Weber Inc., together with its affiliates, operates as an outdoor cooking company in the global outdoor cooking market.
The company’s product portfolio includes traditional charcoal grills, gas grills, smokers, pellet and electric grills and recently its Weber Connect technology-enabled grills. Its full range of products are sold in 78 countries.
The company operates in the global outdoor cooking market, which is consisted of outdoor products that include gas grills, charcoal grills, wood pelle...
Weber Inc., together with its affiliates, operates as an outdoor cooking company in the global outdoor cooking market.
The company’s product portfolio includes traditional charcoal grills, gas grills, smokers, pellet and electric grills and recently its Weber Connect technology-enabled grills. Its full range of products are sold in 78 countries.
The company operates in the global outdoor cooking market, which is consisted of outdoor products that include gas grills, charcoal grills, wood pellet grills, electric grills, smokers, grilling accessories and solid fuel products (including charcoal briquettes, lump charcoal, pellets, wood chips and wood chunks).
Products
The company manufactures premium outdoor cooking products, accessories, consumables and services designed to provide a customized outdoor cooking experience. The company’s product portfolio includes grills (gas, charcoal, electric, pellet and smokers) and accessories, consumables and services.
Grills
Gas Grills: The company is the market leader in Gas grills. Its gas grill product sub-category is consisted of the company’s Genesis series, Spirit series, Q series, Summit series, and recently launched Weber Traveler series. The company’s gas grills feature its stainless steel Flavorizer bars and porcelain-enameled coating and Weber Connect is available in its Genesis and Spirit grills.
Charcoal Grills: The company has continued to expand its Charcoal product line, from the Original Kettle series to include the Master Touch, Performer, Summit Kamado, Ranch and the Smokey Joe and Go-Anywhere portable series. The company’s Charcoal grills come in a variety of sizes and colors and offer features, such as high capacity ash catchers, glass-reinforced nylon handles, porcelain-enameled bowls and lids and aluminized steel One-Touch cleaning system.
Electric Grills: The company’s portfolio of outdoor Electric grills has a strong position internationally. The company’s electric product sub-category features its Q and Pulse Series grills with differentiated features, such as porcelain-enameled cast-iron cooking grates, cast aluminum lid and body and its Weber Connect Smart Grilling Hub.
Smokers: The company’s Smoker product sub-category features its Smokey Mountain Cooker Series, which includes features, such as a porcelain-enameled lid, bowl and center section; two cooking grates; and a removable fuel door.
Pellet Grills: The company’s Pellet sub-category consists of its SmokeFire Series. SmokeFire has a wide temperature range that allows consumers to sear and smoke. SmokeFire features the company’s Weber Connect smart grilling technology, its stainless steel Flavorizer bars and porcelain-enameled coating.
Accessories, Consumables and Services
Accessories, consumables and services are a core component of the company’s product offering that represent a high margin, year-round recurring revenue stream between grill purchases. The company offers connected devices with its Weber Connect Smart Grilling Hub, serving accessories, grill care, Weber branded merchandise, grilling guide and recipe books, and Weber branded fuel. The company also offers services in select geographies, such as delivery, assembly and grilling classes.
Sales Channels
The company sells its products through an omni-channel network that consists of wholesale, direct-to-consumer (DTC) and e-commerce.
Wholesale: The company develops and maintains relationships with its global and international retailers and independent and specialty dealers by offering them an attractive combination of category validation, marketing and merchandising support, and rapid inventory turns. The company’s wholesale network is supported by its direct sales organization covering all channels of distribution. The company has established relationships with leading global and international retailers who expand its reach and offer its consumers a broader range of its products. The company also sells its products to approximately 2,400 independent retailers (barbecue and grilling stores, hardware stores, outdoor and recreation stores, and farm and ranch supply stores, etc.).
DTC: The company sells its products directly to consumers through Weber.com and its 193 Weber branded retail stores and Grill Academy sites. The company relaunched its website in 2021 and implemented a new digital customer service experience. Consumers can now browse and purchase the entire Weber portfolio with curated search functionality on Weber.com, buy products exclusive to its site, and receive direct financing through a third-party provider. The company partners with local operators who fund and operate Weber branded retail locations and Grill Academy sites under strict Weber guidelines.
E-commerce: The company has a strong presence in the e-commerce channel and a dedicated digital commerce team to drive penetration and growth within the online platforms of its global, multi-national and European retailers, as well as digitally native retailers, such as Amazon and Wayfair.
Marketing and Consumer Engagement
The company executes a wide range of marketing tactics. The company develops and selectively uses advertising to showcase its brand and new product launches during the key grilling seasons around the world. Its advertising appears in online display and connected and online TV, such as YouTube. The company works with high-profile food, lifestyle and barbecue influencers worldwide as extensions of its brand and the company uses social media to further cultivate its Weber community and amplify the passion for its brand and products. The company collects consumer data from a wide range of sources, including its connected devices, Weber apps, purchases on Weber.com, owner warranty registrations and Grill Academy classes, to tailor its marketing, offers and programs.
The company collaborates with its retail partners to deliver an engaging and compelling Weber brand experience through custom fixtures, signage and product displays. The company also partners with many of its customers, globally, to create an omni-channel experience linking category leading digital content with in-store displays.
The company’s ‘Grill Masters’—a global team of Weber culinary experts with a deep expertise in grilling techniques and Weber products—participate in numerous annual events, doing in-person experiential events and virtual cooking demonstrations while also showcasing its products. In addition, the company has a mobile grilling academy that does pop-up events at Do-It-Yourself and independent retailers across North America.
In 2021, the company acquired June Life Inc., which augmented its software and hardware engineering capabilities.
Manufacturing and Distribution
The company is the only major grill company that maintains a significant United States (U.S.) -based manufacturing footprint. The company has a long standing history with a diversified set of suppliers, mainly within the U.S. and Asia, who send component parts to Huntley, Illinois for finished grill manufacturing. In addition to its U.S. manufacturing, the company maintains long-standing relationships with three major grill manufacturers in China who provide the company with flexibility and redundancy across its major project lines.
In October 2021, the company opened its first European-based manufacturing and distribution hub in Zabrze, Poland. This location manufactures and distributes key product lines for the EMEA market.
The company’s Global Distribution Center in Huntley, Illinois serves as a central hub for shipments to its North American retail customers and plays a key role in its global hub and spoke distribution model. Globally, the company occupies 22 distribution facilities, maintaining a hub and spoke approach to distribution. The company uses distribution partners to serve markets in EMEA (Europe, the Middle East and Africa) and APAC (the Asia-Pacific) to strengthen its network.
Intellectual Property
As of September 30, 2022, the company held approximately 195 issued U.S. patents, 759 issued foreign patents and 294 pending patent applications worldwide relating to its products, as well as approximately 91 registered U.S. trademarks, 486 registered foreign trademarks and 58 pending trademark applications worldwide covering its brands and products.
Seasonality
Although the company generally has demand for its products throughout the year, its sales have historically experienced some seasonality. The company has typically experienced its highest level of the sale of its products in the second and third fiscal quarters (year ended September 2022) as retailers across North America and Europe changeover their floor sets, build inventory and fulfill consumer demand for outdoor cooking products. Sales are typically lower during its first and fourth fiscal quarters, with the exception of its Australia/New Zealand business, which is counter seasonal to the balance of the company’s business. It has a long track record of investing in the company’s business throughout the year, including in operating expenses, working capital, and other growth initiatives. While these investments drive performance during the primary selling season in the company’s second and third fiscal quarters, they generally have a negative impact on cash flow and net (loss) income during the company’s first and fourth fiscal quarters.
Government Regulations
In the U.S. for instance, certain of the company’s products are subject to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Act, under which the U.S.
Research and Development
The company incurred research and development expenses of $49.7 million for the year ended September 30, 2022.
Competition
The company’s competitors, in certain categories, include Big Green Egg, Broil King, Campingaz, Char-Broil, Landmann, Napoleon, Nexgrill, Pit Boss, Traeger and Ziegler & Brown.
History
Weber Inc. was founded in 1952. The company was incorporated in 2021.
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