Behind Future Habitats stands a team of tech geeks who love what they do and invest heavily in Research and Development. Having been around since 2001, Mark and Piera Fenech have built an impressive portfolio of skills and services that are designed to turn houses into homes, commercial entities into efficient operations. Design and Build had an in depth conversation with Piera Fenech, Managing Director at Future Habitats, on what enabled them to become such industry stalwarts within just two decades.
an interview with Piera Fenech, Managing Director; Future Habitats
Piera Fenech exudes confidence, passion, integrity and humility. She makes it very clear that she is uncompromising when it comes to adherence to strong moral, ethical principles and values.
The idea was to have a home controlled by software – intelligent lighting design, electrical wiring devices, audio & video distribution and security. But the young couple had donned their strategy thinking cap from their very start. A lot of research went into understanding what the local provision of lighting already was, and the idea was to venture into a largely untapped area of their competence and interest – their closest competitors in fact were audio visual service providers – naturally over the years this has changed and evolved.
Piera’s pragmatic approach comes across very clearly when explaining the choice of name. Naturally, there had to be a connection with the services and products they were about to launch but it also was tied into the domain name available for the company’s website! Piera explained that this was vital because “Facebook and other social media channels were not so available at the time, and the website was our primary link to our potential customer base.”
First Steps
Piera laughs and explains that their first project saw her parents being their guinea pigs. “Having bought a new villa, I had convinced them to invest in a home automation system,” she explained. Convincing her tech savvy father was the easy part. The implementation was a different matter altogether.
Future Habitats carries a diverse range of brands for lighting, AV and home automation. photo: the Legrand Switches showcase section
Product Portfolio
Piera admits that they underestimated the electrical part of the implementation. Whilst software and network integration was their area of expertise, they soon realised that they lacked the knowledge and experience required when it comes to the electrical part. That is when Mark’s sister, an electrical engineer stepped in. Piera tells us that “we had understood from the start that having in-house knowledge and control over the implementation of breakthrough technologies was vital to sustain our values and objectives.” And as the company grew over the years, they were able to employ electrical engineers to fully complement the solutions they were offering.
Evolution
Piera explains that initially Future Habitats focused on residential projects and their involvement in large commercial projects progressed alongside their accumulation of experience and market share. The team is now made up of fifteen employees, including Mark and Piera. When it comes to large commercial projects, Mark’s unparalleled technical expertise puts him on the front line as it is inevitable that clients want his presence on site.
Luckily, Future Habitats have built a competent and compatible team which enables a client to have peace of mind when Mark is not able to be present. Piera goes on to explain that “the team isn’t just about having the qualifications but is also chosen as a means of integrating seamlessly into the client’s culture. Every person needs to be on the same wave length when it comes to thirst for knowledge and researching new products and solutions.” Piera is proud of the fact that people are very much aware of how well the team knows the products they sell and this comes across on various social media sites, where Future Habitats is regularly recommended for this reason.
Sometimes new technology ‘works’, sometimes it doesn’t. If it is the latter case, then we do not offer it
She explains that the company’s success is derived from the fact that they listen to what customers want, providing them with a solution that they actually need. Spending time with clients beyond the purchasing moment might be seen as a time waster by many firms but Piera is adamant that this is an investment.
Research & Development
The Future Habitats website boldly asserts its heavy investment in Research and Development. This is affirmed by Piera who feels that “the company devotes its energies into R&D a bit more than we perhaps ought to.” She explains that this is Mark and his team’s area of responsibility. Apart from regular attendance at industry fairs and exhibitions, the team buy a number of products or “toys”, as they call them, which are regularly delivered to their offices. “The best way of identifying what is good for the local market is by installing the product and testing it out in depth. Sometimes new technology ‘works’, sometimes it doesn’t. If it is the latter case, then we do not offer it. The last thing the company wants is a client calling to say that a solution sold to them does not work.” This approach gives Future Habitats the added advantage of having more knowledge on what is on the market and where the competition is erring.
I will not push a product which I wouldn’t want to have in my own home or office
The BTcino HomeTouch’s interface puts at the fingertips of its users simple and immediate control over: Lighting; Rolling shutter automation; Temperature control; a multi-room Audio sound system; Burglar alarm; a range of multi-room home moods and scenarios.
BTcino is one of the several prestigious brands exclusively represented in Malta by Future Habitats, and is part of the Legrand Group.
BTcino is one of the several prestigious brands exclusively represented in Malta by Future Habitats, and is part of the Legrand Group.
This is where excellence comes in. When products such as home automation systems are being integrated, the in-depth knowledge will enable the features available to be exploited to their maximum. Future Habitats have built a strong reputation for this, and whether it is hotel management systems, room billing or energy metering, the team has been able to reach heights which competition has not.
Knowing your Client
Simply and clearly put, the Maltese client is a bargain-hunter aficionado of technology. “They do their own research, and we find that at times they are better versed with the product than some of our competitors’ sales persons are,” she exclaims. Piera is quick to point out that this is not the case at Future Habitats.
In a recently published statement, Future Habitats claimed to care about the client’s money as if it was their own. Since their products are not on the lower rungs of the cost ladder, it begs the question of how one gauges this when finishing a project. Piera emphatically states that “caring about the client’s money does not necessarily mean offering the cheapest solution or product. To quote Benjamin Franklin, ‘The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten’. ”
Experience has taught Piera that cheaper products will in the longer run cause problems. “Apart from the lower quality and lack of standards in place, these products will invariably stop being produced after a short while,” she explained.
Future Habitats will not abuse of the client’s lack of knowledge to oversell a solution to deepen their pockets in the process. Future Habitats sells what the client needs, not what is commercially and operationally most effective to push. Piera explains that the latter would be very easy for them to do, especially if it is a client investing in his first home automation system. “The last thing Future Habitats wants is a client who purchases a system which is not compatible with their lifestyle – so that is why the teams takes time to understand what the client likes, what kind of setup – a large villa versus a small apartment we’d be working with, what the final objective of the project is intended to be.”
The Elektrak power distribution and control busbar, practically invisible to the end user, “provides a flexible, easy to install system which lowers one’s installation costs“
Despite having jokingly defined their very first client – her parents – as guinea pigs, Piera underlines that their clients are anything but. “Each product recommended would have been personally tried and tested by the team; irrespective of whether it is of a brand which the company would have worked with for a number of years, or new products encompassing break-through technologies”. Piera is also very proud of the fact that “the feedback we give to the brands we represent quite often prompts product enhancement at manufacturing level.”
Regardless of profitability, if I am not confident in the product’s quality and design, I will not go for it. I have to be in love with the product
Product Portfolio
Future Habitats have an impressive portfolio of products and services – building management systems, home automation, light design, electrical wiring devices, audio & video distribution, security and door entry systems, as well as an engorged range of lights, fittings and supplies.
The latest product that has set the local market on fire is the Elektrak power distribution and control busbar, which is installed underneath raised flooring, typically implemented in the Banking and iGaming sectors. “This product is the epitome of innovation – it is not about aesthetics, as it is practically invisible to the end user, but it is about providing a flexible, easy to install system which lowers one’s installation costs to a point which always surprises our customers’ engineers,” she smilingly explained.
Another product that Future Habitats is launching soon is a mobile application which gives an engineer complete control of the installed system from his phone. This is a useful feature for commercial setups which require little or no down time and energy metering. In terms of home automation, voice control is the next big thing. Piera is proud to say that they are the leaders in the field, being the first local company to implement these multiple award-winning solutions.
Complete control of home and commercial automation solutions will now be made available by Future Habitats to its customers.
Differentiating Factor
The business provides different challenges every day. So what drives Piera? “It is the love for the products that we share from our portfolio.” she explained, hastening to add “I will not push a product which I wouldn’t want to have in my own home or office!”
The Future Habitats team is trained to find solutions, to think outside of the box. If something doesn’t work then one has to look at other ways. The fact that the management team has a strong background in programming enables the company to quickly analyse problems and identifying the least complex solution – Rather than spending two hours going round in circles, they spend fifteen minutes to get to a direct solution. “This results in less complexities, less materials used, less costly time spent on the job,” Piera said.
A company which has passion, knowledge, quality and integrity as its primary characteristics is a recipe for success. For nearly two decades Future Habitats has not only been on the forefront of the industry but has always been unfaltering in keeping its values of providing the most feasible and cost-effective means of managing and enhancing our lifestyle with greater comfort. Nowadays, people love home technology and the benefits it gifts its users with. “What’s not to love about it, when it makes life so much more pleasant?” Piera asks. We couldn’t agree more.
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