Hoffmann Ladenbau feels at home in the EU. Approximately 140 employees have been working at the company's own production facility at its Westphalian site in Rosendahl-Holtwick and creating shopfittings for well-known brands for over 30 years.
The company also works for customers outside Europe's borders with its Hoffmann Interior business division. Managing partners Jürgen Frechen and Guido Kruthoff therefore appreciate the fundamental freedoms of the EU.
When things are difficult, many people tend to question everything. So it is not surprising that during these times, which are certainly not the easiest, critics condemn the EU and its principles and would prefer to turn back the clock again. Close the borders, introduce the old currency and everyone goes their own way again. But it is easy to forget the huge benefits that we have already enjoyed through this community. As the strongest economic area in the world, the EU has not just increased trade and economic activities, but also the overall standard of living within Europe. As a manufacturing company operating throughout Europe, we benefit every day from the four fundamental freedoms of the European Single Market, namely the free movement of goods, people, services and capital.
We are constantly reminded that these freedoms are not to be taken for granted in our day to day business when working in Switzerland. We recently completed a branch in St. Gallen for our customer WMF AG. In concrete terms, this means that we need to provide documentation in advance to confirm that the Swiss collective labour agreements and the associate minimum wage agreements contained therein are being observed before our installers are able to work on-site. The deployment of people also has to be registered in good time with the Swiss authorities. Furthermore, it goes without saying that the export of goods in Germany and the import of goods into Switzerland must also be registered accordingly with the Swiss customers, which is also reflected in the timing of the project planning. Usually we need to factor in about one more week for these preparatory steps for work in non-EU countries. Also the costs for processing import transactions, namely the import duties and taxes, must be included in the project costing or the acceptance of costs has to be clarified in advance with the customer. And finally, we always have to keep an eye on the current exchange rate, on which the final quotation is based.
This small insight into our daily practice makes it clear that the benefits of the EU as an economic and monetary union are obvious for companies. We can give you even more examples where we have learned to appreciate the free movement of goods and all the other conveniences of the single market. But ultimately we also benefit from the political and social values of the EU that allow us to live our lives in freedom, security and stability – and we seldom realise this.
An economy can only ever grow and prosper in places where there are controlled conditions and states functioning without corruption. The vision of a common Europe is the driving force for a positive outlook on the future despite all the criticism of the EU. This is what makes us here at the Hoffmann Group invest in the West Münster region and give us real prospects for the future. Many of the people who have come to our country recently from distant lands have not experienced peace and stability for a long time. It is also up to us as European companies to generate new prospects within our capabilities in order to develop new long-term opportunities from the crisis. For example, one possibility is to make interested parties aware of our working methods. The dual education system that is practised in Germany is recognised and appreciated worldwide. Many of our new fellow citizens are aware of the opportunities that come with a good education. We are currently working closely with Coesfeld district trade crafts association to develop a concept so that young refugees can learn the carpentry profession through an internship.