Rudolf Wurm, Commercial Director, Heinz Glas

Premium Beauty News - So, was 2013 a fruitful year for Heinz Glas?

Rudolf Wurm - We are quite satisfied with the results. Our turnover, for the glass and plastic activities, was of € 330 million, representing an increase over the previous year. In short, 2013 was a good year.

We took part to several major launches, which enabled us to highlight our expertise in vacuum metallization and laser cutting: Just Cavalli, from Roberto Cavalli, See by, by Chloé, Nobile Leather, from Yves Saint Laurent, L’Eau, from Nina Ricci, Candy L’Eau, by Prada, Bulgari’s 15ml Jewel Charms, Fuel For Life Spirit, by Diesel, Leather Edition, from Roberto Cavalli, Opium Collector, from Yves Saint Laurent with its outstanding transparent metallization, and nail polishes for Yves Saint Laurent and Armani.

Premium Beauty News - What were your main investments?

Rudolf Wurm - We invested approximately 30 million euros in 2013. Most of which concerned decoration equipment, with a second vacuum metallization line, hot-stamping machines, a five–axis assembly machine. We also continued the implementation of the camera quality monitoring system.

L’Autre Oud, Lancôme - Vacuum metallization and laser etching by Heinz Glas

Premium Beauty News - What do you see as the main market trends?

Rudolf Wurm - The trend is clearly towards increased decoration and more value added, especially for flankers that brands use to animate their lines, and for which, decoration remains the main mean of differentiation. Mastering decoration and finishing techniques is therefore paramount and is both one of our key assets and our main development strategy. In all our glass factories, the integration of decorations processes is continuing.

On the market side, although Europe is struggling, our customers remain dynamic on emerging markets and we benefit from this momentum. And on our side, we strive to support their competitiveness, particularly through the quality of our products.

We commissioned a new furnace in Peru last June 2013, to better serve the South American market which is enjoying significant growth. Our Peruvian factory is specialized in glass for perfumery, and there too, we integrated decoration techniques in the production site.

Premium Beauty News - How does 2014 look like?

Rudolf Wurm - We are confident and we are well equipped to meet market demands.