The French heating technology market differs from most other national markets because of its typical three-level sales structure: almost all suppliers, and this includes the three Bosch Thermotechnik brands, sell their products via independent wholesalers to specifiers and installers.
Only one major competitor operates a two-level approach using its own branches.

Bosch Thermotechnik started its activities in the French market by taking over e.l.m. leblanc and Geminox in 1996. e.l.m. is headquartered in Drancy near Paris, and Geminox in Saint-Thégonnec in Brittany. Buderus has been represented in France since 1993 via a sales centre in Haguenau.

The three brands are scarcely in competition at all; rather, they complement each other, including in terms of their price and quality positioning. e.l.m. leblanc concentrates on small, wall-hung gas appliances with a heat output of less than 40 kW for private residential properties. Geminox supplies heating appliances with a broader output range up to 200 kW and is France’s leading manufacturer of steel boilers. The Buderus portfolio ranges up to 19,000 kW large-scale boilers and also includes wood-fired boilers, heat pumps and solar heating systems.

Philippe Méon, the managing director of e.l.m. leblanc and Geminox, describes the market situation as follows: “People in France are even more interested in the aspects of quality, service and local customer care than in receiving the very latest technology. That’s why we make every effort to be a reliable partner to our customers.”

e.l.m. leblanc currently has 45 sales staff in action, while the corresponding figures for Buderus and Geminox are 35 and 19, respectively. Their day-to-day operations are very varied. They look after the wholesalers’ sales specialists and are responsible, together with them, for visiting installers and specifiers and ensuring they receive all the information they need. They consult with the relevant planning consultancies in advance of longer-term projects. In addition, the sales teams advise and provide information to trade visitors to events and exhibitions. The office-based sales staff, on the other hand, are responsible for taking orders and looking after the wholesaler network.
The field sales staff of all three brands, incidentally, are almost all men. This is balanced out by the fact that women predominate among the office-based staff.

Most of the sales staff for all the brands have a technical training backed up by further qualifications. However, ongoing product development means that continuing professional development is absolutely essential. Training and staff development are therefore regularly on the agenda to update sales staff on new products and technologies and to enable them in turn to pass this knowledge on to wholesalers and tradesmen.

The Bosch Thermotechnik brands’ rising sales figures confirm the excellent performances of the sales teams.
Buderus succeeded in trebling its sales between 1998 and 2004. Patrick Brandt, TTFB’s managing director, is pleased: “Our team demonstrates a real commitment to the brand and is performing well in an up-and-down, fiercely competitive market.”

e.l.m. leblanc and Geminox have also continually increased their sales in recent years. e.l.m. leblanc intends consolidating its market position by introducing gas-fired central heating boilers, solar heating appliances and condensing appliances and by focusing more on leading-edge technology in its product range.

Geminox intends maintaining its market share in floor-standing boilers, increasing its share in wall-hung coilers and matching the market growth rate with regard to condensing technology.