Seven questions, seven answers. Munich Startup in conversation with Nils Hitze from 3D things, a Full-service 3D printing and fabbing company.
1. Who are you? Please introduce yourselves briefly!
The technician: Nils Hitze – gentleman, nerd, maker and veteran in the German 3D printing scene.
The architect: Dr. Levin Brunner – Solution and Enterprise Architect and Consultant.
The man of numbers: Christian Lerch – long-time entrepreneur and consultant in the field of process management.
2. What product do you want to use to change the world?
Most people probably still know us from the days when we introduced the Maki Box as one of the very first sub-€500 3D printers in Germany. Our original goal was to bring 3D printing to many private individuals. However, the market environment has changed since then. The maker movement has gained significant traction, and 3D printing has now become a reality for tech-savvy individuals.
We now see the Demand for 3D printing is much more prevalent in small and medium-sized enterprises. We now offer 3D printing services to precisely this target group, SMEs.
3. But that's been around for a long time!
It depends very much on the type of 3D service. Our focus is not, for example, on printing objects or repairing 3D printers. Rather, we offer comprehensive technical knowledge as a process understanding. Only then can optimal use cases of 3D printing be evaluated and implemented in companies. It is not always obvious how exactly 3D printing optimizes modern production and service processes.
Ultimately, it's not about setting up a 3D printer for a medium-sized company, but rather incorporating the technology into the value creation process. Even with the current state of the art, the solution is usually not “We produce our product as a 3D print”, but much more often it is about minimizing inventory, reducing complexity or accelerating intermediate steps in production.
4. What has been your biggest challenge so far?
The 3D printer business was initially doing quite well. We quickly gained notoriety, especially when we operated Germany's first offline store as a pop-up store at the Viktualienmarkt. However, for about a year now, margins in the 3D printer business have been shrinking rapidly, as 3D printers have found their way into the product ranges of established hardware stores such as electronics and hardware stores. This has, of course, seriously impacted our business as a specialist provider.
5. Let’s get down to business: How is business going?
Accordingly, we can still generate sales here, but no longer make a profit. Another uncertainty in hardware sales is inventory management combined with currency fluctuations with the US dollar. We've already suffered some unexpected losses due to strong fluctuations. You live, you learn. In our new field of activity, we are now developing a new market, moving away from B2C and toward B2B. This, of course, also requires a lot of work and a rocky road. But in the long term, I see many more opportunities here.
6. What does Munich mean to you?
On the one hand, there are many makers and a lot of high-tech. On the other hand, there are many medium-sized companies – some still with fairly traditional industrial processes. So, there's still a lot of work for us to do. Unfortunately, there are also the high rents, which don't exactly make life easy for startups and makers.
7. Fish on a stick or pork knuckle?
In the summer, of course, it's fish on a stick in the beer garden. But now in the winter, it's more like pork knuckle and a proper dumpling!
