Reorganisation at Sera

During the coronavirus pandemic, the aquatics sector scored an impressive success in reviving the enthusiasm of existing aquarium owners for their hobby as well as attracting new adherents to fishkeeping. The renaissance of aquariums also translated into higher sales, benefiting the sector as a whole.  

The fact that the upturn in the aquatics market has faded somewhat in the last year has not been lost on Sera, one of the leading market players. Since the company’s turnover chiefly derives from the sale of fish food, however, it was by no means as badly affected by the downward trend in the aquatics sector as other market players specialising primarily in aquarium accessories. In addition, explains Simon Gierlings, who is responsible for sales and marketing at Sera, the reluctance of ornamental fish keepers to spend money tends to be greater in Germany; in many countries, such as France and Spain, for instance, the market is continuing to develop extremely well.

To be well prepared for the future, the company has reorganised in terms of staff. Following the appointment of Holger Fiebiger as managing director in 2021, Michaela Ravnak-Bürschgens, who as daughter of the founders has been present for all the milestones in Sera’s history, was appointed second managing director in February 2022. The management team was then expanded with the addition of Simon Gierlings, Christof Reiners as head of finance and administration, and since April 2022 also Manuel Schnepp, head of production and logistics (as reported by pet). Handing responsibility for Sera over to an experienced team has proved in retrospect to be a far-sighted move, because Holger Fiebiger left the company for personal reasons on 30 June. 

At the same time as making personnel changes at the top of the company, Sera has subjected its processes as a whole to a critical review in recent months and has repositioned itself for the future. During this transformation, restructuring of the distribution system has also taken place. The branches in China, Italy and the Czech Republic were closed, with these country markets now being supplied directly from the company’s headquarters in Heinsberg. “This move has also enabled us to increase the availability of our goods and raise customer satisfaction levels,” says Gierlings. In Switzerland, too, Sera decided to go in a new direction. Its longstanding collaboration with wholesaler Alfauna came to an end in May. In Wohlen-based Plantex AG, Sera now has a strong new partner on board with whom it aims to consolidate its market position in Switzerland further. In future the company also intends to have a stronger presence at the leading trade shows: apart from Interzoo next year, it will have a stand of its own at Zoomark in Bologna in 2025.

Another new feature at Sera is a breeder programme, which is geared specifically to breeders and operators of large aquariums and zoos. Among other things, fish food will be offered in future to these major customers in bulk units on especially favourable terms.

Sera wants to create fresh momentum with its product range, too. It plans to present a complete relaunch of the sera brand at the next Interzoo, including redesigning the entire product portfolio. The focus is expected to be on improved visibility on the shelf and self-explanatory, modern packaging solutions. “We want to structure our product offering in future so that consumers achieve optimum orientation at the shelf and find the right product quickly and easily at the POS,” explains Gierlings.

The success of the Sera Academy, introduced last year, shows that Sera appears to be on the right track with its transformation. On this digital learning platform, which was the subject of a detailed presentation at the last Interzoo, pet product retailers will find eLearning courses (self-study courses) and a completely new live seminar programme certified by the VDA/DGHT. Dieter Untergasser, Elena Rathgeber and Oliver Helker speak on a wide variety of topics related to freshwater and marine aquariums, terrariums and garden ponds. 

Since the start of last September, around 600 participants have already received certificates issued after completing eLearning courses and live seminars successfully. Following the launch of the digital learning platform, 22 eLearning courses and 19 live seminars were offered last year and as many as 21 live seminars have taken place in the first two quarters of this year. Last November, Sera entered its academy for a pet Product of the Year 2022/2023 Award in the aquatics category and achieved an impressive victory with over 67 per cent of the votes. It was impressive not only on account of the margin of victory, but also because the companies casting votes for Sera included independent pet shops and aquatics specialists as well as DIY stores, garden centres and pet store chains. In view of the continuing high demand in the pet supplies trade, another 14 seminars are scheduled to be held in the third quarter of this year along with a new eLearning training package. To bolster its team of speakers, Sera has also recruited well-known external speakers for the first time. The Heinsberg company is currently working hard to produce an eLearning course offering in the English and French languages. A Spanish version is also in the pipeline.