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Johannes Gutmann: “Satisfied customers are not enough”

by Rebecca Sandbichler (comments: 0)

Sonnentor-Founder Johannes Gutmann © Sonnentor
Johannes Gutmann, founder of Sonnentor, whom his employees lovingly call "Little Sunshine". © Sonnentor

In an interview, Johannes Gutmann, founder of Sonnentor Kräuterhandels GmbH, reveals why the industry needs more movement, what crowdfunding can do for it and who its best creative minds are.

Organic-market.info: Mr. Gutmann, take a look back: As a young herbalist you encountered a few obstacles which, in hindsight, hadn’t been necessary. Do you see things have become even more difficult for today’s young and wild?

Johannes Gutmann: Of course some things became even more difficult. When I entered the market 30 years ago, it was enough to put about five lines of info on the label, maybe 400 characters long. Now you have to write half a book for each product.

This doesn’t sound very reassuring ...

No, but I want to encourage everyone, even if the basic conditions seem bad or difficult: Don’t let that stop you. Take what works for the oldies, but please don’t repeat it similarly or do the same. We no longer need the same, we need innovation.

You yourself are known for your creative way of problem-solving.

Flexible you might call it. I always followed the rules 100%, but I interpreted them. So, they suited my own situation.

How exactly?

For example, I wasn’t allowed to sell nettle tea, because only a drugstore or pharmacist is allowed to do that in Austria. But I said: ‘Ok, so I’ll only sell nettle.’ End of story. What customers are doing with it, if they brew themselves a tea or if they use it for washing their hair, what do I care? I sold the nettle at least as successful as I would have sold the nettle tea, the farmers had a market for their product and everyone was happy.

Source: Instagram/Sonnentor, English version: No matter where it pinches you - there is an herb grown! And this valuable herbal knowledge must not be lost - that's why we have 10 fine mixtures of organic herbs for you, which are just as suitable for the "frog in the throat" as for the pure "matter of the heart".

You are one of the bigger players in the organic market, how do you deal with your role when it comes to fairness in relation to smaller partners or newcomers?

I acknowledge my responsability and share a lot of what I know doesn’t work. The good thing is that I don’t only know my mistakes, but also how to do it right. I’m very happy when there are many small market participants. As a big player, I also use my preliminary work to create market opportunities for smaller players. I won’t tell them where we have our blind spots though. This is something they have to find out by themselves. Back then, I also had to move and look for my market.

And with your producers, how to you keep the balance there?

We encourage our suppliers to create their own brands. Invent something, you have a local market, it’s yours. We act internationally. Because we basically are a big community of producers we have the quantities, the know-how and the marketing for us to do so. So we encourage them out of the idea that they shouldn’t be solely dependent on us. A chair is not stable with only one leg.

How do you keep up a good culture of innovation in your own business?

Openness, trust in my employees, trust in the market.

Trust in the market?

Yes, one of our main innovators is the market itself. I can remember that even on the farmers market, in the early days, it was the people who came and asked: “Do you have this or do you have that?” In our stores, it’s not so different now. Our franchise partners, regular customers and our fans are the ones who come up with new wishes and ideas. That’s how we re-invent our herbs all the time.

Different packs of teas stacked on a shelf.
A series of tea presented by Sonnentor at Biofach 2018 in Nuremberg, Germany. © Daniela Nickel

The so-called landlofts for overnight guests, a permaculture farm and an innovative form of coupon investment – you have a lot of side-projects going. How important are they?

Very important. The independency with which I built Sonnentor and which was always at the center of my vision is providing us with this freedom. I don’t have to go into politics, because I can create everything right at my doorstep. This is how we became regional developers here in the “Waldviertel”.

Where do these ideas come from?

Many come directly from the staff, a few are mine of course. We follow our way because we are allowed to and because we can finance it on our own.

And how can you afford that?

You just can't take so much out of profit, just make sure you make a living and with the rest you create the things for the future. Some of them don’t belong to our core business, that’s true.

Source: Twitter/Sonnentor, English version: Take part in our CROWD SUNDING project: Participate in sustainable solar power. In return you will receive SONNENTOR vouchers.

For example, your new solar panels, which you want to finance by asking your customers for a small investment. Couldn’t you just install them yourself the very next day? Why have a Crowd-Sunding“ for that?

You’re right, of course, I could pay for them myself. However, we see it as a marketing opportunity giving people, who are our fans, the chance to be a part of Sonnentor. Instead of them shopping in the store for 400 Euros they get product coupons worth 500 Euros in return for their money. You won’t find a better interest rate anywhere at the moment. If they believe in their ability to invest and if they trust us for a timespan of five years, well, hurray.

Do you see such forms of customer relations as a chance for the whole organic market?

Most definitely. Many do it in a clumsy way or don’t even try. And still too many think that if they have satisfied customers, that will be enough. But that’s not the case.

But you’d think it was ...

Yes, but only tomorrow, a satisfied customer might decide that he wants to lie in bed with someone else who truly inspires him or her. If you’re able to inspire your customers, they will stay as fans. They will tell you everything straight, how they think of your company or how you can improve. I’m incredibly thankful for that. Everything we do, we do for them – these customers and these fans pay for our wages. Them, not me.

© Sonnentor

 

Sonnentor: New sales plus in 2017/18

The accounting year of 2017/18 went well for Sonnentor: The organic herbal specialist once again recorded an increase in sales and invested in the future.

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How can organic retailers stand up to the pressure of the conventional market fishing in their pond?

If you understand that the big players create such a buzz for organic that you just have to find your niche, you’ll have a head start. I was thankful when in 1995, “Ja, natürlich!” – an Austrian organic brand for the mainstream – entered the market. Suddenly, they trumpeted for the organic idea, how very nice of them. I didn’t have to sell products to them, but they did so much groundwork that I only had to put my own thing on top. If I don’t manage to do that, I shouldn’t wonder why I am the only one left behind.

Putting your story on top sounds easy, but it probably isn’t. How do you succeed so often?

I work with a simple rule in mind, in German I call it the ‘ABC-method’. Starting with A for “anders” – which means different. So be different. The B stands for being better than the others. And C, act more cleverly than the rest. Sure, we all cook with water. But my tea tastes better.

About Sonnentor

Sonnentor has been producing herbs and spices from organic farming since 1988. This makes the company the leader in Austria in the specialist trade with a market share of 50%, in Germany the organic specialist is among the top 3 with a market share of 25%. 320 employees currently work for Sonnentor in Austria, a further 120 in the Czech subsidiary founded in 1992 and others in Albania and Romania.


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