Published: 11 Apr 2008

Inspired TV marketing rewards Marquardt

In any operation, navigating the inevitable peaks and troughs in production and sales can be a headache. Or alternatively, it can be an opportunity – as Marquardt, the German granite kitchen company found out.

Marquardt, bought by Nobia and DMG in July 2007, adopted a new and creative marketing approach to deal with exactly such turbulent scenarios – TV shopping. To coincide with production capacity, they recently ran a trial campaign on QVC, Germany's leading TV shopping channel with millions of viewers. The offer: a standard package to freshen up and modernise existing kitchens.

The package included a choice of black or white granite worktops, a Blanco sink and mixer tap, and a choice of either a ceramic or induction hob from Siemens. In addition, Marquardt offered a Siemens oven and dishwasher as optional extras.

They ran a trial campaign in January plus a second campaign in early April with an excellent result.

"We're almost sold out. But perhaps more important than the actual sales is the increased awareness of the Marquardt brand in Germany.", says Michael Marquardt, managing director of Marquardt Küchen. "As well as the programme itself, the success of this 'experiment' lies very much in good planning and also focusing on one offer. QVC has more than fulfilled our expectations."