Corona was a piece of cake compared to that”

Corona was a piece of cake compared to that”

Mr. Prost, Liqui Moly was able to increase its sales by 7.1 percent in 2020. The profit has halved. They have invested significantly more in marketing. Most of the time, the cuts are made there first. Why did you do it differently?

Precisely because the others are making cuts, we are going full throttle. You are only as good as your opponent allows you to be. This applies equally to competitors in sport and in business. It will now be much easier for us to steal market share and steal customers from our competitors if we step on the accelerator when others are hitting the brakes. There is even a term for this: acting countercyclically. In practice, very few people do this. By the way, our profit didn't halve and it didn't collapse either; we sacrificed half of it - or rather - invested it in building the brand. That's a big difference. It is exactly the millions that we are missing from last year's profit that we invested in marketing and sales.

They also hired over 100 new employees, according to the press release. Was that necessary? Or would the many employees have been hired in a non-crisis year?

I've always enjoyed hiring people. Firstly because I need them for work and for our expansion and secondly because it is an entrepreneur's primary duty to create jobs. It's clear: in a non-crisis year, we would neither have invested so much in marketing nor in additional manpower. Both belong together and both are part of our plan of attack.

You came along quite early last year Her salary waiver caused a stir – far beyond the German national borders. Was that self-promotion? Do you know whether other CEOs have followed suit?

I'm already too old and too high on the career ladder for self-marketing. It doesn't give me anything more, except in this example less money. But it was a good signal from me to our entire Liqui Moly family, namely that special times also require special measures. But the Corona bonus of 1,500 euros per nose that I paid out was much more significant. Or our donations to all sorts of aid organizations, which we made both through the business and I made privately.

They have been in business for decades. How long will the Corona crisis affect the economy?

Without a doubt, this is the biggest global crisis since World War II. Just think of the many deaths, the sick, the much suffering and also the economic collapse - a catastrophe. Some countries are better positioned and will get away with some damage, and other countries will take decades to recover from this rainfall. The imbalance in the world, the discrepancy between rich and poor, is exacerbated by this crisis.

Liqui Moly's key economic indicators are exemplary: enough reserves, very high equity ratio. Does a crisis make it clearer which companies are healthy?

I call this kind of grandmother knowledge. My grandma taught me: Save when you have time and you'll have it when you're in need. Many companies today are being exploited down to the last button of their pants. If profits are only privatized, these financial resources are missing from the war chest and the reserve bag.

From a business perspective: Were you satisfied with the support measures from the German state? Have you received help and if so, what kind?

Of course we didn't get any help. What for? Also a question of corporate honor. What should I say now about politics in Germany? 
Some companies die and no rooster crows. Some companies are saved with a lot of money, even though they would have preferred not to do so because the business was already unviable. 
Others despair of the bureaucracy that is necessary to get a few euros to survive. And others are making a huge profit in this crisis by grabbing government money. The money is there, what's missing is speed. And the surgical precision in saving companies worth saving.

You mentioned in advance of our interview that you always have to shoot trouble. What exactly does the boss himself take care of in such situations?

There isn't too much in our company that is decided without me. This is the case in normal times and even more so in times of crisis. How different should things be on a ship with a thousand men and a captain? We have excellent people, a great team. Brilliant individual talents and tremendous team players. 
And I am one of them. Maybe the one who holds the shop together and focuses all forces on the essential tasks. Sometimes sales are missing. Sometimes raw materials. Sometimes cargo space, especially containers. Prices fall and rise, as do currencies. There's always something going on that you didn't order and that you don't even want. But it's normal that nothing works and new problems keep arising. That's life, that's business.

Let's put Corona aside. The climate debate will soon catch up with us again, e-mobility is on everyone's lips. How is Liqui Moly positioning itself here? Are you for or against electric cars? 

Sorry, but the climate debate will not catch up with us, we have missed it. The entire human race has slept through it and the revenge will be bitter. Those who today still rail against nature conservation, environmental protection and resource-friendly behavior have not heard the shot or do not want to hear it. 
The way humanity is behaving on this planet, there will soon be catastrophes against which Corona was a piece of cake. Exploitation, destruction, devastation and reckless treatment of nature must be replaced by conscious, environmentally friendly behavior, sustainable and resource-saving production and consumption.
There are enough opportunities to do this, even without humanity having to limit itself. We have to invest in other technologies and think of other models of life. Only then will the earth remain what it is: our beautiful home with clean water, enough food and humane living conditions for everyone. And if the electric car can make a contribution to this, then I'm for it.

How do you assess business for Liqui Moly in 2021 and 2022?

What will really come out in the next few years, only God knows. But we do everything we can to make good use of the skills he has given us. We are still working hard, purposefully, have put some clever strategies and plans in place and are still very confident, full of self-confidence and are courageously tackling the tasks of the future. So it can only be good.