When did ErgoXS actually start?

“There’s some ambiguity about that, but it seems that the umbrella company was founded in the 1950s when it still manufactured play equipment such as go-karts. It was called Smit Stalen Meubels back then. The Oei family took over the company in 1977 and changed the name to Score. From that moment on it has mainly specialised in work chairs. Mr Oei was technically inclined. A very smart product developer with apparent foresight, because Score is still focused on this very same branch.”

 

When did the current owners take over Score?

“In the 1990s, the focus on better working conditions grew and production lines were set up so that employees could sit while working. The Nauta family took over the company. But Mr Nauta – trained as a naval engineer – knew nothing about chairs and Mr Oei insisted that the company must remain in good hands. That’s why Nauta first worked at the company for six months before taking over.”

What’s changed since then?

“By shifting the focus from product to marketing, Score grew rapidly from then on. Prices and dealer margins were increased so dealers could give project discounts to large contractors. This is still reflected in our sales market: we mainly supply businesses and project developers and much less private individuals. We’ve strengthened the brand position, put our logo on packaging, modernised documentation and visited occupational health and safety services in order to promote our products.”

But when are we actually going to talk about ErgoXS?

“Right now! But ErgoXS’s history would not be complete without Score’s history. In 1999, we moved from Feithsweg 8 to Feithspark 5, where we are still located today. This location is bigger and more efficient. In 1999, we received our largest order for footstools ever: 13,000 for Aldi Germany. That gave our company a major boost, especially when the national crisis hit in 2007. In 2006, ErgoXS became a spinoff. It started with an adjustable stand for flat computer monitors, but the real success came when we started doing custom work.

Product development has been of paramount importance to us from the very start, under the motto: ‘Score has a chair for you. And if we don’t, then we’ll make it for you.’ With ErgoXS, we developed a manually operated digital whiteboard frame for a customer in 2007 based on this idea. This enabled him to make his digital whiteboards mobile. An so began ErgoXS’s success. We’ve further developed this digital whiteboard frame into an electric version and built up a dealer network around this product.”

Building of ErgoXS

And then?

“In 2012, we shifted our focus from small screen brackets to suspension systems for large screens and digital whiteboards, usually with an electric lift. In 2015, ErgoXS was the first to introduce a Kapp trolley, a digital flipchart. That put us in the international spotlight. In 2015, the companies were passed on to the second generation of the Nauta family.”

What is ErgoXS’s current market status?

“In our dealers’ eyes, we’re reliable, we have a wide range and we deliver quality. Northern common sense is in our blood. That makes us honest and straightforward. We like short lines of communication and personal contact and we ensure our customers always know where they stand. That this works is for us as a family business a given. We see it reflected in the mutual bond between colleagues, but also in our relationships with our customers.”