust. Could two outsiders spark our team’s enthusiasm, win its loyalty and persuade everyone to pull on the same rope and contribute to the success of a common project? And more: to spark so much enthusiasm that they would have the passion to walk through fire for us, if need be. Not merely to prop up the enterprise, but to take hold with both hands and carry it forward. We have worked intensively to achieve it. By and large, that is precisely what we have accomplished. Dr. Hartel: Gaining our co-workers’ trust and motivating them – those were the most important cornerstones for me as well. Among the challenges facing us were a low level of brand recognition, shortcomings in market transparency and the absence of a thoroughgoing, logical implementation on the market. New distribution structures had to be set up, partners had to be motivated and sales units had to be positioned in the individual countries. Our co-workers had to share the burden of all these changes. In retrospect, I must say: they were the ones who truly laid those cornerstones. They stabilized us and ultimately also the factory itself. We have our co-workers and their passion to thank for it. Personal dedication, courage and creativity: your restructuring concept earned you the “Turnarounder of the Year” award in 2006. What does this commendation mean to you? Dr. Hartel: I would like to pass that question along to our staff. We devised the plan, but its implementation was accomplished by everyone in the business. So the award is not only a commendation for us, but for everyone who participated in the successful restructuring. Dr. Buske: We are proud of what we have accomplished and we are grateful to everyone who helped us achieve it. We view this award as a challenge: to sustain what we have begun and carry it forward into the future, so that our integrity will continue to thrive. You were courageous again in 2007, when you took over the Jenaer Glas brand. Or was that step simply the logi- cal continuation of the path you first embarked upon in 2001? Dr. Buske: When the opportunity arose to take control of Jenaer Glas, one of the best known glass brands in Germany and Japan, we accepted the challenge. It is a traditional brand that has become synonymous with heat-resistant glass. Moreover, it perfectly augments our gourmet portfolio, by extending our offering into beverages, and cooking. Apropos Gourmet: Among other concepts, your brands also represent the idea of “perfectly staged moments of gourmet pleasure”. Please describe such a moment. Dr. Buske: Enjoyment is uniquely personal. There are many different moments of pleasure and each will have its own, unique appeal. It might be an evening at home, relaxing in front of the fire or a relaxed moment on vacation. In such situations, different facets combine to create a symbiotic whole that makes this instant absolutely perfect. There is an old German saying: “Shards bring good luck.” You cannot agree with that can you? What is the focus of your current development work? Dr. Hartel: We are focusing on customer satisfaction. After all, our good luck does not lie in heaps of broken glass. Just the opposite. We have worked hard to enable our customers to hold especially shatter-resistant glasses in their hands. We are happy that our highly functional Tritan® crystal glasses are a step ahead of the competition. Dr. Buske: We have the courage to say, “We do not sell glass”. Instead we sell concepts that can help to satisfy our retail consumers. For example, customers who purchase Zwiesel 1872, do not just get a product they also get a good feeling. They spoil themselves and at the same time gain a glass that will convey their appreciation of quality and enhance their ability to appreciate wine. Brands should convey a feeling of security and customer satisfaction is vital in achieving that feeling.	Which processes have you initiated to assure that your technical production will continue to lead the market? Dr. Hartel: We have made some trail blazing innovations in the past few years, changes we have prioritised and which have enabled us to stay ahead of the market. We are now working on new projects that will be equally revolutionary. The big challenge with this development work is to make each new improvement both affordable and easy to produce. To date we have demonstrated repeatedly that we are successful pioneers with new developments. We aim to continue in that role. Another saying “Everything is always changing” or to put a Bavarian slant on that saying “Nothing remains the same”. How important is the need for continuous change for you? Dr. Hartel: It is our elixir of life. Stasis would be the end. Change is vital. It is how we orientate ourselves for the future. If you lose sight of the need for change you stagnate and fail. Change is an elixir we always encourage – not only on the technical side but also in the field of design. Patentable developments and award winning designs can only be achieved if we innovate. As the owners and chairmen, we live this philosophy by constantly introducing new goals, seeking new solutions and embarking on innovative new developments. One factor has already remained unchanged: the location. How important is the town of Zwiesel for the success of your business? Dr. Hartel: This region is intimately associated with the history of glass production in Germany and Europe. It is the cradle of the industry for mouth-blown and machinemade glass. You can sense that among the people here. Glass enjoys a unique status in their minds and any glass creation has a special aura for them. We want to safeguard this aura and assure that it thrives in machine-made glass. The heart’s blood of glassmakers is also palpable here. Hand in hand with this are the exceedingly high reliability, loyalty and capacity for motivation among the co-workers. That is unique in this region and in Germany. Our staff are also extremely resilient whenever they are challenged to tough it out through hard times. Glass has been made in Zwiesel since the 15th century and by your business for more than 135 years. How do you connect the many years of history on the one hand with the short-lived demands of a modern market? Dr. Buske: To answer that, I would like to quote the philosopher Odo Marquard, who said that “the future needs the past.” I believe that one cannot possibly face the challenges of the future unless one can build on the strengths of the past. That is reality and we have acted to internalise that concept within our company. While we are sensitive to the rich variety of the world’s tastes and cultures, we are also proud of the importance of our roots. This also involves education. We want to give young people roots and wings. If we can succeed in that, then we can rely on enthusiastic co-workers and we can be proud of the fact that what we make here in Zwiesel will also ultimately win acceptance on the global market.

What was your greatest challenge on the way to the top?

Dr. Buske: The greatest challenge for me was to earn our co-workers’ trust. Could two outsiders spark our team’s enthusiasm, win its loyalty and persuade everyone to pull on the same rope and contribute to the success of a common project? And more: to spark so much enthusiasm that they would have the passion to walk through fire for us, if need be. Not merely to prop up the enterprise, but to take hold with both hands and carry it forward. We have worked intensively to achieve it. By and large, that is precisely what we have accomplished.

Dr. Hartel: Gaining our co-workers’ trust and motivating them – those were the most important cornerstones for me as well. Among the challenges facing us were a low level of brand recognition, shortcomings in market transparency and the absence of a thoroughgoing, logical implementation on the market. New distribution structures had to be set up, partners had to be motivated and sales units had to be positioned in the individual countries. Our co-workers had to share the burden of all these changes. In retrospect, I must say: they were the ones who truly laid those cornerstones. They stabilized us and ultimately also the factory itself. We have our co-workers and their passion to thank for it.

Personal dedication, courage and creativity: your restructuring concept earned you the “Turnarounder of the Year” award in 2006. What does this commendation mean to you?

Dr. Hartel: I would like to pass that question along to our staff. We devised the plan, but its implementation was accomplished by everyone in the business. So the award is not only a commendation for us, but for everyone who participated in the successful restructuring.

Dr. Buske: We are proud of what we have accomplished and we are grateful to everyone who helped us achieve it. We view this award as a challenge: to sustain what we have begun and carry it forward into the future, so that our integrity will continue to thrive.

You were courageous again in 2007, when you took over the Jenaer Glas brand. Or was that step simply the logi- cal continuation of the path you first embarked upon in 2001?

Dr. Buske: When the opportunity arose to take control of Jenaer Glas, one of the best known glass brands in Germany and Japan, we accepted the challenge. It is a traditional brand that has become synonymous with heat-resistant glass. Moreover, it perfectly augments our gourmet portfolio, by extending our offering into beverages, and cooking.

Apropos Gourmet: Among other concepts, your brands also represent the idea of “perfectly staged moments of gourmet pleasure”. Please describe such a moment.

Dr. Buske: Enjoyment is uniquely personal. There are many different moments of pleasure and each will have its own, unique appeal. It might be an evening at home, relaxing in front of the fire or a relaxed moment on vacation. In such situations, different facets combine to create a symbiotic whole that makes this instant absolutely perfect.

There is an old German saying: “Shards bring good luck.” You cannot agree with that can you? What is the focus of your current development work?

Dr. Hartel: We are focusing on customer satisfaction. After all, our good luck does not lie in heaps of broken glass. Just the opposite. We have worked hard to enable our customers to hold especially shatter-resistant glasses in their hands. We are happy that our highly functional Tritan® crystal glasses are a step ahead of the competition.

Dr. Buske: We have the courage to say, “We do not sell glass”. Instead we sell concepts that can help to satisfy our retail consumers. For example, customers who purchase Zwiesel 1872, do not just get a product they also get a good feeling. They spoil themselves and at the same time gain a glass that will convey their appreciation of quality and enhance their ability to appreciate wine. Brands should convey a feeling of security and customer satisfaction is vital in achieving that feeling.

Which processes have you initiated to assure that your technical production will continue to lead the market?

Dr. Hartel: We have made some trail blazing innovations in the past few years, changes we have prioritised and which have enabled us to stay ahead of the market. We are now working on new projects that will be equally revolutionary. The big challenge with this development work is to make each new improvement both affordable and easy to produce. To date we have demonstrated repeatedly that we are successful pioneers with new developments. We aim to continue in that role.

Another saying “Everything is always changing” or to put a Bavarian slant on that saying “Nothing remains the same”. How important is the need for continuous change for you?

Dr. Hartel: It is our elixir of life. Stasis would be the end. Change is vital. It is how we orientate ourselves for the future. If you lose sight of the need for change you stagnate and fail. Change is an elixir we always encourage – not only on the technical side but also in the field of design. Patentable developments and award winning designs can only be achieved if we innovate. As the owners and chairmen, we live this philosophy by constantly introducing new goals, seeking new solutions and embarking on innovative new developments.

One factor has already remained unchanged: the location. How important is the town of Zwiesel for the success of your business?

Dr. Hartel: This region is intimately associated with the history of glass production in Germany and Europe. It is the cradle of the industry for mouth-blown and machinemade glass. You can sense that among the people here. Glass enjoys a unique status in their minds and any glass creation has a special aura for them. We want to safeguard this aura and assure that it thrives in machine-made glass. The heart’s blood of glassmakers is also palpable here. Hand in hand with this are the exceedingly high reliability, loyalty and capacity for motivation among the co-workers. That is unique in this region and in Germany. Our staff are also extremely resilient whenever they are challenged to tough it out through hard times.

Glass has been made in Zwiesel since the 15th century and by your business for more than 135 years. How do you connect the many years of history on the one hand with the short-lived demands of a modern market?

Dr. Buske: To answer that, I would like to quote the philosopher Odo Marquard, who said that “the future needs the past.” I believe that one cannot possibly face the challenges of the future unless one can build on the strengths of the past. That is reality and we have acted to internalise that concept within our company. While we are sensitive to the rich variety of the world’s tastes and cultures, we are also proud of the importance of our roots. This also involves education. We want to give young people roots and wings. If we can succeed in that, then we can rely on enthusiastic co-workers and we can be proud of the fact that what we make here in Zwiesel will also ultimately win acceptance on the global market.