This handover was planned in advance and forms part of a schedule linked to the group’s investment cycle. “We have made significant investments between 2024 and 2027; we have a budget of over 30 million for investments in our production facilities,” emphasises Patrick Muller. The objective is clear: “When I leave, my successor should not have to make any major industrial decisions for at least the first five years.”
Before stepping back further, he intends to wrap up several projects. “Next year, I’m going to focus on major projects currently underway, particularly investments in production, but also the whole digital side of things: production planning and the organisation of IT tools,” he explains. The group is working in particular to improve demand, procurement and production planning, which is still considered “in need of improvement” despite the efforts already made.
Managers supporting the 1,050 employees
In this context, Carole Muller will be expanding her remit, but without shouldering all operational responsibilities on her own. “If people think that taking on the role of CEO means I have to work 40 hours at Fischer and 40 hours at Panelux, that’s fortunately not the case!” she insists. “Why now? Because now we have the teams.” This strengthening of the teams is a central element of the transition. “We have a new generation on board, but also people who have been here for a while, and we have good people,” she continues. The group has around 1,050 employees and some 50 managers, with a structure that has been strengthened in recent years.
To make this new way of working viable, Fischer will need to appoint a new head of operations. “Right now, this is perhaps the biggest change for my teams: we’ve said we’re going to appoint a director for Fischer,” explains Carole Muller. “We’re going to put out a job advertisement to find someone so that I can focus more on Panelux.” This future executive – CEO or COO – will be tasked with managing the day-to-day running of the brand, allowing Carole Muller to refocus on more cross-functional roles. “We’ll need someone to manage day-to-day operations so that certain issues no longer come to me,” she says. “I’ll be more involved in strategy, projects, investments and the financial side.”
This refocusing also involves making personal trade-offs. “There are certain roles I’m going to step back from,” she says. “Because at some point, I need time.” A necessary reorganisation to cope with a broader remit, whilst she will also need to develop her skills in certain areas. “The whole export side, which I’ve had little to do with, or the technical side… it will still be a whole new world that I’ll have to get to grips with,” she admits.
Change whilst maintaining continuity
However, the group has no plans for a legal merger between its entities. “There will be no merger of the companies. It’s just that there will be a group CEO,” explains Carole Muller. “The aim is not to merge, but to bring the Panelux and Fischer approaches closer together.”
This development is part of the ongoing transformation that began in 2010, when Carole and Patrick Muller reoriented Fischer towards a more customer-centric approach. “Back then, the company was too ‘production-driven’,” recalls Carole Muller. “We changed the approach: it’s no longer ‘we’ve produced this, sell it’, but ‘the customer wants this, produce it’.”
Today, both leaders believe that the organisational foundations are strong enough to take the next step. “We’ve managed to put people in place who know what they’re doing and who speak their minds,” says Patrick Muller. This strengthening of middle management is essential to support the delegation.
The pursuit of added value and moving upmarket
The group is, however, operating in a complex economic environment. Rising raw material costs, energy pressures, and wage indexation: constraints have mounted in recent years. “Last year, our margins were below average,” admits Patrick Muller. “We weren’t able to pass on all the costs.” Carole Muller highlights in particular the difficulty of passing on price increases linked to the Luxembourg model. “Passing on the index to exports is very complicated,” she explains. In a market where prices have risen sharply, the group must now strike a balance between quality, premium positioning and price acceptability.
The strategy is based, in particular, on a dual approach: high-value-added products that are difficult to manufacture, and increased production volumes in certain more standardised segments. “We need to strike a balance between products that others cannot make and high-volume products that require less labour,” explains Patrick Muller, referring in particular to an investment in a new bakery production line.
The group is therefore approaching this change not as a break with the past, but as a restructuring: Carole Muller is taking the lead, Fischer is preparing for the arrival of a new chief operating officer, and Patrick Muller is stepping back from day-to-day operations, building on a final round of investments.
