Blinds & Shutters. When we last spoke Sunway was embarking on a real marketing push. How has this developed and how has the company moved forward?

Laura Pearse. It has developed really well especially with the launch of the Sunway Blinds website featuring all of the Sunway collections, product updates and a ‘Dealer Locator’ so the consumer can easily locate a Sunway retailer in their area.  

We’ve had features in home interest magazine such as Yours, House Beautiful and Ideal Home which we know has lead to consumers asking for Sunway blinds in store which is exactly what we wanted.  

B&S. Sunway is well established as a trade brand. Has targeting the consumer been difficult and has it had the desired effect?

Laura Pearse.. It’s a gradual process of switching the consumer onto Sunway with POS, regional and national press features and keeping our dealers up to date with new collection launches and product updates.

There is a lot of competition out there for Sunway but we feel with our dedicated retailers who are loyal to the brand we can offer the consumer an array of affordable products. 

B&S. What has been the reaction of your customers?

Laura Pearse.. Reaction has been fantastic. Customers are on board with our vision for the brand and I’ve had some comments like ‘…about time!’ It’s a team effort including them to raise the brand profile and I often ask our customers what they think about new products, what they’d like to see on the website and what will help them sell products in store.

B&S. As the year has progressed, have your customers' needs changed?

Laura Pearse. The need for shorter lead times has become more apparent which Sunway can provide with being manufactured in the UK.  Point of sale is key for customers as well. With the economy as it is at the moment we have to supply our customer as much as we can to bring their consumer into the store.  

Laura Pearse. The UK consumer often buys quite ‘safely’ – white, creams, naturals where some of the other Hunter Douglas brands show their customers are buying big and bold patterns. This is probably because of window sizes in Europe where we traditionally have smaller windows. But I look at all of the fabrics we receive for Customers Own make up on roller and roman blinds and there are some wacky patterns coming through! So maybe we are starting to be more adventurous in our window choices.

B&S. Sunway's products are all manufactured in the UK, how does this benefit Sunway's customers? 

Laura Pearse.. Shorter lead times are the greatest benefit and knowing that when our customer service team has a query with production they are dealing with someone within the UK.

B&S. Sunway are strong in their stance on not selling direct. How does this work for both Sunway and the retailer?

Laura Pearse. We want to support our dealers when promoting and selling the Sunway brand. We’ve never considered selling direct as our network of dealers is growing all the time and feel the consumer gets the best service dealing with them and their knowledge of blinds and what Sunway can offer.

B&S. What has been selling well for Sunway?

Laura Pearse. Romans are selling extremely well. The launch of the new collection book has had a fantastic response from both our customers and the consumer. There are 142 fabrics to choose from including voiles and suedes to naturals and jacquards so something to suit all tastes. We offer three blind styles, five lining options and the lead time is seven days. We also offer a customers own fabric make up service which has been a huge success with the lead time being ten days. 

Vertical blinds are also selling well at the moment. When I put the new collection book together I was conscious of a need for more textured fabric and some fashion colours.  Vertical blinds can have the reputation of being an ‘office’ blind but with new photography showing the blinds in different settings such as bathrooms and kitchens I think it has made the consumer realise that they can be decorative as well as functional. 

B&S. Can we expect any additions to collections or new collections in 2009?

Laura Pearse. The life cycle of a collection book used to be three years for Sunway but with trends moving on so quickly now and our suppliers launching fantastic fabrics etc. we are looking to launch every two years. 2009 is going to be a great year for new Sunway collections launches including a very exciting project I’m working on at the moment which will take Sunway in a new direction – watch this space!

B&S. What has caught your eye in 2008?

Laura Pearse. I’ve noticed a growing trend of grey and silver roller blinds being made in production. We’ve seen this trend in metal colours for a while now and it looks like its crossing over to fabrics. Suppliers are tuning into our needs more as well rather than offering a standard product we can develop and adapt more to our company needs.