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HØRSHOLM, Denmark: Those familiar with the town of Hørsholm will know it as the site of the former Hirschholm Palace, also known as the “Versailles of the North”. Nowadays, the town of 32,000 people north of Copenhagen provides a quiet haven for those who can afford the cost of living here and the hour’s commute to the capital. For dental manufacturer XO CARE, it has been a place to grow its business since 1998.
Considered a high-end provider of equipment, primarily dental units, for most of its existence, the Danish company has retained the status of what some would still call an insider’s tip. It has been considered a bit more expensive than the industry standard, a perception of which the company is very much aware.
This is all going to change, however, according to CEO Kim Sørensen, to whom Dental Tribune ONLINE recently spoke at the company’s headquarters.
According to him, things took a positive turn two years ago when his company initiated a radical rethink of its communication with its customers. Instead of explaining the continuously improved technical features of its workstations, the attention was shifted to conveying to customers the value using an XO CARE product brings to their business. The solution finally came in the form of a new show concept the company calls “XO VIP SHOW”, which is exactly what it says. First held at the International Dental Show (IDS) in Cologne last year, it is now core to every XO CARE exhibition in Europe.
“We have developed many innovative product features over our 40 years that provide added value to dental professionals, but it has been a problem to explain these, especially to potential customers,” Sørensen explained.“We discussed in depth how, instead of simply showing our products, we could tell a story about what we can do for customers, how we can help them to offer better professional care.”
According to him, the concept has been very successful, as ten times more visitors visited the XO CARE stand at IDS in 2013 compared with the previous show. Furthermore, sales in Germany have tripled in the last 18 months, making the country the company’s most important growth market right now.
Sørensen said that seeking new ways to communicate with customers is more important than ever in a time in which dental units seem to be conventional and boring: “What is hip right now is CAD/CAM, digital imaging and so on. That means that there is intensified price competition among workstation providers.”
“As a consequence, many manufacturers are supplying or developing cheaper solutions in order to make a living, which may result in even lower prices and quality. This is a negative spiral, I think,” he said.
With its XO VIP SHOW concept, the company has found a niche to sustain and even grow its business despite the global trend.
“We may reduce our costs to some extent, but even then we cannot really compete with Chinese units that retail between €2,000 and €3,000. Instead of manufacturing cheaper units, we are now focusing on solutions that add more value to the customers."
“Our units might be considered pricey, but if you consider their 20,000 or so working hours, it costs you only €2 per hour. Everybody can afford to buy an XO CARE unit," Sørensen concludes.
