MCL – 14 years’ service to leading manufacturers

MCL Unterhaltungselektronik Service GesmbH was founded in 1995 as the result of a management buyout from major manufacturers Nokia and Hitachi. The managing partners at the time – Manfred Strasser, Christian Opravic and Leo Pislcajt – took their own initials to form the acronymic company name. The three of them were not only able to rely on their many years of experience of repairing products from these two leading manufacturers but also inherited most of the essential repair infrastructure and facilities.

Since MCL was founded, the now 18-strong full-time workforce has been based in the company’s 800m² premises at No. 19 Deutschstrasse in Vienna’s 23rd district. This is an address which is also well known to many private customers, as MCL still has a very high footfall for out-of-warranty repairs. This share of repair work alone brings in roughly 30 percent of the company’s total turnover.

Following Christian Opravic’s departure from the company, Manfred Strasser and Leo Pislcajt carried on as joint operational managing directors. Co-owner Strasser can look back over many years of working in customer service and he is convinced that service and repair are of great importance, even in these times of crisis: ”Unlike the mobile phone sector where customers literally scrap their phones after a maximum of two years, they are prepared to have their televisions, stereos and DVD players repaired at their own expense once the warranty has expired. When market sales figures fall, there is a corresponding rise in repairs, particularly in the out-of-warranty sector. If you can’t afford or have no inclination to purchase a new appliance, you’re not going to dispense with the old one.”

In addition, MCL-Service GmbH is an active player and joint shareholder in Electronic Service Cooperation GmbH (ESECO), a consortium of some thirteen medium-sized repair companies which offers repair services to European electronics firms throughout Austria. ”Because of our geographic position in the south of Vienna and our easy accessibility by road, we are the largest service provider in ESECO,” says Strasser, who often mans reception himself where he cheerfully serves sometimes overwrought customers. ”Our location is also the reason why we have been able very quickly to acquire further leading manufacturers as customers outside this consortium.”
So MCL’s customer base today reads like a Who’s Who of brown goods manufacturers. It includes Samsung, Sharp, Yamaha, Grundig, Hitachi, JVC and Daewoo, to mention just a few. Within the retail landscape in the southern part of Vienna and in neighbouring Lower Austria, MCL has long since built up a reputation for reliable customer service. The Media Markt and Saturn Group as well as Cosmos, Hartlauer and Niedermeyer are all among the retail giants who between them send a total of 25,000 customer appliances to MCL for repair every year.

In early January of this year, MCL was acquired by Gebrüder Weiss. On 16 January, the relevant contracts were signed between the former and new owners. This extends Gebrüder Weiss’ commitment to the service area in the shape of its business unit tectraxx. Whereas its repair service has so far been limited to mobile telephones and satellite receivers, the acquisition of MCL will now enable tectraxx to extend its expertise into brown goods.

(standing v.l.n.r.): Hr. Pislcajt (MCL), Hr. Strasser (MCL), Hr. W. Senger-Weiss (Gebrüder Weiss),
Hr. W. Fischer (tectraxx), Hr. W. Niessner (Gebrüder Weiss)
(v.l.n.r.): Fr. Pislcajt (MCL), Fr. Strasser (MCL), Fr. B. Schrotzhammer (Gebrüder Weiss)