Speaking at last night’s Häfele Studio Partner Awards, UK managing director Richard Curtis welcomed the ‘positive’ start to 2025, and said he was ‘cautiously optimistic’ that this positivity would continue throughout the rest of the year.
He gave the remarks at the Earth Hall within The Natural History Museum in London, which was the venue for this year’s awards, held to celebrate excellence among Häfele’s studio partners.
Addressing the assembled retailers and industry partners, Curtis said: “I’m very proud and honoured to be leading such a fantastic business, and equally proud of all the progress we made through 2024. And of course, to be sharing that success on evenings such as this with our amazing customers.”
He then went on to thank the business’ retail partners, saying: “We know how hard you all work. It’s tough out there, and 2024 was a challenging year for us all. However, I’m pleased to say 2025 seems to have started in a reasonably positive way, so fingers crossed that will continue through 2025. We remain – the phrase is, ‘cautiously optimistic’ – for the rest of the year.”
This optimism is broadly consistent with the results of the recent kbbreview Retailer Confidence Survey. As reported in the June issue of kbbreview magazine, roughly two-in-five retailers said that they’d noticed footfall and inquries had increased in the last 12 months. Almost one-in-four retailers also said they currently felt more confident than ever about the health of their business.
Curtis took over as UK managing director of Häfele in 2023. Upon his appointment, he commented that “being able to join such a capable team, at what is a pivotal moment in the group’s history, is a huge opportunity and one I am already enjoying”.
