Miele achieved sales of 3.93 billion euro in the 2016/2017 financial year which ended on June 30th, 2017. This amounts to a year-on-year increase of 218 million or 5.9%. Built-in appliances and vacuum cleaners made an above-average contribution to this growth. Milestones from the period under review include a majority interest in the Italian medical technology specialist Steelco, the launch of the Miele Venture Capital and the creation of the new Smart Home business unit. As per June 30, 2017, Miele employed a staff of 19,465 worldwide: this amounted to 1,095 employees, or 6%, more than in the previous year. During the reporting period, investments totalled 225 million euro. “In Germany – explains the company – Miele achieved sales of 1.18 billion euro, representing an increase of 6.8%. Outside Germany, the USA, Australia, Canada, Austria and a number of Asian markets are worthy of special mention. In Great Britain, too, Miele was able to make significant inroads in local currency, although this was more than offset by currency disparity in the run-up to Brexit. In southern Europe, on the other hand, Italy and Spain have staged an impressive comeback. At 70%, the share of sales outside Germany has remained practically constant (70.1% in previous year)”. On an individual product group level, the success of the Miele dishwasher continued into the business year just ended – with an increase in unit sales of almost 40% within the space of three years. In the floor care sector, Miele’s first bagless vacuum cleaner, the Blizzard CX1, was successfully launched following its trade show premiere at the IFA in 2016: for the first time in a fiscal year, Miele sold more than 2.5 million vacuum cleaners. With its handleless ArtLine series of built-in appliances featuring doors which open electrically at the touch of a fingertip, Miele has completed its lineup of products catering for flush-design high-end kitchens. And, in the field of laundry care, Miele’s WT1 washer-dryer sets new standards (boasting an aggregate cycle time of less than 3 hours, the web-enabled TwinDos dispensing system) and an 40% increase in unit sales.
