FG Europe to sell Midea air conditioning

UK: A new company, FG Europe UK, has been established to sell Midea air conditioning in the UK.

Not to be confused with the Fujitsu distribution business FG Eurofred, FG Europe is part of the Greek-owned Feidakis Group. Although, to add further possible confusion, FG Europe is also a long-standing distributor of Fujitsu in other countries outside the UK.

In a further coincidental link, the newly formed FG Europe UK is headed by Martin Richards who spent 12 years as Fujitsu UK general manager. More recently he held a similar position at Hitachi.

As exclusive UK and Ireland distributor, FG Europe UK will be launching a partner programme with a 10-year warranty scheme. Also, although units come pre-charged with enough refrigerant for a 5m pipe run, FGE UK says it will offer free refrigerant to ensure that Midea units are charged with the correct amount of gas for optimal efficiency.

The new company claims to be well-resourced, being supported by the parent company, one of the largest air conditioning distributors in Europe. It already holds around £1m of stock in Essex, including VRF, available for immediate delivery. Two UK offices have been established, one in London and one in Newcastle with a team ready to provide pre- and post-sales support nationwide. 

Although the current stock holding in the UK is R410A, all new non VRF units brought to the UK in 2018 will be on R32.

Confident

Talking of the opportunity the new company brings, but mindful of the previous reputation of Chinese air conditioning products, Martin Richards said: “We do not underestimate the challenge and a lot of hard work will be necessary to overcome entrenched preconceived ideas but having witnessed first-hand the build quality and scale of the state of art production, we have every confidence that with the support of the parent company we have a successful formula on our hands.”

Midea is the world’s largest air conditioning manufacturer supplying the global market with a large range of HVAC products including a full range of RAC and light commercial air conditioners.

“We are so sure of the product build quality, we are bringing it to the UK market with a 10-year warranty, backed by a full technical support team, to ensure installers have complete peace of mind,” said Martin Richards.

To underline their commitment to the UK, Midea and FG Europe have taken a large stand at January’s HVACR Show at London’d Excel. This will be a key part of their launch strategy, and to connect with UK installers and consultants.

Not that Midea is new to the UK. Middlesex-based Zetacool has been selling the product for 15 years and it also being promoted and sold in the UK by Powrmatic, Orionair and the Martin Industries group companies The Air Conditioning Centre and the VRF Centre. 

About the companies

FG Europe SA was founded in 1958 and listed on the Athens stock exchange since 1968. The company specialises in the import and wholesale of consumer goods, particularly electrical appliances and air conditioning.

It is the exclusive distributor of Fujitsu in south-eastern Europe – Greece, Bulgaria, Albania, Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia Herzegovina, Romania, Turkey and Italy. It was appointed exclusive distributor of Midea air conditioning in Greece in 2012 and has since expanded distribution into the Balkans.

Established in 1968, Midea is a publicly listed and, since July 2016, Fortune 500 company, offering one of the most comprehensive ranges of home appliances.  Headquartered in Southern China, Midea commands annual sales of around $22bn, has over 100,000 employees and operations in more than 200 countries.

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