In the previous issue of ZOmagazine, the magazine took its readers out on the trail of Annie Van Ingelgem. A successful business woman with a unique company and an authentic product. We shepherd you through the success story behind Dauby.
During her first few years on the labour market, Annie was selling glass doors for a wholesale company. The door handles for these doors were ordered from Paul Dauby‘s company, which had already built itself a solid reputation in door fittings, ZOmagazine explains.
Years later, in 1994, Paul Dauby’s business came up for sale. And the rest, as they say, is history. Annie and her husband Holger took over Paul Dauby’s company and the ‘Dauby’ name with it.
It was thanks to those first turbulent years and the particularly fierce competition from the Chinese counterfeit market that Dauby decided to adopt a completely different tack.
‘Door and window fittings (link) hand-cast in time-honoured tradition from the kind of metals used to make suits of armour in the Middle Ages.‘ Dauby built its impeccable and exclusive reputation on this niche product with which it cornered the market.
Courtesy of the products’ hand finish, no one product ever looks exactly the same. Dauby’s range oozes authenticity thanks to the imperfection of the rough finish and the metals used.
An international success story
In niche markets, customers are looking for authentic materials. Moreover, this kind of authentic and unique products come at a price.
It was not long before Dauby turned its attentions abroad. A logical next step. “Abroad too, we were the sole providers of this kind of products, which means we were trendsetters,” Dauby says.
It is thanks to their unique product that Dauby effortlessly came out of the economic downturn unscathed. Their recipe for success during the recession? A unique product, continued investments, spreading risks and a commitment to diversity. These key elements saw Dauby continue its unabated growth throughout the recession.
Diversity is golden
Alongside door handles, Dauby also sells fragrance dispensers. A rather odd choice, perhaps?
No, not in the slightest.
A beautiful interior deserves a pleasant fragrance, is the general feeling at Dauby. Fragrance is an essential part of the home interior. And as the company slogan has it: ‘Details bring perfection, but perfection is not a detail.’