Torque Magazine collects viewpoints in this special feature, ‘taking stock’ of the 2020s and assessing the changing needs and priorities of the fastener industry…
Disruption is nothing new, neither are economic challenges, but it’s not a wild hypothesis to accuse the 2020s of being a decade of disruption like few others in living memory. With disruption comes a reassessment of priorities. Is your current strategy still suitable? After thinking on the fly reacting to challenges in the day-to-day, what’s the bigger picture and future direction you need to be mindful of?
That was the premise of this special, one-off feature. We asked various figures in the fastener industry for their views at this halfway point in a disrupted decade. How did they view the past five or so years of disruption? What takeaways and trends had they spotted? And, with half of the decade left, what will the next five years have in store?
Re-examining a reshaped market
We’ve been lucky enough to get a variety of voices take part in this special feature. From Europe and the UK, from long established players to up-and-coming new businesses, from generational family companies to privately funded businesses of many years. Of course, most of the challenges facing fastener and fixing businesses are not local, and our pundits pick out themes that are almost universal considerations for the market globally – succession, resilience, a shift in supply chains and others were among those picked out by the pundits.
There’s plenty of speculation and predictions within these pages too, from those who are well placed to make these kind of speculative forecasts. The following pages also include some stories of newer businesses who’ve had the fortune/misfortune (delete as applicable) to establish themselves in this challenging economy.
Setting course for the way ahead
Covid, Brexit (for our UK readers), supply chain disruption, container prices, CBAM… and that’s without the nascent introduction of artificial intelligence (AI) which is currently being integrated within businesses in diverse departments from marketing to the warehouse. All these issues and more are under examination in this feature.
All that remains is for us to thank the top executives from the industry who took the time to share their assessments and predictions on this decade of disruption.
Expert opinions:
Münker Michael, Head of Distribution & Retail, GESIPA
More to follow...
And our door remains open – if you haven't yet got involved in this special feature and want to have your say, let us know at jonathon@torqueexpo.com.
Stay tuned for more of these expert opinions, or read the whole thing in our January-February 2026 magazine. Don't subscribe? You can fix that here.
