1. food and drink
2. beverages
3. alcoholic beverages
4. cocktails and beer

Beer production
The Croatian beer industry
is a significant exporter
generating a surplus of
around €10 million
Ivan Miloloža
In the area where Munja is
located many companies operated; now there are none. It
should not have happened.
Virovitica-Podravina county
entrepreneurs
The county enhancing the
picture of trade in goods and
services
ANALYSIS
INTERVIEW
ENTREPRENEURS SUCCESS
PAGES 2-3
PAGE 4
PAGE 5
2010
Croatian Business & Finance Weekly
Established in 1953
Monday / 30th May / 2011
Year IV / No 0155
www.privredni.hr
S U P P O R T E D
B Y
T H E
pvinternational
pv
international
C R O A T I A N
C H A M B E R
O F
E C O N O M Y
15TH NATIONAL CONSULTATION ON ECONOMY AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP
How to achieve
ethical business
The main problems for entrepreneurs remain illiquidity and payment
Krešimir Sočković
lliquidity and mutual non-payment remain the biggest problems of entrepreneurs. As they
themselves revealed at the National Consultation on Economy and
Entrepreneurship, held recently,
before the crisis only 30% of entrepreneurs ‘lied’ to their business
partners about when they intended
to pay for delivered goods. Now,
90% do that, according to entrepreneurs. They all agree creditors
need to be protected, but no one
is sure how to do it. The Minister
of Economy, Labour and Entrepreneurship, Đuro Popijač, evaluates that for the past several years
institutional and financial support
for entrepreneurs significantly increased, whereas subsidies were
changed and adjusted parallel to
reforms in institutions. The most
recent changes, however, will acclimatise all to the situation that
can be expected within the EU.
Popijač opines that according to
state sources almost €95.9 million of non-repayable funds were
invested into the infrastructure of
325 entrepreneurial zones. Over
2,500 entrepreneurs now work in
these zones with over 42,000 employees, and the value of the allo-
I
cated state property exceeds €0.14
billion, says Popijač. Through
guarantees worth €123.29 million,
it was possible to secure €0.23
million of credit, and investment
worth over €0.41 billion. Small
and medium sized enterprises as
well as craft companies now employ 580,000 workers or 67% of
total number of employees, and
they account for 45% of Croatian
exports.
Strengthen the position of
creditors
Despite the favourable figures,
many problems still persist,
mainly regarding illiquidity
and non-payment. The number
of short-term blocked accounts
is in decline, but there are still
a vast number of overdue debts
exceeding one year. He stated
the need to strengthen the position of creditors and increase
their protection, secure rapid
forced settlements using all
means, including bankruptcy
and distrait. He also mentioned
that payment deadlines of public
companies have been considerably shortened, amounting to
42 days, which is half the length
compared with last year. How-
ever, the problem is that certain
contractors of large-sized works
for state companies still do not
pay their subcontractors. By
freezing the size of the budget
to two years, the sum actually
saved was €1.37 billion, which
must be found in the redistribution of funds amongst the budget
items, and the Operational Plan
of Subsidies secured €54.8 million for entrepreneurs, added the
Minister of Economy. Regarding the lack of business ethics,
the solution cannot be found in
new laws which will demand
creditor protection. “Creative”
entrepreneurs will always exist, says Popijač. Laws must be
implemented. Time-consuming
payment processes open the possibility of speculation and so
we need to work on changing
our mentality. We need honest,
smart and moral business people, and we must get rid of other models, concludes Popijač.
The two-day consultation also
included a discussion on the
development of SME’s, entrepreneurial infrastructure, EU accession and challenges as well as
possibilities awaiting small and
medium-sized entrepreneurs on
this market.
2
Privredni vjesnik
Year IV No 0155
ALEN RANILOVIĆ, VIPNET BUSINESS CUSTOMERS
MARKETING DIRECTOR
Operating in the
clouds
Analysts are anticipating the global cloud
computing market value growth of $40
billion over the next three years
e have recently been
witnessing trends constantly imposed by the
telecommunications and information technology significantly
impacting on the concept of modern business operations. Cloud
computing is a concept of online
management where the term
cloud is used as a metaphor for
the Internet, which a third party
uses as a medium for the service
of hosting on its internet domains
for data and software access,
without the need for investment
into IT infrastructure. The most
in demand Vipnet service and
the first to have been presented
on the market is the Vip vehicle tracking system. It includes
a system of vehicle fleet tracking that allows vehicle owners
to track their vehicles on a map,
monitor vehicle use statistics,
total distance covered, duration
of the journey, maximum speed,
stops and use of vehicles out of
the allowed time. It provides a
detailed insight into the activities
of drivers as they are being monitored by a cloud.
In addition, these services can be
applied in order to abide by legal
rules and regulations. Companies
that do not monitor employee
working hours or do it in an inadequate way, are breaching the
law and can face considerable
fines; the Vip time management
service advantage is a simple and
easy way to record working hours
and attendance at work, whilst
Privredni vjesnik
Kačićeva 9
10000 Zagreb
+385 1 5600020
[email protected]
www.privredni-vjesnik.hr/
subscription
beer consumption per capita in Croatia
BEER PRODUCTION
THE CRISIS SL
The Croatian beer industry is a significant exporter generatin
Krešimir Sočković
W
IMPRESSUM:
( 73.8 litres per year
ccording to statistics,
each year each Croatian
drinks as much beer as
they weigh. Even though the
trend is negative in these critical times (and everyone has lost
weight and tightened their belts),
Croatians still consume an average 73.8 litres of beer per capita.
The Croatian market is mainly
dominated by the big players.
The brewery Zagrebačka pivovara holds 40% of the market
and its strongest brand Ožujsko
pivo is predominantly consumed by Croatian beer-lovers,
a beverage produced by the partial fermentation of the water
extract of malted barley with
added hops. The second market
player, with a 25% share is the
brewery Karlovačka pivovara
with their strongest beer brand
Karlovačko pivo. Pan beer from
the Carlsberg brewery in Koprivnica is the third Croatian
beer brand with a market share
of 17%. Other significant players on the market include the
brewery Daruvarska pivovara
with their well-known brand
Staročeško beer, the breweries
Osječka pivovara and Buzetska
pivovara with Favorit – the leading beer in the Istrian market.
The recession took its toll in
Split, where the brewery, owned
by the Slovenian Laško pivovarna, shut down production.
A
manual data entering is history.
Internet access and a card reader
satisfy all the legal requirements
for monitoring attendance without additional investment and
it enables companies operating
over several locations to monitor
employee arrivals and departures
from work much more easily.
Several analysts anticipate the
growth of cloud computing on
a global level to about $40 billion over the next three years.
There is some scepticism among
experts with respect to business
operating beyond the physical
borders of companies, nevertheless there will be a variety of
services, interests and requests
for innovative technology which
enables time and money saving. One of the consequences of
cloud computing will be greater
emphasis on services and lesser
on hardware and the accompanying technology, which bring into
focus business operations.
FOR PUBLISHER
Nikola Baučić
+385 1 4846661
[email protected]
IMC MANAGER
Dea Olup
+385 1 5600028
[email protected]
EDITOR IN CHIEF
Darko Buković
+385 1 5600003
[email protected]
TRANSLATION
Lučana Banek
[email protected]
Mirjana Cibulka
[email protected]
EXECUTIVE EDITORS
Andrea Marić
[email protected]
Vesna Antonić
[email protected]
INTERNATIONAL OPERATIONS
Ray Fletcher
[email protected]
Room for small players
There are many other Croatian
small-sized breweries, such
as Velebitska pivovara, which
annually produces between
10,000 and 15,000 litres, or
micro-breweries, for example
Medvedgrad, which produces and
sells beer exclusively in its pub.
Combined together, they produce
under 1% of beer per year or
less than Zagrebačka pivovara
produces in one day. However,
potential exists since these
small breweries are
very
3
( 513,400 hectolitres
exported last year worth $36.6 million
LOWED EXPORT GROWTH
ng a surplus of around €10 million
flexible and new ones appear
occasionally.
In 2009, the beer market registered
a decrease of 6.5% and this trend
has continued. According to data
provided by the Group of Beer,
Malt and Hop Producers of the
Croatian Chamber of Economy,
the market declined by a further
5.8% in 2010. However, this year
the trend is ticking up. During
the first four months of this year
sales increased by 3.2% on a
year-on-year basis. If the positive
trend maintained until the end
of the year, which depends on
weather conditions and the tourist
season, this year might mark
an upturn for the beer market.
Pero Ivanković, president of the
Group of Beer, Malt and Hop
Producers of the CCE points out
the weather as the constant factor
in the brewery business. “When
we look at the changes in
the market during the past
several years, we see they
were significantly affected
by the weather. This
year’s growth of 3.2%
indicated the downward
trend has stopped, and
we are slowly exiting
the recession. However,
beautiful
weather
greatly
influences
this trend,” points out
Ivanković.
This is supported by the
fact that the best year
for the beer industry
in Croatia was 2003,
when 3.87 million
hectolitres of beer were
consumed, and this was
also a very warm year.
A good tourist season
is anticipated. If the
weather serves us well
and the trend continues,
we can anticipate a 3% rise
compared with last year, adds
Ivanković.
We drink too little
For the past several years
breweries have been worried by
the decrease in consumption of
their products. In 2007, 86.3 litres
of beer was consumed per person.
A year later the consumption
decreased to 82.6 litres, only to
plummet to 77.8 litres in 2009.
Last year, 73.8 litres of beer were
consumed per capita.
Notwithstanding the fall in
consumption,
breweries,
especially the large ones, are
pleased with their position since
they either preserved their share
or increased it. The smallest of the
three biggest breweries, Carlsberg
Croatia, had a 17.02% share of the
beer market last year, compared
with 2009 which they finished
with a 16.3% share. According
to Carlsberg, there are several
reasons behind the positive trend.
Firstly, consumers participate
in the activities of brands and
secondly, their demands are
taken into consideration. One
such example is the introduction
of a new brand, Zlatni Pan.
Together with 600 Croatian beer
experts, the company developed
a new Croatian beer. In order to
attract new customers, Croatian
breweries have started to accept
western trends, beer with a lower
percentage of alcohol, alcoholfree beer or flavoured beer.
Fruity flavours and cider
Carlsberg point out that
the second reason behind
their growing share concerns
innovation. For example, a new
category was created for the
local market with the launch
of Somersby cider. This year
they will start the production of
Holsten, German beer brand,
which will be offered in a
PET two-litre bottle. At the
beginning of the year, consumers
participated in the selection
of a new flavour of Somersby,
selecting from pear, cranberry
and elderberry. They selected
pear. They also launched a new
advertising campaign for the
strongest brand, Pan. This year
they anticipate no great changes
regarding
the
consumption
figures. Karlovačka pivovara is
also introducing new products,
but above all they are extremely
satisfied with the gold medal for
their strongest ‘weapon’ on the
market – Karlovačko beer. At the
international competition Monde
Selection in Brussels they won a
gold medal. They intend to build
their position on the market with
their premium beer Heineken
and other brands, including the
new Karlovačko Radler beer.
Radler is a combination of lager
(2% alcohol) and refreshing nonalcoholic lemon juice. At the
same time Zagrebačka pivovara
launched its Ožujsko lemon beer,
a low-alcohol beer and lemon
juice.
High level of exports
The Croatian beer industry is a big exporter. During the past five years,
exports amounted to between $32 million and $42 million, and imports between $23 million and $36 million. A considerable surplus was
achieved, and only 2007 was marked by a deficit in the trade balance,
when beer was exported with a value of $32.5 million and imported by
$3.6 million more.
In 2006, 544,380 hectolitres of beer, valued at $32.6 million was exported, whilst 461,050 hectolitres or $23.8 million was imported. In
2008, 575,840 hectolitres of beer ($42.4 million) was exported, and
405,110 hectolitres were imported, achieving a surplus of $12.2 million. A year later the surplus totalled $15.7 million with even less beer
being exported - 538,510 hectolitres worth $40.6 million. Last year ended with a surplus of $13.5 million, with 513,400 hectolitres of exports,
valued at $36.6 million.
4
INTERVIEW
Privredni vjesnik
Pri
Year IV No 0155
Yea
“There is no time wasting in industry.
In other countries things are moving faster
”
IVAN MILOLOŽA, DIRECTOR AND MAJORITY OWNER OF MUNJA
The difficulties of market return
In the area where Munja is located there used to be many production and similar companies. Now there are
none. It should not have happened.
Igor Vukić
e filed a lawsuit in Russia against the powerful
Oleg Deripaska and we
won after three years. Proceedings and appeals in Russia have
five instances, whilst in Croatia
there are two. Nevertheless, we
managed to win the lawsuit and
receive $5 million in damages.
In Croatia we have filed lawsuits against several state companies and they still have not
been concluded after 10 or 15
years. Ivan Miloloža, Director
and Majority Owner used such
examples to illustrate the business environment in Croatia. He is
President of Croatian Employers
Association Council and spoke with Privredni vjesnik about
the situation in industry and the
broader economic and political
environment. Miloloža strongly
supports reforms that would be
an incentive to significantly restructure the neglected public
administration and modernise
ossified working and legal relationships as well as an incentive
increase the dynamics of society
overall.
The government has presented
a programme for economic
recovery and this is satisfactory,
yet this programme is being
implemented rather slowly. I
am aware of the fact that it is
not easy to achieve results in a
short period of time, since a lot
has happened over the last 15
years. Nevertheless, I believe
reforms could be implemented
more quickly. There is no time
to waste in industry. The current
situation is highly chaotic,
whilst in other countries things
are changing for the better and
a way towards recovery has
already been found.
W
What have other countries done
to recover from the crisis? What
should Croatia have done?
It is difficult to compare countries
with
different
traditions.
Nevertheless some have been
braver in making some serious
moves. Several countries, such
as Hungary and Serbia, have put
more effort into giving greater
impetus to the real sector. Croatia
is currently paying its dues for
indecisiveness. We have a legacy
of socialism, we have too much
tolerance of laziness and, in
addition, we have piled up many
new transitional problems. It
looks as if the whole of society
has fallen into lethargy and has
been waiting for someone else
to solve the problems. No one is
going to do this other than us, not
even the European Union.
How has all this impacted on
the industrial sector?
In the area where Munja is
located, there used to be dozens
of production and similar
companies. Now there are none.
It should not have happened.
People also anticipated a similar
future for us, but we managed to
survive. We managed to recover
from two strong blows – after the
gas crisis there was the global
financial crisis. The gas crisis
caused us considerable damage.
The funds we retained and
intended to use for the relocation
of our factory had to be used for
the restoration of our plant. We
did not receive any help except
for HBOR funds.
How did you manage to survive
the financial crisis?
We focused on exports. We are
lucky to have a competitive
product of high quality and
also that our business partners
abroad were willing to wait for
us until we managed to recover.
We were not able to produce
anything for about 18 months.
We expended a lot of effort on
convincing our partners that we
would continue with production.
We extended our sales in former
Yugoslav countries, Russia and
Ukraine.
Did you have to talk to your
business partners in person
and explain the situation your
company was in?
Market return is far more difficult
than market penetration. I spent
months travelling through all European countries. It took a long
time to convince our partners that
we would succeed in overcoming
all difficulties. When you sell
someone a storage battery, you
must commit to be on the market
for at least two years, at least until
the warranty expires. This is one
of the reasons that should make
you work incessantly. I strongly
hope my efforts will bear fruit
also in Croatia.
www.privredni.hr
Business & Finance Weekly
5
VIROVITICA-PODRAVINA COUNTY ENTREPRENEURS
The county enhancing the picture
of trade in goods and services
The County could become one of the leading counties in terms of positive export-import trends and profitability
The share of food products in exports is the highest with the value
of food products in 2010 being
over $50 million (39% of County
exports), followed by furniture
and wood products ($28 million
or 24.3% of exports) and tobacco
($26 million or 19% of total exports).
Igor Vukić
irovitica-Podravina County has made a considerable impact on the total
trade of goods and services in the
Croatian economy with a positive
result of $83.8 million in 2010.
Exports totalled $134 million,
whilst imports came in at $50.2
million. Out of the public spotlight, Virovitica County is top of
the list of five Counties (Vukovar, Varaždin, Požega and Sisak
County) which are enhancing the
overall export-import picture.
According to the export-import
ratio, Virovitica County is certainly the leading county. With
an $83.8 million trade balance,
Virovitica is sixth, preceded by
Istria, Varaždin, Sisak, Vukovar
and Krapina. Exports results are
below those for 2006 when the
value of exports was over $140
million. 2007 and 2008 saw even
higher figures of $158 million and
$172 million; nevertheless, after
the plunge due to the crisis, there
is an upward trend to exports
V
once again. Virovitica-Podravina
County also holds supremacy
with respect to gross profits from
its entrepreneurs in 2010 with an
index of 238 over 2009. It is followed by Vukovar-Srijem County
at 226.3 with the Croatian average
standing at 73.5.
According to Vukovar County
Chamber data, investment in
processing, food and the wood
industries generated largest profits. The share of the processing
industry in total entrepreneurial
revenue was 48.3%, trade 21.8%
and agriculture 14%.
COMPUTER CONTROL SYSTEMS
The downside to success
The best exports results were
achieved by Tvin, an Ikea supplier for many years, and in
wood processing Pan Parket
from Čačinci, Ciprijanović, Paneli Matasić, INPO from Slatina
as well as small craft businesses
such as Hrastica from Pitomača
which is currently penetrating
the international market with its
modern design of furniture.
Viro, Hrvatski duhani, wine producers and agricultural products
producers from PP Orahovica
hold supremacy in agriculture.
In addition, there is Jan Spider,
the largest regional manufacturer of high quality herbs. In the
processing industry there are RS
metals, metal casting producers,
brick and construction material producers, builders such as
Croming and several others. The
Vidra Regional Development
agency has this year been nominated as the best agency in this
category in Croatia.
The downside to success can be
illustrated by data indicating that
results were accompanied by
pressure to reduce expenditure
by 4.1% over 2009. Average salaries, which were already lower
than the Croatian average, were
additionally lowered by 3.4%
(to an average of €433). The crisis accounted for a steep drop in
long-term asset investment of
38%.Virovitica
entrepreneurs
quickly adjusted to the crisis, reducing their unsettled liabilities
by 16.7%. The number of insolvent companies increased from
254 to 295. Nevertheless, with
respect to positive export-import
trends and growth, the economy
of Vukovar-Podravina County
could again see the end of 2011
as one of the Croatian leaders.
CONSUMER PROTECTION
From trams to wind turbines The price of diapers
In conjunction with the international assembly MIPRO,
dedicated to information and
communication
technology,
electronics and microelectronics, Končar ICT Day was held
for the first time in Opatija.
Regarding energy, the first computer control system was used in
the hydro-power plant Varaždin in
1984. Digital technology in industrial plants was applied in the ironwork Zenica in 1984, in transport
this company developed a train
heat transformer for diesel electric
locomotives in 1994 and initiated
the modernisation of Bulgarian
locomotives in 1999. Projects by
Končar are based on personal research, development and production and above all their application in systems and plants, which
the company delivers based on the
turnkey principle of individuality,
points out Renata Godek, Marketing and Information Director at
Končar-Elektroindustrija.
The
companies
KončarElektronika
i
informatika,
Končar-Inženjering za energetiku
i transport and Končar-Institut
za elektrotehniku are developing computer control systems for
hydro-power plants, trams, trains
and wind turbines. They are also
developing dispatch centres, local and remote control systems
in plants for production, transfer
and distribution of electricity,
IT systems for corporations and
the public sector, IT equipment,
devices and systems for measuring, protection and monitoring.
(B.O.)
From May 6 of this year, all
stores over 50 m2 must state
prices for units of measure –
kilogram, litre, metre, square
or cubic metre - of the product
or other quantity unit which
is used or includes VAT. This
is due to the Regulation on the
method of stating retail price and
price of the measure unit of products and services, which has recently entered into force and derives from obligations under the
Act on Consumer Protection. The
price of uniform products must
be stated in
the same
units
of
measure.
Therefore,
each package of children’s diapers will also contain the price of
one diaper. What will be new is
that the price must be stated on
food (for humans and animals),
detergents, children’s diapers,
paint and polish, care products,
products for washing face, body,
hair, teeth and mouth.
It will not be necessary to state
the price of the unit of measure
for products weighing under 50
grams or 50 millilitres, gift packages or sets, discount products,
products on sale, treats for pets,
cakes, alcohol beverages
in packages up to 100
millilitres, frozen desserts up to 50 millilitres
as well as fruit and vegetables sold per piece or in
bundles. (K.S.)
6
Privredni vjesnik
Year IV No 0155
CROATIAN FOREIGN CURRENCY MARKET
Currency
AUD
CAD
JPY
CHF
GBP
USD
EUR
Source: HNB
EUR
Kuna exchange mid-rate
7.45
5,584564
5,352275
6,459547
6,104335
8,60426
5,234006
7,437522
Public debt at 58.8%of GDP
The consolidated general state
debt increased due to government
guarantees and HBOR debt and
totalled €26.90 billion or 58.8%
of GDP at the end of 2010. Public debt increased 8.4% over a one
year period. Government guarantees stood at €6.09 billion (15.4%
up over 2009). Public debt could
see an increase of €1.5 billion in
guarantees to shipyards, which the
government decided to transfer
to public debt during
the process of
restructuring
the shipbuilding industry.
Jadranka Boban Pejić
‘entrepreneur of the year’
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
awarded Jadranka Boban Pejić,
the Director and Owner of the
company Biovega, with the Entrepreneur of the year award.
The results of the competition
were announced at the ceremony
‘EBRD Women in business’ held
in Kazakhstan. The Croatian entrepreneur is the director of a
company with 130 employees,
exporting and distributing ecological products.
Conferences generated
€4.88 million
1153 business conferences were
held in the first quarter of 2011
in Croatia, generating a turnover of €4.88 million, according
to Croatian Bureau of Statistics.
Conferences hosted 81,860 participants, of which 90.7% were
local. The average duration of
conferences was two days. 505
conferences with overnight stays
generated profits of €3.55 million or 72.8%, whilst 648 conferences without overnight stays
generated profits of €1.33 million (27.2%).
5.3
25.5.
26.5.
27.5.
28.5.
CHF
6.15
7.44
5.30
6.10
7.43
5.28
6.05
7.42
5.26
6.00
7.41
5.24
5.95
7.40
24.5.
WEEK MAY 28, 2011
::: news
USD
5.22
24.5.
25.5.
26.5.
27.5.
28.5.
5.90
24.5.
25.5.
26.5.
27.5.
28.5.
Entrepreneurs results in 2010
€0.23 billion
nett loss
Exports up 11.5%, imports down 8.9% in 2010
ecords covering some
96,758
entrepreneurs
as well as other reports
and documentation submitted in
compliance with the Labour law
R
2010 compared with €0.33 billion nett profit in 2009, according
to data presented in annual financial reports. 55,541 entrepreneurs
generated profits of €3.86 bil-
In 2010 numbers
employed fell by 2.9%,
total revenue was down
2%, total expenditure fell
by 1.5 %, whilst profit
surged by 13.8% over
2009.
at the Register of annual financial
reports maintained by the Financial agency (Fina).
These show a nett loss of €0.23
billion (profits less losses) in
lion, whilst 41,217 entrepreneurs
showed losses of €4.09 billion.
Total revenue was €81.95 billion
and total expenditure was €81.34
billion.
In 2010, VAT-paying entrepreneurs exports to foreign markets
were €12.34 billion and imports
totalled €12.15 billion, creating
a trade surplus of €0.19 billion.
Entrepreneurs increased exports
by 11.5% and imports decreased
by 8.9% over 2009.
In 2010 numbers employed
fell by 2.9%, total revenue was
down 2%, total expenditure fell
by 1.5 %, whilst profit surged
by 13.8% over 2009. After-taxlosses soared by 33.6% and the
consolidated financial result was
a nett loss, whilst 2009 saw a nett
profit.
Entrepreneurs invested €5.18 billion in long-term assets in 2010,
25.2% down over 2009.
The average employee monthly
salary was €638.9, 0.2% up over
2009. (V.A.)
www.privredni.hr
Business & Finance Weekly
WE PRESENT
BAKINE PITE, ZAGREB
7
EFFECTUS MANAGEMENT & CONSULTING, ZADAR
An address by the sea
Help with permits and location
Little Red Riding Hood
back in trend
Pies are made based on grandmothers recipes,
without oil, preservatives and emulsifiers, with
pastry being hand-made
and-made baking of
grandmothers’
pies,
without
preservatives
and emulsifiers, with fresh and
natural ingredients (no oil, only
home made butter is used) is the
project which started three years
ago by a team of young educated
people The team includes 15 people, and the mixture of youth and
enthusiasm as well as the experience of the older generation creates an ideal combination, said
the director of the Zagreb company Bakine pite, Rene Gami, a
graduate economist.
We wished to eliminate the prejudices according to which home
made pies are unhealthy and
fatty as similar bakery products
are, stressed Gami. He pointed
out that they developed a new
business area of low-cost catering by gradually developing
processes and operational business. In other words, pies should
be ordered at least one day before. Free delivery is through a
branded vehicle and the delivery
woman is dressed as Little Red
Riding Hood. In this sense, ordering from the company Bakine
pite represents a new experience
of ordering food for celebrations,
graduations or birthdays.
H
Worst timing
They started in 2008, with one
venue when most people were
discouraged by the forthcoming
crisis. Their advantage was that
they needed only tables for rolling out the pastry, and baking
ovens. Otherwise, capital investment and large loans were not
required. Venues with red chequered table cloths sprouted one
by one across Zagreb. Each was
studied and designed carefully,
which made each future venue
even better. The attractive and high qual-
ity hand made products were the
main reason why they were approached by business partners offering a franchise. Soon two new
franchises will be opened in Zagreb under the name Štrukleraj.
The goal of Gami and his associates is to create more, similar
partnerships.
“Our greatest competitors are
big industrial systems, but we
will not give up on our vision of
an identifiable quality and real
competitive advantage,” opines
Gami. He added that their pies
are made from rolled pastry according to traditional grandmother recipes, directly before baking.
Furthermore, they constantly develop their existing products as
well as prepare new ones so that
customers may experience something completely new and different. (J.F.)
ffectus management &
consulting is a Zadar
company specialising in
management services, business
and strategy consulting, transportation and services closely
related to tourism. At its inception it was a small family business was a small business at its
inception but with a deep experience in tourism, with mobile
houses for tourists as its uniquely distinctive feature. Effectus
sells them on both the Croatian
and international markets, particularly in Slovenia. “Our services of business consulting and
management are mainly to the
Croatian market and we operate
along the Adriatic coast and in,
E
Between 600 and 800
units produced in the
Labin factory are sold
to Italian and European
markets
for example, Finvest Corp Hotels Njivice. We are anticipating projects which will include
some international companies”,
stated the director and the joint
owner of the company Zvonimir
Tudorović.
Their mobile homes from Address by the sea product range
is merely a fragment of this successful project. According to
Tudorović, they offer a complete
package and, in addition to mobile houses, they assist clients in
obtaining permits for transportation and placing at one of the
chosen locations on the Adriatic
coast, from Istria to Southern
Dalmatia.
A new approach to
Croatian tourism
The mobile homes are produced
by the company Shelbox. One of
its three factories is located in
Labin and they are of the highest quality amongst European
producers. Between 600 and 800
units produced in the Labin factory are sold to Italian and European markets, whilst between
200 and 300 are produced to
meet the needs of the Croatian
market. The demand for mobile homes is increasing with
changing standards and needs
of tourists. Many smaller, private camps also have an increasing demand for these products
and Effectus offers them also
the know-how essential for the
organisation and effective functioning of camps.
Tudorović pointed out that most
operating problems are related
to judicial problems as well as
communication and co-operation with local government.
Nevertheless, he mentioned a
positive example of a project of
the repositioning of the Njivice
camp with professional co-operation between Omišalj municipality and local government.
Their future plans are currently
focused on devising a new approach to Croatian tourism
through a different evaluation of
tourism areas, their uniqueness,
cultural heritage and natural variety. (S.P.)
8
Privredni vjesnik
Year IV No 0155
KUĆA SRETNOG ČOVJEKA, MIMICE (THE HOUSE OF THE HAPPY MAN, MIMICE)
Liqueurs and dessert wines a recipe for future happiness
9 vines of crljenak (a Zinfandel wine) have been found in a small vineyard and its revitalisation is under way
Jozo Vrdoljak
ikša Mimica is the owner
of a winery known as
Kuća sretnog čovjeka,
managed to revitalise a once important family farm where his
ancestors had exported wine to
Austria, Italy and France. He will
be remembered for the 9 vines
of crljenak have been
found in his vineyard.
Experts
from the Faculty
of
Agronomy
have proved that
this crljenak is in
fact zinfandel which
is probably the
most famous
wine varietal
in America.
N
That find was the inception of
the revitalisation of crljenak in
Croatia. Now, ten years later,
there are some 500,000 vines of
this varietal.
Kuća sretnog čovjeka has recently starting exporting three of its
wine varietals to Poland. “These
are currently minor quantities,
but due to high demand, we are
anticipating significant exports
into that market, given that wine
consumption in Poland is increasing”, Mimica pointed out.
Višnjak omiški
Kuća sretnog čovjeka is
also well-known for
its liqueur made
from the maraska
cherry – Višnjak
omiški,
of
which it produces about
20,000 bottles from a
traditional
recipe.
Mimica therefore planted a plantation of maraska cherries to increase the raw material base and
thus also production. The fact
that in the past, production of
višnjak was usually reserved for
women, is interesting and various traditional recipes have been
preserved.
The family owns about 5 hectares of vineyards with 25,000
vines and a plantation with 180
maraska cherry trees. The production capacity is achieved by
purchasing grapes and cherries
from regular subcontractors.
“We will continue planting
grapevines and maraska cherries
to get top quality raw materials. Our objective is top quality. We have encountered some
hurdles in achieving our goals
with greater speed, such as small
fragmented plots of land in the
area of Omiš and Mimice. We
are therefore planning to rent and
lease land from private owners”,
stated Mimica.
Co-operation with experts
Mimica places considerable hope
in crljenak which has significant
potential, whilst the quality of his
plavac was proved long ago.
Mimica has been co-operating
with experts from the Faculty of
Agronomy since the finding of
crljenak in his vineyard. They
are currently working on the revitalisation of an ancient varietal – Muscat rosé from which
they used to produce the famous
prosecco in the Omiš area many
years ago. Mimica is anticipating greater liqueur and dessert
wine production, as well as sparkling wines. “Sparkling wine
and prosecco production, along
with višnjak production, which I
am planning to take to a higher
level than wine production, will
be our speciality. I have already
sent samples to Ukraine, China
and Russia and as soon as I get
their feedback, I will commence
with more serious project development”, concluded Mimica.
Origins of the name Kuća sretnog čovjeka
The name of the Nikša Mimica craft may sound unusual to those unacquainted with Omiš
history. In the old part of the town, since the Renaissance, there was a famous “house of
a happy man” called thus after the inscription on the harbour lintel which in Latin (Gratias Ago Tibi Domine) sent a message to everyone: ‘I thank you, Lord, for having been in this
world’. The house was pulled down in 1862 but the lintel is currently preserved on a wall in
the main street which extends along the old part of the town.
::: news
Končar signs contract for
work in HE Rama
Electrical Utility of the Croatian
Community of Herceg-Bosna
and Končar-energetski transformatori signed a contract on
the delivery of new transformers
for the hydro-power plant Rama
in Bosnia and Hercegovina. The
transformer unit will be delivered in 2013 and it is has a value
of €3.1 million. Total value of
work on the upgrade of HE Rama
amounts to €39 million. In addition to Končar, the companies
Geotehnika and EnergoControl
will also work on the upgrade.
Đuro Đaković to produce
goods wagons for HŽ
Cargo
The company Đuro Đaković from
Slavonski Brod signed a contract
with HŽ Cargo for the delivery
of 100 goods wagons. The value
is estimated at €9.32 million.
At the beginning of May Đuro
Đaković also signed a contract
for the delivery of goods wagons
with the French company Nacco.
It has also been published that
this company from Slavonski
Brod was selected by Janaf for
the construction of tanks for the
terminal on Krk. The deal, worth
€29.86 million, will be confirmed
after the expiration of deadlines
for appeal on this public tender.
Osijek received the highest
amount from Eurofunds
During the past 15 years, the
County of Osijek and Baranja has
been the most successful county
in terms of pooling funding from
pre-accession funds. The County
managed to pool €46.5 million. It
is followed by the County of Zagreb with €15 million and Zadar
with €14.6 million. The bottom
positions are occupied by the
County of Sisak and Moslavina
with €9.3 million, the County of
Virovitica and Podravina with €2
million and the County of Lika
and Senj with only €0.5 million.