Following a year of stagnating sales, Curver BV (PO Box 16, NL-5050 AA Goirle), a 100% subsidiary of DSM NV (PO Box 43, NL-6130 Sittard), hopes for fresh impulses from a new refrigerator container series. At the consumer goods fair "Ambiente '97" in Frankfurt, Curver vice president Jörg Jacob expressed optimism about the outook for this new series, scheduled to go into production in April or May of this year. He said the Dutch producer of household and hobby articles is spending "a double digit million figure" on the new production line, which represents its largest investment in a single product category. This is also Curver's first step into two-component injection moulding. Product will be manufactured on injection moulding machines supplied by Ferromatik Milacron Maschinenbau GmbH (D-79364 Malterdingen).

In 1996, Curver's earnings improved by an unspecified margin, while sales were flat at DEM 400m. The group introduced 82 new products in Europe; about half replaced existing products. While sales in Benelux, the UK, Spain, Portugal, central and eastern Europe were above average, turnover in Germany and France was below average. Formerly independent subsidiary Curver Lawn Comfort was merged last year into the Curver Home division and renamed Curver Outdoor. Alongside the traditional lawn furniture and household products, this division, which has sales of DEM 100m, now encompasses an "Outdoor Playing Equipment" line.