Electrolux and Lux and Aerus
Hi,
The mess Aerus is in has most certainly been a long time in the making. If we look back at the model 1205 and even earlier models, we see a period when Electrolux was very much a leader in the floor care segment. Examples including self-sealing bags, automatic control, cord winders, telescoping wands, direct connect etc. Unfortunately as we progress in time through the DJ and the plastic machines, the innovation factor gave way to color changes and new names with smaller and smaller motors and lessening quality. While Miele was quietly building what would become the basis for America's most popular high-end canister vacuum, Consolidated Foods was busy building Sara Lee with Electrolux's money. When all was said and done, little of the former Electrolux glory remained. At the same time, Electrolux USA was landlocked with their brand name in North America and little growth in the rest of the world with the Global Tek brand.
Selling the Electrolux brand was the only way to grow and build market share in a global economy. Like their sister organization Lux International, both needed to shed the Electrolux name in order to survive. Unlike the Swiss who use only Lux, the Aerus name needs to be removed from the branding and used only as a holding company with Lux taking a more prominent role. This foray into every other appliance under the sun including water etc. should have come AFTER the floor care product line was completely revamped. Read this to mean the demise of Legacy, Classic, upright line and replaced with products on-par with the Guardian Platinum.
You concentrate on re-building your core business before allocating resources to new product lines in different segments of the healthy home space when your competition is ten years ahead of you from an innovation standpoint.
If done right, this partnership with Lux International is a win-win. First, it opens up a global market. Second, Aerus makes great air purifiers and a super Floor Pro that can be re-labeled along with the best attachments (combo/dust, combo floor brush) and has huge manufacturing capacity its partner does not have. All of this is really positive and has the potential for growth they never had as Electrolux USA.
I am impressed with the new bags I just received for my Platinum. Very high quality product made in-house at Bristol. I never thought I would see this, or what would eventually become the Platinum vacuum that their head engineer and I had been discussing since the NYC convention in 2003. Unfortunately or maybe fortunately, the former reliance on the Electrolux name is over. Miele and Sebo have most of the high-end market that was once theirs. No more selling 1985 Cadillac's at Audi prices. In the internet era, consumers are smarter than that. If the Platinum and HEPA bags are any indication of what else is coming down the road for Lux, maybe they are on their way back. I certainly hope so.
Aerus has also opened some company-owned branches again also.
Brian
