Danish companies selling goods of a particularly high quality and price have been making a killing abroad, according to a new report from the Danish confederation of industry, Dansk Industri (DI).

The report (here in Danish) showed that over 40 percent of Denmark’s export income is generated by goods that are of such a quality that Danish companies can charge at least 15 percent more than their competition abroad.

“It really underscores that Danish companies are so good at producing quality that they often beat their competition abroad,” said Kent Damsgaard, the deputy head of DI.

“And that’s even though the competition can often offer a considerably cheaper price on their goods.”

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Fourth in EU
According to DI’s calculations, the value of Denmark’s exports of up-market products is 220 billion kroner annually – which puts Denmark fourth in the EU. Only Ireland, the UK and Luxembourg perform better.

The up-market goods tend to combine high-quality, brand, design and technology, often providing flexible and customer-tailored solutions that customers are willing to pay extra for. Damsgaard contends that the results are promising at a time when international competition is increasingly fierce.

“The wages in Denmark are high compared to many other countries, so it’s difficult for Danish companies to succeed in the international market if only the price was focused on,” said Damsgaard.

“Historically, Denmark and Danish companies have done well in producing quality and we need to continue doing so. But we must also be aware that price will always be an important parameter and costs for Danish companies can’t become too high compared to abroad.”