3426216September, 2022 / Volume 26, Issue 7 www.business-review.eu ROMANIA’S HOUSING PRICES RISING BUT STILL AMONG LOWEST IN EUROPE ARKA AND STEFANINI PARTNER UP FOR INNOVATION IN THE COURIER INDUSTRY HOW TO CHOOSE A BRAND AMBASSADOR NEW HOTEL DELIVERIES SET TO BOLSTER MARKET RECOVERY TRANSILVANIA INVESTMENTS PAVES ITS WAY TO A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE
EDITORIAL 3
As
While Romania has taken steps towards developing a national sustainable development agenda, the country's transition to a green economy is still being hindered by a number of factors, in cluding a lack of policy vision, an ineffective legislative framework, and low levels of public investments. Implementing sustainable urban development, water management, and farming, supporting businesses with green finance, and finding ways to lower carbon emissions in all our activities are among the actions that could be part of the solution. For instance, the deposit return system for single-use primary packaging (DRS) is one of the major initiatives currently being implemented that could greatly enhance Roma nia’s waste management performance. However, the success of the DRS depends heavily on each stakeholder—public sector, private sector, and consumers—fulfilling their individual obligations to meet the ambitious return targets for such packaging.
A thought for the next generations
climate change and its large-scale negative effects are no longer just presumptions but a reality we are all facing on a daily basis, every member of society, including those in the business environment, must behave and do business in a more sustainable way.
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Anda Sebesi JOURNALISTS: Aurel Constantin, Mihai Cristea, Deniza Cristian, Romanita Oprea, Oana Vasiliu CONTRIBUTORS: Ovidiu Posirca, Claudiu Vrinceanu COPY EDITOR: Anca Alexe PHOTO EDITOR: Mihai Constantineanu PHOTOS: Dreamstime ART DIRECTOR: Raluca Dumitru PUBLISHER: Bloc-Notes Media Network ADDRESS: 82-98 Calea Grivitei, 1st floor, Hotspot Workhub, District 1, Bucharest, Romania SALES MANAGERS: Radu Fireteanu, Alexandra Rosca MARKETING & SALES MANAGER: Luiza Luca PRODUCTION: Dan Mitroi DISTRIBUTION: Eugen Musat EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: George Moise GENERAL MANAGER: Catalin Alistari USA MANAGER: Oana Molodoi FOUNDING EDITOR: Bill Avery EMAILS: editorial@business-review.eu, sales@business-review.eu, events@business-review.eu SUBSCRIPTIONS on Manpres Distribution Business Review is a member of Fwei • Editorial • ISSN NO. 1453-729X Anda Sebesi • Editor-in-Chief • CITY 36 Ronny Krieger (Patreon): “We paid out several million euros to creators in Romania last 37year”Reimaginingschoolyards:how nature can be integrated into local schools 38 Cultural calendar REAL ESTATE6Romania’s housing prices rising but still among lowest in Europe MAIN STORY 12 Climate change threat pushing industries into deep transformation 16 Microforests: the newest trend in sustainability and urban living 18 The circular economy should be a way of life ENTREPRENEURSHIP 32 Startup Reaktor aiming to build stronger ties between CEEbased startups COVER STORY 8 Transilvania investments paves its way to a sustainable future www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022 Publicație auditată pe perioada Apr 2015 - Mar 2016
With around 75 percent of Europe’s population living in urban areas today—and estimates predicting that the figure will rise to 80 percent by 2050—making our urban environments more sustain able is no longer just a nice idea, but a vital task. The rising focus on urban biodiversity sees communities around the world planting native forests in public spaces, uniting people to protect the planet, rewilding cities, providing places for interaction, and trying to as sure a greener future for the generations to come.
Romania will have its first medical technology innova tion hub, called Biodyssey, founded by experts from the Technion University in Israel and Stanford University with the support of the RomanianAmerican Foundation. The hub will offer high performance educational programmes to support startups from idea to implementation.
First medical innovation hub in Romania provides support to medtech startups
ny based in Larnaca, Cyprus. The move came after Alexandrion Group had taken over a majority stake in Cavaway in 2019. The acquisition of Cavaway creates a new dynamic group with an enlarged capital base, global physical presence, a highly
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NEWS
By Mihai-Alexandru Cristea
BR welcomes information for Who’s News. Submissions may be edited for length and clarity. Get in touch mihai.cristea@business-review.euat
Alexandrion Group, the larg est producer and distributor of spirits and wines in Romania, with a distribution network that covers more than 50 countries worldwide, announced that it had acquired 100 percent of the shares of Cavaway Ltd, a compa
WHO’S page 5
By Deniza Cristian
Bogdan Albu is Kaspersky’s new Territory Channel Manager for Roma nia, Bulgaria, and the Repub lic of Moldova. In this posi tion, Bogdan will be in charge of managing communications with the company’s partners and distributors, focusing on responding to their needs in terms of security, and follow the development and sales strategies in order to improve important aspects related to the company’s activity in the region.
4 NEWS
Maria Luisa Manca is the new CFO of Bayer for Romania, Bulgaria, and the Republic of Moldova Country Group. Maria Luisa holds a degree in Business and Tour ism Economics and she first joined Bayer in 2007. For the last 15 years, she has worked in several local, regional, and global roles in Finance & Accounting, Product Supply, Order to Cash, and Global Business Services. During her career, Maria Luisa has successfully led various inter national business strategic programmes and projects related to the Financial and Life Science industries across all Bayer Regions.
Nawaf Salameh, theChairmanFoundingof the AlexandrionGroup
Alexandrion Group completes total takeover of Cavaway Cyprus
The hub will offer high performance educational programmes to support startups
They will have five months to work with their mentors to implement the proposed solution,” said Dr Elena Ovreiu, founder and organiser of the SSIMA RE:Imagine Healthcare Conference.
Biodyssey primarily tar gets young people who want to develop a business in the medtech field and need both educational and, at a later stage, financial support, through two programmes. In the first overtaughttheparticipantsGermination—programmephase—willhaveaccesstomethodologythathasbeenatTechnionUniversityfortenyears,whichhascreated
dozens of successful startups in Israel. Famous industrial de signer Ezri Tarazi, the director of T-hub, the Israeli univer sity’s innovation programme (where the Moovit startup was born), will be involved in the health innovation programme launched in Romania. The first phase will identify the young people with the greatest poten tial, while the second phase, called Acceleration, will pro vide support to their projects and effectively transform them into“Basedbusinesses.onthe methodology, participants will be encouraged to identify a real problem in the Romanian healthcare system, impacting everyone’s lives, and to propose a technical solution.
Ausra Lucinskaite, General Manager at The Marmorosch Bucharest, Autograph Collection Hotel
Lars Petersson has been appointed as the new CEO of VELUX Group. Currently President and CEO at Hempel, he will join VELUX on Novem ber 1, 2022. Prior to Hempel, Pe tersson held top management positions at Inwido, a Swedish manufacturer of windows and doors, and French flooring manufacturer Tarkett.
experienced workforce, and an extended international cus tomer base. “This acquisition of Cavaway marks the recognition of the company’s successful path but also the Alexandrion Group’s commitment to further supporting its further growth, at an even more dynamic pace. It further solidifies our philosophy and our values, as Cavaway’s quality attributes are in line with those of the Alexandrion Group,” said Nawaf Salameh, the Founding Chairman of the Alexandrion Group.
By Deniza Cristian
Cristian Prichea is the new Country Manager of SPARK in Romania. With 15 years of experience in sales and business development, Cristian Prichea has built a solid career in the automotive sector, having spent the past 12 years at Ford Motor Com pany in various marketing and sales positions. He will play an active role in continuing SPARK’s strategic development on the competitive car-sharing market in Romania.
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Its downtown location, histo ry, and architecture have brought 70 percent of the 5-star hotel’s bookings from abroad. In terms of travelling purposes, 70 percent of bookings in the last year came from the business segment. For the fall season, The Marmorosch will launch new activities for its
With record occupancy rates and bookings, as well as a 25 percent increase in personnel, the 5-star hotel is committed to continuing its development plans.“It has been a great year, with many challenges and new projects that have led to great achievements. Despite the overall economic environment, we managed to have an average occupancy rate of over 50 per cent in our first year of activity. The last few months have reached 80-85 percent occu
The Marmorosch Hotel Bucha rest, Autograph Collection, a premium project in the local leisure and hospitality sector, marked its one-year anniver sary with solid results and new development plans. During the hotel’s first twelve months of operation, the company fo cused on expanding its service portfolio, creating new 360-de gree experiences for its guests and attracting new talents.
pancy, and we are sold out for the following months,” said Ausra Lucinskaite, General Manager at The Marmorosch Bucharest, Autograph Collection Hotel.
guests, such as the Marmorosch Brunch, special pop-up activa tions or fashion shows in part nership with local designers. Considering the high demand and booking rates, the hotel is planning to expand its SPA area and may also build a terrace to further enhance the guest experience. Following a EUR 42 million investment, it is the largest project of independent Lithuanian hotel operator Apex Alliance.
Daniel Simion has been appointed as Bolt Business Country Manager for Romania. Daniel has over 15 years of experience in Sales, having worked for top Tele com, Media, and IT companies, initiating and managing local and international projects. In his new role, Daniel will take Bolt’s vision further by expand ing Bolt Business partnerships.
NEWS 5
The Marmorosch Hotel in Bucharest posts strong results from its first year
"The real estate market is seen as a barom eter of the economy, and it is influenced by several factors, such as the availability of land for real estate developments, the supply of raw materials and other products, construc tion costs, the energy market, etc., but also by the population’s purchasing power and the financing conditions. This year, accessibil ity and the cost of credit will be important factors, strongly influenced by inflation. In
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According to the study, the hardest-to-reach housing is in the Czech Republic, where 13.3 average annual gross wages are needed for a purchase, while the most affordable homes are in Ireland (3.1 average annual salaries), Norway (4.4), and Belgium (4.5).
In terms of the affordability of housing, calculated as the number of average gross annual salaries required to buy a standard dwelling (70 sqm), Romania ranks seventh out of the 19 countries for which this indicator was calculated. On average, Romanians need 6.3 annual salaries to make such a purchase.
The United Kingdom ranks first in the list of countries with the most expensive housing, after an annual growth of almost 21 percent to an average price of EUR 4,905/sqm. Austria, with a 7.3 percent rise, ranks second, with an average of EUR 4,782/sqm. Prices above EUR 4,000/sqm were also recorded in France (EUR 4,639/sqm) and Germany (EUR 4,600/sqm).
The
6 REAL ESTATE
Hungary leads the price increase category, with an annual advance of 21.5 percent in 2021 compared to 2020, closely followed by the UK (21 percent), Slovakia (19.5 percent), and the Czech Republic (18.4 percent). Overall, house prices rose last year in 18 of the 21 countries for which this indicator was calculated. At the same time, price decreases were recorded in Spain (8.5 percent), Slovenia (3.8 percent), and Latvia (1.3 percent).
The ranking of the European cities with the most expensive dwellings is led by Paris, with an average price of EUR 13,462/sqm for an apartment, followed by Munich (EUR 10,500/sqm) and London (EUR 8,426/sqm).
2021, the annual average interest rate for RON denominated mortgage loans dropped below 4 percent, according to central bank data, but it is expected to increase this year amid gener alised inflation. On the other hand, real estate investments are considered to be a class of as sets that protect the value of the investment over time," said Alexandra Smedoiu, Partner at Deloitte Romania and Real Estate Industry Leader.
list of countries on the continent with the lowest average prices also includes Serbia (EUR 1,520/sqm) and Portugal (EUR 1,537/sqm). The report does not include data for Bulgaria and Norway. In the ranking of cities, the most expensive in our country is Cluj-Napoca, with an average of EUR 1,940/sqm, followed by Bucharest (EUR 1,573/sqm) and Brasov (EUR 1,348/sqm).
Romania’s housing prices rising but still among lowest in Europe
Romania is still one of the cheapest European countries when it comes to buying a house. According to the 2022 Deloitte Property Index, conducted in 23 countries and 68 cities, Romania ranks second among the European countries with the cheapest housing, after Bosnia and Herzegovina, with an average price of EUR 1,266/sqm, calculated using data from the country’s main cities and towns. Compared to the previous year, the average price is 7.3 percent higher.
By Aurel Constantin
Among the cities where houses are more
THE MOST EXPENSIVE COUNTRIES
One Floreasca City, among the most expensive apartments in Bucharest
"Contrary to expectations, prices for apart ments have not dropped, but stagnated, as shown by the comparison between Q2 2022 to Q1 2022. We attribute this fact both to con struction costs, which haven’t yet stabilised, as well as to the increase in the standard of living for most of the population. As for the next quarter, we expect adjustments for projects located in less accessible areas," said Andreea Comsa, Managing Director at
PRICES IN BUCHAREST ON THE RISE IN Q2
COVER STORY 14 www.business-review.eu Business Review | May 2016 REAL ESTATE 7
Premier Estate Management. The affordable (mass-market) housing segment, with prices between EUR 1,250 and 1,600 per net sqm, saw the highest price growth in the second quarter of this year compared to the same pe riod of last year, i.e., 22 percent. Compared to the first quarter of 2022, there were small cor rections in certain areas, but the average in crease in asking prices was around 5 percent. Significant increases in asking prices could be observed in Bucharest’s District 6 (Militari, Drumul Taberei, Apusului), with differences from 13 to 35 percent. The areas analysed in the mass-market segment included Apusului,
this segment included Timpuri Noi, Carol Park, Baneasa, and Tineretului.
expensive than those in the country's capital are Barcelona in Spain (EUR 6,251/sqm), Antwerp in Belgium (EUR 4,050/sqm), Milan in Italy (EUR 3,844/sqm), and Cluj-Napoca in Romania (EUR 1,940/sqm).
As for the medium-level housing segment, with asking prices between EUR 1,650 and 2,150 per net sqm, there was a 10 percent price increase in the second quarter of the 2022 compared to the second quarter of 2021 and a stagnation compared to the beginning of this year. The areas analysed in this seg ment included Iancului, Mihai Bravu, Eroii Revolutiei, Dristor, and Bucurestii Noi.
Berceni, Crangasi, Drumul Taberei, Pacii, Pantelimon, Theodor Pallady, and Titan.
"The residential market is in search of a balance, and it takes time for the market to accept the new paradigm: higher prices and a rising cost of financing amid high inflation. Even if certain corrections are inherent in the short term, especially for the mass-market segment, Romania is still among the countries with the most affordable housing in terms of purchasing power. For the medium and long term, there is only one possible scenario: apartment prices in Romania's big cities can only go up," said Daniel Crainic, Director of Marketing at Imobiliare.ro.
"Romania is among the analysed countries where the prices of dwellings in major cities exceed the national average, and Cluj-Napoca stands out with a difference of over 50 per cent, while prices in Bucharest are only 25 percent higher. The regional disparities also impact the real estate market, both at the transaction price level as well as in terms of investors' appetite for residential develop ments. The West region has a clear advantage from this point of view, while urban concentrations are also expected to emerge in the other regions along with the modernisation of infrastruc ture which will favour eco nomic development," said Marius Vasilescu, Financial Advisory Director at Deloitte Romania.
tion in the April-June period compared to the previous three months. The areas analysed in this segment included Aviatorilor, Herastrau, Kiseleff, Nordului, and Romana.
In the April-June period of this year, the asking prices for the medium-high segment (between EUR 2,200 and 2,500 per net sqm) saw a 20 percent increase compared to 2021 and a stagnation compared to the first 3 months of this year. The areas analysed in
The premium segment, i.e., homes whose prices per net square meter fall between EUR 2,500 and 2,700, experienced a 10 percent price increase in the second quarter of this year compared to the same period of 2021 and a stagnation from the previous 3 months. The areas analysed in this segment included Avia tiei, Dacia, Dorobanti, Eminescu, Floreasca, Universitate, and Victoriei. As for the luxury segment—properties with prices exceeding EUR 2,900/sqm—there was a 20 percent ap preciation compared to last year and a stagna
Asking prices for new apartments in Bucharest remained on an upward trend in the second quarter of this year compared to the same period of last year, as revealed by a joint analysis by Premier Estate Management and Imobili are.ro. The analysis looks at asking prices for apartments built between 2019-2022 based on 7,831 listings on Imobiliare.ro. The aver age increases for the mass-market, medium, medium-high, premium, and luxury seg ments were between 10-22 percent.
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8 COVER STORY www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
COVER STORY 9 www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022 TRANSILVANIAPAVESINVESTMENTSITSWAYTO A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE
The rebranding process took about 10 months and involved not only changing the company’s identity, but also unifying everything that it stands for: agility on the market, care and transparency for our investors, and a more competitive and efficient approach to our work. Transilvania Investments embodies our team’s ambitions, energy, and commitment to stakeholders. The process is ongoing and we need time to prove that we can deliver on our promises, but the vibe generated by redefining our path has been positive and encouraging.
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10 COVER STORY
After having gone through a rebranding process that took about 10 months, which unified three of its main pillars—agility on the market, care and transparency for its investors, and a more competitive and efficient approach to its work, Transilvania Investments has a positive outlook for the future. In terms of its investment strategy, the company supports smart, fresh business ideas from all areas of entrepreneurship, without limiting its focus to a certain niche. Radu Rosca, Executive President of Transilvania Investments, sat down with Business Review to talk about the company’s development strategy in tourism, its core business priorities, and expectations for the local economy in the second half of 2022.
How was the company’s rebranding process implemented and what does it mean for different stakeholders?
By Anda Sebesi
Transilvania Investments recorded a profit growth of 18 per cent y/y in H1 2022. What were the factors that contributed to this growth and do you have any guiding principles for the second half of this year?
Have you updated your team structure along with the rebrand ing move?
Our profit growth in the first half of this year was the result of higher revenues on the dividend side, coming mainly from the banking sector. This constituted the largest part of our revenues and it was obtained alongside a strict control of our costs, enhancing the fund’s performance. For the rest of the year, our focus will remain on the increase of our portfolio’s productivity and therefore an increase of our revenues, in close connection with the ability of companies in our portfolio to face the current macroeconomic context. We also aim to maintain continuous control of our expenses, to the benefit of our shareholders.
The new identity of Transilvania Investments brings a new culture within the company and a new approach to everything related to talent management. On the one hand, we have talented people who have been working with us for decades, and we need to inspire them with clearer career paths and growth opportunities within the new strategic directions we’ve adopted. On the other hand, we’ve had the opportunity to bring in young, agile people with an appetite for fields like private equity or venture capital. These are two of the new areas we intend to strongly develop, and we have already hired young professionals who are ready to explore the world of tech, startups, and other innovative sectors. Sustainable development
NEW POOLS, RESTAURANTS, SPORT FIELDS, AND SPA FACILITIES WILL BE ADDED, WITH THE AIM OF PREPARING THE AQUAPARK FOR A WELL-DESERVED RESTART IN THE SPRING OF 2023. THE INVESTMENT HAS HUGE POTENTIAL FOR THE WHOLE AREA, WITH ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL BENEFITS FOR THE WHOLE COM MUNITY, WHICH HAS TRADITIONALLY BEEN INVOLVED IN TOURISM ACTIVITIES.
With a growing demand for internal tourism during the pandemic period, the sector faced both new opportunities and new chal lenges. We decided to build on the long term and started with a detailed, harsh, but realistic analysis of all companies in which we were the main shareholder. We have the mission to provide these companies with a clear vision for the future, the right manage ment that can understand and embrace the goals we set together, and access to the necessary funding. The final strategy is yet to be defined, but meanwhile, we’ve supported some important invest ments, such as over EUR 1 million’s worth of upgrades for some of the hotels on the Black Sea riviera or the project to rebuild the 1 Mai aqua park in Baile Felix, where the investment will total more than EUR 10 million.
Our business strategy is built on 5 pillars that will help us consoli date our position as one of the largest investment funds in Roma nia. On the tourism side, we focus on increasing the profitability of all the companies we own. For the investments we have in real estate and industrial assets, we are actively looking for new op portunities that will allow us to maximise our participation. Private equity and venture capital are still new areas in our portfolio, and we’re approaching them with an open mind.
All that being said, the probability of Europe experiencing a re cession is increasing, with potential related threats on the capital market in terms of companies’ ability to maintain their revenue levels. On the Fixed Income side, the Finance Ministry—in its search for additional financing—will most likely be forced to ac cept higher yields in order to accommodate the spending level.
A new face for Venus Aquapark
What are your investment strategies in the private equity and venture capital segments and what kind of companies are you looking to add to your portfolio?
Some of your biggest holdings are in tourism companies operating in Romania. What is your development strategy for this sector and how can this industry attract more investments?
What are some of the core priorities in your business?
The main challenge in the second part of 2022 will be the price of energy—be it gas, oil or electricity—, which will place continu
VENUS AQUAPARK, AN OPEN-AIR BATH LOCATED IN THE WEST OF ROMANIA, WILL GET A MAJOR UPGRADE IN THE COMING YEAR. IT IS THE LARGEST IN THE 1 MAI RESORT, WHICH IS WELL-KNOWN FOR ITS UNIQUE THERMAL SPRINGS. TURISM FELIX, THE COMPANY THAT MANAGES THE SITE AND IS PART OF THE TRANSILVANIA INVESTMENTS PORTFO LIO, HAS ACCESSED AN EUR 8 MILLION LOAN THAT WILL FINANCE THE TRANS FORMATION OF THE AQUAPARK INTO A MAJOR ATTRACTION FOR TOURISTS.
We are ready to support smart, fresh business ideas from all areas of entrepreneurship, and we do not want to limit ourselves to a certain niche. Naturally, tech is the most promising area; we’ve started talks with many IT entrepreneurs and we will continue on this path. KFactory, the industry automation platform, is one of the projects that we’ve invested in, as we see a lot of potential in their plans to support manufacturing companies in Romania in their digitaliza tion processes. Renewable energy is also a sector of high interest for our portfolio companies, as it aligns not only with our sustainable investment approach but also with their goal of becoming more en vironmentally friendly. We’re looking for opportunities and we are ready to bring funding and expertise to Romanian entrepreneurs. At the same time, our company aims to gradually include ESG factors in its preliminary investment analyses.
COVER STORY 11
with an innovative vision has become a clear guiding concept for us and it has led us to invest in new resources for our key departments such as Portfolio Management, IT, and Business Development.
www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
What is your outlook for the economy in the second semester of 2022 and what impact will it have on the capital market?
ous pressure on inflation. In the context of the conflict between Ukraine and Russia and the draught across Europe, we are not foreseening any fundamental changes in energy prices. We believe that to be the main threat for the already significant bud getary constraints of European countries, potentially leading to additional taxes in the energy sector (e.g. windfall tax).
12 MAIN STORY
As climate change and its large-scale negative effects are no longer just presumptions but a reality we are all facing on a daily basis, every member of society, including those in the business environment, must behave and do business in a more sustainable way. Business Review talked to representatives of large companies in Romania and highlighted several solutions that can ensure a greener and safer future for the coming generations. Implementing sustainable urban development, water management, and farming, supporting businesses with green finance, and finding ways to lower carbon emissions in all our activities are among the actions that could be part of the solution.
The current draft version of Romania’s Circular Economy Strategy proposes vari ous solutions aiming to achieve sustainable urban development at the national level, prioritising certain sectors like automotive, construction, packaging or EEE. Among others, such solutions focus on decreas ing consumption of raw materials by using more secondary raw materials, applying innovative eco-friendly technologies and processes, promoting digitalization, and improving the waste management system and infrastructure. The latter also includes increasing landfill prices to make landfilling less attractive and enhance treatment and recovery options that are higher up in the waste
Romania has taken steps towards developing a na tional sustainable development agenda, the country's transition to a green economy is still being hindered by a num ber of factors, including a lack of policy vision, an ineffective legislative frame work, and low levels of public investments. At the same time, there’s been a gratifying increase in environmental awareness and concern among all stakeholders. “Our cus tomers’ interest in these issues, be they companies or individuals, has increased constantly over the past few years,” says Alexandra Maier, sustainability manager at ING Bank Romania.In2021,
ING conducted a study among 450 companies in seven business sectors and 100 institutional investors from three continents which found out that 72 percent of investors are very interested in green project portfolios and want more transpar ency from companies about their sustain ability goals. “We can therefore say that the appetite is there, at least among large com panies. At the same time, when it comes to local entrepreneurs and SMEs, we need to raise awareness of the opportunities they have and, implicitly, of the benefits they can access by switching to more environmentally friendly solutions,” Maier adds.
Currently,hierarchy.the deposit return system for single-use primary packaging (DRS) is one of the major initiatives being implemented that could greatly enhance waste manage ment performance in Romania. “However, the success of the DRS depends heavily on each stakeholder—public sector, private sector, and consumers—fulfilling their individual obligations to meet the ambi tious return targets for such packaging. Other initiatives, such as digital waste islands under the National Recovery and Resilience Plans and Pay-As-You-Throw mechanisms, should also contribute to eco-friendly urban life,” says Roxana
Climate change threat pushing industries into deep transformation
While
By Anda Sebesi
www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
Green finance represents investment flowing into sustainable proj ects and initiatives that encourage a more environmentally friendly and socially conscious economy. There have been significant advancements in sustainable investments over the last decade, both in Romania and abroad, so an increasingly number of lenders have added financial products that incorporate sustainability factors into their“Forportfolios.us,asafinancial institution, green finance is a holistic ap proach that covers three areas of environmental sustainability: how we impact the environment through our own internal processes, how we assess and manage environmental risk when lending to our customers, and the types of green-focused loans we offer. Our port folio in green finance comprises energy efficiency loans, renewable
With around 75 percent of Europe’s popu lation living in urban areas today—and estimates predicting that the figure will rise to 80 percent by 2050—making our urban environments more sustainable is no longer just a nice idea, but a vital task. As a concept, urban environmental sustainability encour ages the revitalisation and transition of urban areas and cities to improve liveability, promote innovation, and reduce environmental impact while maximising economic and social co-benefits.
Real estate developers play a crucial role in designing and devel oping sustainable cities. For example, in 2021, One United Proper ties made significant steps in terms of sustainability commitment by continuing to focus on responsible construction where a majority of the waste is diverted, investing in its first restoration of a historical landmark, starting a partnership with Veolia to implement the latest renewable energy solutions for residential developments, making a commitment that new office developments will meet the net zero carbon emissions standard, elaborating a new Code of Conduct for its suppliers, and laying the foundations for the first ESG Committee of a Romanian public blue chip company.
PURSUING SUSTAINABLE URBAN DEVEL OPMENT
“The One United Properties environmental strategy includes the development of a 100 percent Green Homes certified residential portfolio, a 100 percent LEED and WELL-certified office portfolio, as well as a pledge that all new office developments will meet the LEED Zero Carbon standards. During the construction phases, ap proximately 65 percent of the waste that was generated on the nine construction sites on which One United Properties worked in 2021 was diverted—reused, recycled or repurposed—instead of being buried in the landfill,” says Beatrice Dumitrascu, the CEO of the Residential Division at One United Properties.
SUPPORTING BUSINESSES WITH GREEN FINANCE
energy loans, and friendly environmental loans,” says Stefan Manole, the CEO of Pro Credit Bank. As of June 2022, the lender’s portfolio of green loans exceeded EUR 80 million, representing a share of more than 20 percent of its loan portfolio.
Another example comes from ING Bank Romania, whose focus is where it can have the biggest impact in terms of supporting a transition to a green economy through its lending portfolio: sustainable finance. “This transition is about finding the bal
• Single use plastics principles and rules have yet to be fully implemented, one year after the transposition of the Single Use Plastics Directive. “In practice, the national provisions on single-use plastics appear to be inconsistently interpreted by various players in the industry. Hence, adopting subsequent methodological norms should clarify existing discrepancies, e.g., by offering final consumers a choice of reusable, suitable, and sustainable or plastic-free alternatives at the point of sale,” says Miruna Vlad, Senior Associate in the Environment Practice at NNDKP.
• Eco-design is an objective in multiple industries, including the automotive sector. “The EU’s Circular Economy Action Plan seeks to extend the current eco-design framework beyond energy-related products to other product groups, such as elec tronics, ICT, textiles, furniture, steel, cement, and chemicals. Meanwhile, the national strategy also focuses on implementing eco-design in the construction, plastics, and automotive sec tors,” Vlad adds.
• Recycling options have yet to be scaled up to meet the grow ing needs of urban developments and other projects. “Recy cling-related matters requiring adjustments to meet new sus tainability goals include developing new recycling facilities and digitalized ecological islands or Pay-As-You-Throw solutions, adopting regulations on end-of-waste criteria, and adapting the waste traceability system. Deploying such measures requires clearly defined and segmented responsibilities at the individual level, complemented by well-aligned enforcement elements,” says Roxana Ionescu, Partner and Head of the Environment Practice at NNDKP.
MAIN STORY 13 www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
AREAS WHERE LEGISLATION NEEDS TO BE UPDATED TO ACCOMMODATE SUSTAINABLE INITIATIVES
• The digitalization of public services could have the indirect effect of reducing emissions. “Digital transformation is one of the components of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, which encompasses objectives targeting several public services that are currently undergoing different stages of digitalization. Once this component is completed successfully, there may be an indirect environmental effect of reduced emissions as people will be able to avoid making multiple trips to institu tions,” Vlad notes.
Ionescu, Partner and Head of the Environ ment Practice at NNDKP. In such a difficult context, what should Romania do to better cope with the very real effects of climate change?
over a decade ago, the company set out to return to communi ties 100 percent of the equivalent of water being used in the production of its drinks. “We achieved this goal 5 years ahead of schedule, and in each of the past seven years we have exceeded this target, achiev ing a positive water footprint,” she adds.
aging water sustainably and reducing consumption are two major focus areas for the Coca-Cola System.
As for the company’s global vision, Mi haela Nita, Public Affairs Manager at CocaCola Romania, says that its goal is "Water leadership," a vision that reflects the overall importance of water: not just for its line of business, but for its communities as well. “Our entire global strategy was built to sup port this vision, through water management efficiency initiatives in our operations, watershed improvements through stewardship plans, and programmes for the enhancement of water resilience in the communities in which we operate,” Nita
14 MAIN STORY www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
Furthermore,notes.
In Europe, Coca-Cola supports a largescale wetland restoration programme along the Danube and its tributaries, in six coun tries: Austria, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria, and Romania. "To gether for a Living Danube" is a unique, cross-sectoral partnership between WWF-CEE, the Coca-Cola Foundation, and the Interna tional Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR).
Along similar lines, Manole of ProCredit Bank says that recently, there has been increased demand for photovoltaic power plants for electricity production, both for personal use and for sale on the Open Electricity Market. When it comes to photovoltaics, ProCredit has accumulated significant experience in financing such investments and has specialised staff that understands the technology very well. “Practice has proved that companies with available roof space that use a lot of elec tricity on a daily basis—such as all types of production plants and service or trade op erations—are suitable for this type of invest ment. The financial effect of the investment is extremely favourable and the return takes between 5-7 years. Therefore, over the past few years, we’ve been promoting the idea of investing in photovoltaics for own use and highlighting their economic and environmental benefits.”
Last but not least, Garanti BBVA is an other bank that has made constant efforts into greening up its credit portfolio by con tinuously innovating its product range to mobilise capital for fighting climate change and driving sustainable development. Recent examples of green products are the Casa Eco green mortgage loan and the green loans for residential developers which are certified by the Romania Building Council. “We are always interested in financing projects that aim to support the green transition such as renewables, energy efficiency, clean transportation, ecological agriculture, pre vention and control of pollution, circular economy, etc. Our banking offer is comple mented by a wide range of green consumer finance products for electric vehicles, solar panels or other energy efficient heating solutions,” says Mustafa Tiftikcioğlu, the CEO of Garanti BBVA.
“We carefully monitor our water consumption, and our strategy sets clear targets for cutting consump tion levels and treating wastewater from our production processes. One of the key sustainability performance indicators related to water consumption is the water usage ratio, which means the quantity of water we use to produce 1 litre of bever age,” says Adina Tudor, Customer Sustain ability Partnerships Manager at Coca-Cola HBC Romania. She notes that in 2021, the company’s water usage ratio was down 6.34 percent compared to 2017. “This boosts our plans to increase the efficiency of water usage by investing in technologies that allow water to be recycled and recovered and reintroduced into the production circuit, where the technological process allows it.” In addition, all the company’s local plants are certified by the Alliance for Water Stewardship. The Poiana Negri water plant holds the highest standard—Platinum—while the plants in Ploiesti and Timisoara are in the process of transitioning from Gold to Platinum. “We are the only beverage producer in Romania to hold this certification,” Tudor points out.
Water is the main ingredient in Coca-Cola System’s drinks, so access to water is fundamental for its production activity as well as a vital resource for the communities in which it operates. Therefore, man
ance between the need to keep the business moving and imple menting changes to achieve its sustainability ambitions. We’ve fi nanced and will continue supporting green energy projects through green loans and bonds, sustainabilitylinked products, other innovative products, and construction loans—and meanwhile, we’ll lead by example and constantly im prove the impact of our own opeğrations,” says Alexandra Maier.
SUSTAINABLE WATER MANAGEMENT
DECARBONISING OUR WAY OF LIFE
Global estimations show that our planet should supply food for a population of 10 billion by 2050, which implies a much greater need for water. “Using water in a more sustainable way along with cultivating more crops per each drop of water is the global challenge we need to address. Technology and agricultural practices adapted to this situation could be part of the solution,” says Ana Gheorghiu, public affairs, science & sustainability lead for Romania, Bulgaria, and the Republic of Moldova at IdentifyingBayer.agronomical solutions to ad dress climate change and to have a greater impact is at the core of the local sustainabil ity strategy of Bayer’s Crop Science division. “We try to offer farmers a mix of tools they need to practice good water management—whether we’re talking about precision farming, draught- and pest-resistant hybrids or new plant protection products that are more environmentally friendly—all of which leads to a lower consumption of water and energy and the use of less workforce. We want to increase farmers’ profitability and perfor mance and help them use fewer resources, enable them to protect the environment— water, land, and biodiversity—, and prove that agriculture is part of the solution to
With an eight-year history, the partnership has so far led to the restoration of wet lands and floodplains on an area of 5,462 hectares—the equivalent of more than 7,422 football fields. The ecological reconstruc tion works carried out in these six countries have increased the storage capacity of the Danube meadow by more than 13 million cubic meters—an amount that would fill more than 4,800 Olympic pools.
“In Romania, ecological reconstruc tion took place in Garla Mare-Vrata, in Mehedinti county, and the most important reconstruction phase was completed in 2021. These works have made it possible to reconnect the Danube to its floodplain and they have the potential to store over 5 million cubic metres of water during Danube floods. More than 400 hectares of meadow have been returned to nature following the restora tion. The project contributes to restoring the area's biodiversity, with already visible effects, and it creates opportunities for socio-economic development,” the CocaCola Romania representative explains.
The world’s scientists are clearly in agree ment: if we wanted to have any hope of preventing the most catastrophic effects of climate change, we must now embrace significant lifestyle changes in order to decarbonise our daily “Roadactivities.freighttoday accounts for about seven percent of the world’s CO2 emis sions, and around half of this comes from heavy truck transport: our business. As one of the world’s largest truck manufac turers, we are clearly part of the problem. But we are also fully determined to be part of the solution. Our immediate aim is for at least 50 percent of all the trucks we sell to be electric by 2030. And by 2040—at the very latest—we will have decarbonised our entire truck range,” says Per Forsberg, managing director at Volvo Trucks Roma nia. Volvo Trucks started its production of fully electric trucks as early as 2019 and they now offer the world’s widest range of heavyduty electric trucks. In fact, a large share of heavy goods trucks travel less than 300 km a day. “In Europe for example, such relatively short dis tance transports of under 300 km account for almost 50 percent of the total goods transported. This basically means that goods transports in many cases could be done with battery-electric trucks which are already available today.” But what is still stopping transport companies from going electric? “Two things: the need to improve the total cost of ownership and the need for adequate charging infrastructure,” Forsberg explains. In his view, governments, authorities, and other policy makers need to speed up their actions to kick-start electric trucking—and make the transition as easy and viable as possible. “They need to provide effective incentives and catalysts that will lower economic barriers for the initial purchases of electric trucks; reduce or even eliminate road and energy taxes for such trucks; and intelligently encour age private infrastructure investments in charging stations in strategic locations,” he concludes.
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SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE
the big global challenges we’re all facing,” Gheorghiu adds. At its manufacturing and processing facility in Sinesti, Ialomita, the company implements specific technologies and methods to cut water use in cultiva tion.
16 MAIN STORY www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
Microforests: the newest trend in sustainability and urban living
Microforests
dense plantings of native species and a powerful way to help improve the quality of the local environment and combat climate change. In coordination with Sarasota Urban ReForesters (SURF), more than 150 Colony Cove residents, em ployees, and volunteers took part in the planting of the microforest, which took place in June 2022. Sustainability is top of mind at Colony Cove, and the high-per formance microforest is among the community's most important eco-friendly endeavours.
By Romanita Oprea
Colony Cove, a 55+ manufactured home community in Ellenton, Florida, planted more than 4,000 trees on a 1.5-acre peninsula, creating an environmentally beneficial microforest with a community nature trail, PR News Wire reported.
“In addition to the many benefits microforests provide to the environment, enhancing the beauty of Colony Cove with native landscapes offers our residents a sense of serenity, along with the physical and mental health benefits they can experience by getting outside and enjoying the nature trail," said Scott Payrits, the general manager of Colony Cove, for prnewswire.com. "We're thrilled to be able to have a microforest that highlights our ongoing focus on sustainability and environ mental
The rising focus on urban biodiversity sees communities around the world planting native forests in public spaces, uniting people to protect the planet, rewilding cities, and providing places for interac tion. According to The Future 100 Report by Wunderman Thomp son, microforests popped up in LA’s urban parks in October 2021 as part of the Park Forest Initiative by the Los Angeles Parks Founda tion. Mature trees, including lush tipa and blue jacaranda, were strategically selected to provide cooling shade in urban neighbour
SURF,awareness."whichcoordinated and helped organise Colony Cove's microforest, is a coalition of non-profit organisations dedicated to establishing microforests throughout the Suncoast. SURF's planting strategy follows the inspiration and guidance of Akira Miyawaki, a distinguished Japanese botanist and specialist in the restoration of natural vegetation on degraded land who in the 1970s developed a plan to convert largely urban land into forests that would grow ex ceptionally fast and provide multiple environmental benefits. The rapid growth rate enables microforests to sequester an enormous amount of carbon against climate change, which is an important ob jective for all involved. They also intercept rainwater and transpire it back into the atmosphere rather than allowing it to carry pollu
are very
tion-laden runoff that deteriorates coastal waters. In support of this effort, volunteers from Solutions to Avoid Red Tide (START), the Sara sota Bay Rotary Club, and Florida Veterans for Common Sense also helped plant the Colony Cove microforest.Microforests are grown using the basic principles of the Miyawa ki method of afforestation, which prioritises the natural develop ment of forests using species of trees that would occur naturally in that area, which can work together to create a diverse multi-layered forest community. This method of afforestation allows trees to be planted at a density between 3-4 per square metre, and with the correct ground preparation, they can grow up to 10 times faster per annum than a conventionally grown tree, with a 97 percent success rate.“Our microforests can grow into mature, self-sustaining ecosys tems in just 20 years, requiring no maintenance. They act as an oasis for biodiversity, heal the environment in many direct ways, and help reconnect the local community with nature. So far, the Miyawaki method has led to the creation of over 3,000 primary forests and the planting of over 40 million native trees worldwide, with a 97 percent tree survival rate and without the use of chemicals or fertilisers,” said the specialists at Scotscape.
In the United Kingdom, a 240-square-metre “heritage” forest was planted in London’s Chelsea neighbourhood to restore biodiversity and reconnect resi dents with nature. A range of 630 native trees and shrubs will fill the plot in a collaboration led by rewilding company Sugi, luxury fashion brand Louis Vuitton, and estate management company Cadogan. “The forest will be a green space for locals to find quiet moments of respite and to take in the joys of nature in a vibrant and busy city,” Sugi founder Elise Van Middelem told Time Out.
Moreover, as the Guardian pointed out, Dutch conservation group IVN Nature Education has helped cities and households plant 100 Miyawaki-style forests since 2015. It is on track to more than double that number by the end of 2022 and it is working on similar efforts in a dozen other countries. In Belgium and France, at least 40 such mini-forests have recently been created.
In January 2021, members of the Nelson Whakatu Microforest Initiative prepared 100 square feet of land for a microforest in New Zealand’s Enner Glynn hills. It is part of a community push to bring flora and fauna into urban areas to combat climate change. Elsewhere, Indian company Afforestt creates dense microforests in parking lots and backyards using the Mayawaki Method.
THE BENEFITS OF INTEGRATING SPATIAL VEGETATION ENVIRONMENTS INTO BUILDINGS
“However, it is important to note that depending on the per formance goals of the design solution, local vegetation and forest space types may not always be the most appropriate solution. For example, deciduous trees that shed their leaves in autumn may not be appropriate for interior environments or appreciated by the building occupants, depending on the design solution. Moreover, the suitability of the climatic conditions of semi-outdoor and inte rior environments varies by the types of local vegetation species. It is therefore important for design teams to assess the types of veg etation building environments can support at the beginning of the design process, by evaluating the potential of various inherent and designed microclimates within building environments to promote a diverse range of local species,” said Giancarlo Mangone.
According to Giancarlo Mangone from the Delft University of Tech nology, School of Architecture and the Built Environment – Depart ment of Architectural Engineer ing & Technology, the author of “Performative Microforests. Investigating the potential benefits of integrating spatial vegetation environments into buildings, in regards to the performance of buildings, their occupants + local ecosystems,” microforests can be developed based on any type of forest. Nevertheless, it is suggested that when considering incorporating a microforest-type space into a project, the design team should select an appropriate natural forest ecosystem that is locally prevalent as their model in order to maximise the ecological, social, and economic performance of the solution. For example, the incorporation of local vegetation species can reduce the main tenance requirements and costs of interior vegetation, promote ecological behaviour by increasing the rate of the local community’s positive interactions with local natural environments, and provide habitat for local flora and fauna.
But their “history” dates back longer than that. According to the Guardian, in 2017, researchers at Wageningen University in the Netherlands monitored newly planted mini-forests and concluded that they could “increase the biodiversity compared to the nearby forest.” They also noted that both the number of species groups and the number of individuals was generally higher than those in the reference forests. The higher biodiversity is due partly to the for ests’ young age and openness, explained Fabrice Ottburg, an animal ecologist who led the Wageningen study. This allows more sunlight to reach flowering plants that attract pollinators. Diversity is also boosted by planting multiple species, which “provide more variety in food and shelter for a higher diversity of animals like insects, snails, butterflies, amphibians, bugs, grasshoppers,” Ottburg said.
Also in London, Islington council announced plans to appoint a tree specialist for every housing estate at the end of October 2021. This initiative complements similar green-space projects led by Is lington Together, including gardening collectives and park groups. Moreover, the Scotscape Groundscape team had just 7 days to install “The Forest for Change,” which sat at the heart of the 2021 London Design Biennale. Their mission was to install 400 native trees of varying dimensions and woodland shrubs to bring to life the plans drawn up by Artistic Director Es Devlin in collaboration with Philip Jaffa of Scape Design Associates. The forest that hosted members of the public visiting the London Design Biennale was meant to deliver a genuine sense of walking through a woodland and allow them to feel the benefits of nature in the heart of the city. Trees for the Forest were sourced from Barcham Trees, who sup
ported tree selection throughout the design process. All trees are being rehomed by Islington and Southwark Councils within their boroughs, supporting the urban greening initiatives set out in the London Plan. Shrubs were donated to the Greenfingers charity— Scotscape Groundscape's nominated charity for 2021.
MAIN STORY 17 www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
hoods including Lemon Grove Park, Mar Vista Recreation Center, Robert Burns Park, and Ross Snyder Recreation Area.
18 MAIN STORY www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
What can you tell us about the state aid scheme meant to support the refurbishment and development of new production lines in the manufacturing industry so that companies can cut their carbon emissions?
The current Industrial Policies team in the Economy Ministry has played a crucial role in the development of the circular econo my strategy, which has already been approved by the Government. This strategy is a milestone within Romania’s Recovery and Resil ience Plan (PNRR) that’s due to be achieved by the end of Septem ber—so we’re right on schedule! Our entire team has contributed to the development of this strategy, which has changed the paradigm of the last few years and added crucial elements in terms of the role of waste recovery in the economy. In the coming period we will be working on the implementation plan for this strategy, which will be ready in May 2023. It will require all the important players in this sector to work as a team in order to set tangible targets within the strategy.
The Economy Ministry is currently working to develop a state aid scheme to support the manufacturing industry in its adoption of circular economy principles. How many projects do you expect this scheme to target?
By Anda Sebesi
What can you tell us about the Ministry’s approach on the circular economy and environmental projects?
The circular economy must be a goal for management teams in all companies in Romania. Implementing the principles of the circular economy results in environmental protection and added value on the entire econom ic chain. The Economy Ministry has created a Mechanism to offer state aid financing for the manu facturing industry through the Transition Plan Towards a Circular Economy. All applicants whose projects will include the circular economy component will benefit from financial support between EUR 15,000 and EUR 200,000 under the state aid scheme. We are currently working on the programme guide, which will set up the implementation of the scheme and the steps companies should take in order to access these funds. The call for proposals will be open by the end of this year. The maximum budget of the state aid scheme is EUR 8 million and will be available in two instalments: EUR 2 million in 2022 and EUR 6 million in the 2023-2025 period. The transition towards a circular economy is one of the main objectives our country has committed to as a member of the European Union. We need both a national strategy that is adapted to the realities of the Romanian economy and a legal framework that can support companies operat ing in this industry through this transition.
The circular economy should be a way of life
Economy Minister Florin Spataru sat down with Business Review and talked about the Ministry’s plan to finance green projects developed by the manufacturing industry with the aim of encouraging the implementation of the circular economy model at a larger scale.
The Economy Ministry is dedi cating a state aid scheme to the manufacturing industry for the first time in the last 30 years. Large companies in Romania now have access to EUR 300 million in grants for large investment plans worth at least EUR 3 million. As a result of an in-depth market analysis, we decided to prioritise investment plans that aim to cut dependence on imports in order to support the essential value chain in the development of the local economy. Green invest ments of minimum 10 percent of the value are mandatory for a project to be eligible. In addition, companies that will make invest ments in vulnerable of under populated areas across Romania, as well as those that will employ more than 100 individuals, will get a higher score in the evaluation process.
How big of a role does innovation play at ETi?
What can you tell us about your leadership style?
Daring to dream big: a story of inspiring leadership
With more than 20 years of experience in FMCG, Stephane Batoux has been leading ETi International since 2017. Prior to this role, he led the local and regional operations of Danone, Coca-Cola HBC, and Albalact. He holds a Master’s Degree in Economics from the University of Kent and an MBA from the École Supérieure de Commerce in Bordeaux, France.
I travelled to their headquarters in Turkey, where I met the owner of the company and my current boss, Firuzhan Kanatlı, a vision ary and inspiring entrepreneur who shared with me his dream of replicating the success they had in Turkey at a global level. It was this shared ambition and vision that made it so easy for me to accept this challenge. I was also impressed by the Group’s industrial capabilities, which operated at the highest quality standards I had ever seen and ensured that their products would be globally com petitive.
20 INTERVIEW
Stephane Batoux, Head of International at ETi
I like to think big and I love to inspire others, especially the people on my team. As a lead er, I think my main quality is that I’m able to give confidence to my team. They are highly skilled professionals who know exactly what they have to do and we believe that the biggest achievements can only be reached together as one. The leader I admire most is Nelson Mandela, not only for the cause he de fended, but for the dedication and resilience he demonstrated in his quest for justice. "Never give up" is one of the values I live by, both professionally and personally.
Things lined up so well that I was happy to embark on this journey. The Chairman of ETi needed someone to lead the company’s expansion into new markets and it turned out I was the right person for this challenge.
ABOUT www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
Innovation has been part of ETi's identity and DNA from the very beginning. ETi brought on the market breakthrough innovations such as ETi Dare, a dark chocolate wafer that has al ready received several distinctions from both retailers and consumers, and ETi Milk Burger, the uniquely shaped product that received the "Innovation of the Year in Europe" award in 2015. Over the course of a few years, ETi managed to become a trusted company and reach new horizons, having made important contributions to the development of the con fectionery industry.
ETi's values are embedded in your leadership strategy. How is this reflected in your leadership?
ETi is an agile company which is focused on innovation and quality; it’s determined to grow and write new chapters internationally, and that perfectly fits in with my leadership vision—"Think big"— as much as it continues to carry forward the vision of its founder, an entrepreneur who had a big dream and did not deviate from turning it into reality.
By Anda Sebesi
One of the most experienced top executives in Romania, Stephane Batoux, who has been the Head of International at ETi International for more than five years now, shares his vision of leadership and gives insight into the company’s expansion plans.
Tell us your story. What first brought you to Romania?
I have been living in Romania for 13 years, since January 2009, when I took over the management of Danone Dairy at the regional level: Romania, Bulgaria, and the Balkans. Prior to that position, I had worked within the Danone Group for several years and I came to Romania from a GM role in Ukraine. After Danone, I joined Coca-Cola HBC Romania as General Manager, where I stayed for almost three years, until mid-2014. Afterwards, I accepted a proposal from Raul Ciurtin, the founder of Albalact, who asked me to lead his firm and manage the first company IPO on the Romanian stock market until the takeover by Lactalis Group in 2016. After the transaction with Lactalis was completed, I was offered a position inside the Lactalis Group, but I left with the intention to move into the entrepre neurial world, a dream I had had for many years. At the same time, a new and very inter esting opportunity arose with ETi, one of the leading confectionery companies in Turkey.
ARKA and Stefanini partner up for innovation in the courier industry
“Stefanini is a USD 1 billion global technology company that has sustained a double-digit growth rate year after year. Our aim is to double our turnover in EMEA over the next three years. At the same time, we’ll continue our policy of diversifying our portfolio of services, especially in the area of digital technologies. We are also considering pos sible acquisitions across the EMEA region,” says Florin Stefan, Application Development Director at Stefanini EMEA.
ARKA’s
"The initial solution was developed over a period of six months, through a process that
By Aurel Constantin
The platform allows parcels to be delivered without any direct interaction between the courier and the client, offering a more flexible and quicker process. Couriers can drop off several parcels at once, while customers can pick them up at any time—and they can even use the solution to return parcels,” says Cezar Frincu, the CTO of ARKA.
With a 30-year history, Stefanini has man aged to navigate multiple political, social, and economic crises and has even managed to grow during these periods. “Crises are un doubtedly difficult moments, but at the same time, they can create opportunities. When you provide high-value services, supplierclient relationships are transformed into true partnerships in which value and the enduser experience is maximised. It’s thanks to the strength of these partnerships that we believe we can withstand any disruption and be optimistic about the future,” says Florin Stefan.“The digital revolution has caused a para digm shift, which is why we believe every company should embrace the processes of changing and adapting to new technologies in order to remain relevant in their field. We want innovation to be the driving factor in most of the projects that ARKA will develop in the coming years,” says Lucian Ulmanu.
Smart Parcel Locker solution increases the efficiency of courier delivery processes and provides new and innovative approaches through its agnostic software. The Smart Parcel Locker is a reliable solution designed to tackle the biggest challenges of the courier industry, leading by innovation.
STEFANINI GROWING ACROSS EMEA REGION
consisted of an analysis stage, a development stage, and a testing stage. The process also in volved co-creation involving multiple parties and represented an excellent combination of design thinking and hardware and software expertise. The platform is constantly evolv ing as we add various new features,” says Bogdan Burdalescu, Software Architect at Stefanini EMEA.
The platform completely decouples parcel delivery from parcel collection while also offering a simple way to manage deliveries in different geographies. It also optimises tasks and enables the courier company’s commercial partners to make deliveries directly to lockers, without having to pay for external couriers. Stefanini had previously created a predictability applica tion and a personal digital assistant for the courier industry, which provided valuable experience during their engagement with ARKA. ”Our experience in this sector meant that we were able to fully understand the internal processes that exist within the busi ness, which allowed us to optimise the app’s architecture and business logic,” Burdalescu notes.
“ARKA’s full development process is lead ing to impressive results and we are pleased to reveal that Stefanini will fully cover our software requirements,” adds Lucian Ul manu, the CEO of ARKA.
Logistics automation and the significant growth in online sales in the past few years have led to the development of increasingly efficient delivery solutions. One of them is the Smart Parcel Locker, developed by ARKA in partnership with Stefanini EMEA, which uses advanced software components to ensure the best customer experience.
"The ARKA hardware has been devised to revolutionise the consumer experience when it comes to parcel delivery. The solution is a physical device that can be customised according to the client's requirements. The standard solution is roughly two metres high, with a width of at least two metres, and it features a touchscreen and multiple draw ers, each with a depth of up to one metre.
Lucian Ulmanu, ARKA
Florin Stefan, Stefanini EMEA
COVER STORY 14 www.business-review.eu Business Review | May 2016 COURIER INDUSTRY 21 www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
By Claudiu Vrinceanu
Jean
Alliances with large multinationals through the sale of a package of shares, replicating local projects on global markets, acquiring another company operating on the Romanian market, and taking over a competitor from abroad represent four growth approaches that local entrepreneurs have chosen this year in their business expansion strategies.
Arobs Transilvania Software, founded by entrepreneur Voicu Oprean in 1998, closed several transactions this year, but one in particular amazed the market: the takeover of Enea Software Development Services. Before the transaction, the acquired company was a wholly owned subsidiary of Enea Software AB, whose parent company Enea AB is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm. The value of the trans action reached EUR 17.9 million.
The IT industry makes the second largest con
tribution to Romania’s exports, with EUR 2.6 billion per year. The growth potential is huge here; local IT entrepreneurs have acknowl edged this potential and have been acquiring other companies. However, few have bought foreign companies, like Arobs did.
BUSINESS EXPANSION THROUGH GLOBAL M&A
22 BUSINESS www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
REPLICATING LOCAL PROJECTS ON GLOBAL MARKETS
Another method for regional or global expan
Four business expansion strategies Romanian founders are choosing in 2022
Romania has mostly had family businesses, enterprises owned by one or several entrepreneurs
Valvis, the founder of AQUA Car patica, sold 20 percent of his company's shares to the PepsiCo group in a historic transaction for the Romanian business envi ronment. This notable move was a first for the Romanian market, with an international FMCG giant acquiring a minority stake in a local brand. This will accelerate its expansion through exports, primarily to the US, a pro cess that has been going on for several years now. Exports currently represent 7 percent of Aqua Carpatica's sales, and they will exceed 30 percent by 2027. Unlike other entrepre neurial successes in the history of Romanian capitalism that were majority or total exits (Betty Ice to Unilever, Joe to Nestle, LaDorna to Lactalis, Dorna Apemin to Coca-Cola, Supremia Grup to Solina), this sale was just partial. It will increase the international exposure of a Romanian brand and maximise the company's value. In business literature, it is well-known that ownership types influence a company's internationalisation strategy. So far, Romania has mostly had family busi nesses, enterprises owned by one or several entrepreneurs, companies accelerated by private equity or venture capital, and firms that were sold entirely to foreign investors.
Through this acquisition, Arobs, which is listed on the Bucharest Stock Exchange, strengthened its Software Services division by integrating nearly 160 employees into the group. In the future, the company intends to boost its presence in Romania and the US and expand its client portfolio in the European and American markets.
In recent years, Romanian entrepreneur ial companies have also started to scale up, making acquisitions abroad after many years of foreign investors coming in to buy local en terprises. One recent case study is SeedBlink, the Romanian-born platform for co-investing in tech startups, which bought Symbid, a Dutch crowdfunding platform.
sion is for a company to try to scale products and projects that it has already implemented on the local market. In this framework, IT companies can grow more quickly thanks to the digitalization opportunities offered on the Romanian market. Several firms are developing in this manner. For example, the main goal of local entrepreneurial company Trencadis is to target countries that strongly need to digitalize their public administra tions.“As part of our development strategy, we want to accelerate our internationalisa tion plans by globally replicating projects we’ve successfully executed in Romania. An example of such a project is RoAlert, which is being used to notify the population in case of emergency, an integrated national impact project delivered by the Trencadis team. In our view, RoAlert is a successful case study in public-private collaboration. Our big data and cybersecurity projects are also landmarks, as well as Edulib, the project where we are cre ating a digital platform with open educational resources, implementing a component to test students' functional literacy, and an adaptive learning module,” says Marian Murgulet, the CEO of Trencadis.
www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
Airbnb and Booking.com, which has created specialised investors. However, Romania doesn’t have that many active investors in the travel sector. Besides Early Game Ventures and Sparking Capital, venture capital inves tors that have invested in such platforms, we have seen involvement from the Seedblink crowdfunding platform as well as interest from business angels such as Dragos Anasta siu, a well-known tourism entrepreneur.
Over the past two and a half years, marked by the pandemic and war, several tech startups have emerged in Romania’s tourism sector. What’s been missing so far have been investors willing to participate in noteworthy financing to join angel investors who have already placed their trust in tourism.
TECH STARTUPS
KEY INSIGHTS
Traveltech businesses are still behind other startup sectors
Despite Romania’s extensive tourism infra structure and the increased adoption of tech nologies in the travel industry, the travel tech industry still faces considerable challenges like finding suitable business models on a fragmented market. Traveltech businesses are still behind other startup sectors such as fintech, healthtech, edtech, or e-commerce, all of which have raised the interest of more investors. The most successful Romanian companies that book holidays, arrange transportation, and plan itineraries have so far been those created by founders who had formerly worked in the travel industry or used to be managers in marketing or IT roles.
WHAT WE CAN LEARN FROM OTHER COUN TRIES
Travel has become a target for investors in the context of the international success of
By Claudiu Vrinceanu
Romanian traveltech startups still primarily rely on their own founders' resources, even though venture capital investment in the travel and tourism tech sector has experi enced continuous growth throughout the last decade. Around USD 455 billion have been invested in travel and mobility tech startups in the past decade, according to UNWTO. Romania could learn more from Spain, for example, a market hosting 43 shortlisted and some winning competitors from the UNWTO's Challenges and Competitions. Spain launched its National Tourism Agenda: the 2030 Sustainable Tourism Strategy. As this strategy is the baseline for an effective transformation of tourism, it addresses five strategic axes: 1. Collaborative governance; 2. Sustainable growth; 3. Competitive trans formation; 4. Tourist space, companies, and individuals; and 5. Product, marketing, and tourist intelligence. To strengthen innova tion, Spain's Tourism Action Plan prioritises the deployment of a digital strategy for the tourism sector, using technological capaci ties in favour of more sustainable tourism management of destinations, and developing public policies for the digital transformation of the industry.
Five of the most active and experienced Romanian traveltech startups and scaleups are Questo, Epicvisits, Travlocals, Pickatrip, and H2B. A simple case study indicates the direction of the companies' internationalisa tion and their potential to shake up the travel sector in 2022. Questo, the platform for city exploration games, raised a USD 1.5M round of funding last year, led by Early Game Ven tures with Sparking Capital's participation. Questo enables tourists and locals to discover a city by unlocking challenges—via a mobile app—and revealing stories.
entrepreneurs. Airbus BizLab provides wideranging support for early-stage projects in the form of a six-month acceleration programme, through which entrepreneurs, startups, and Airbus employee "intrapreneurs" are given access to coaching, expertise, and mentorship across various business lines.
PLAYERS
Key players in Romanian traveltech and lessons from other countries
INVESTORS
Traveltech is one of the few verticals in Romania with no programmes dedicated to entrepreneurs who open startups in the niche. Cockpit Innovation from Israel and Air bus Bizlab from France are two programmes that could inspire the Romanian traveltech ecosystem. Cockpit is EL AL's corporate ven ture arm, targeting digital travel and aviation
COVER STORY 14 www.business-review.eu Business Review | May 2016 TRAVELTECH
The
According to Vlad Popovici, the Metaverse can open up a wide range of exciting possi bilities that could change lives for the better. One example is The Uncensored Library, a Minecraft server and a map released by Reporters without Borders in a courageous at tempt to circumvent censorship in countries
KUBIS, one of the leading independent integrated agencies in the region, marked its 14th anniversary by establishing a new division—KUBIS META—dedicated to Metaverse projects.
www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
For the moment, we are interested in the topic and following different innovators in the field. We’d like to be among them or at least among the early adopters, so we may come up with a first project sooner rather than later, but we won’t say any more right now,” she noted. According to Radu Bucur, the Metaverse has a clear potential to impact our lives in a positive manner, in areas such as education (making learning fully experi ential by opening up a whole new universe of immersive teaching aids); health (there are several cases already showing the positive im pact of Metaverse applications to treat various mental health conditions); and entertainment (mixing the real and the virtual worlds to cre ate new amplified interactive experiences).
division will specialise in consult ing, strategy, and implementation for immersive virtual experiences in host platforms such as Horizon Worlds, Decentraland or Roblox, in the development of proprietary virtual spaces, in strengthening partnerships with local and international NFT artists, as well as in creating assets, AR filters, gamified experiences, and partnerships with developers in the e-games industry.
“Our clients were thrilled to hear the news and welcomed our walking the talk in this important new playground for brands and consumers alike. I think the industry has not only noticed it, but that it has also felt obliged to step on the gas and accelerate investments. I have been reading recruitment ads from other local players suggesting they were also getting ready for this brave new world. This makes me happy as the more competitive this territory gets, the better we will all become,” said Vlad Popovici, managing partner at KUBIS, who agreed with the statement that KUBIS Meta had started a trend—one he fully embraces.“AtOgilvy, we believe in Borderless Creativity. In this context, it means we are
Marius Goleanu & Vlad Popovici, KUBIS & KUBIS Meta
“It will affect people’s lives exactly to the extent they will allow it to do so. It’s just like social media in this sense: it has its perks, but it can also become dangerous—and I’m think ing about kids here. But I think it could create a lot of added value. I recently read an article about doctors who can perfect their surgery techniques in the Metaverse. This is amazing. Learning can also become more interactive. But like anything in this world, I strongly believe it should have limits and that balance should always be sought out,” said Roxana Memetea, managing partner at DDB & Tribal Romania. As the representative of an agency that has already carried out a campaign in the Metaverse, she also believes that it’s just a matter of time before we find new creative ways of exploring this new universe.
naturally inclined to explore the Metaverse and its seemingly endless opportunities. We have a strong capability to harness WPP Group’s global expertise in order to create the most compelling cases for our custom ers locally and we are taking steps towards upgrading their points of impact. It is just a matter of time until we establish a relevant presence in the Metaverse. It is an undeniable reality of our times and younger generations are clearly more curious and more inclined to experimenting with this new proposal. Therefore, we believe that Web 3.0 and its Metaverse component will become omni present in our modern day lives,” said Radu Bucur, social media & performance director at Ogilvy Romania.
By Romanita Oprea
On a contrasting note, while Alice Gavril, partner at Cognition & client service director at Godmother, believes KUBIS’s move was natural for a digital agency that positions itself as highly creative and innovative, she doesn’t really think it is going to start a trend. She sees it as a good PR move and less as a strong revenue line in the near future. “We will not push it just because it is a trend un less it would help a brand reach an objective.
The Metaverse and its impact on the advertising industry
24 METAVERSE
that comes with the territory: AR/VR immer sivity like never before, an array of virtual experiences, a new economy that now spans from non-fungible tokens to cryptocurrency, and new ways of collecting data and getting to know consumers. Several Ogilvy agencies
from the WPP Group are pioneers in explor ing the Metaverse’s potential.”
Alice Gavril, Cognition
WHAT IS IN STAKE
COVER STORY 14 www.business-review.eu Business Review | May 2016 METAVERSE
he believes that as more virtual reality briefs hit the agencies, their representatives will probably fight even more fiercely to recruit or retain skilled human resources in this area: from character design ers and UX and UI designers to Swift, Python, and JavaScript coders and Unreal Engine de velopers. We will probably see more gaming professionals moving back to advertising and reversing a trend that started years ago.
Furthermore,explained.
In her turn, Alice Gavril believes that from an advertising standpoint, the Metaverse will see most of its development coming from a few specific areas: retail—moving from simple e-commerce to immersive ecommerce—, interactive brand engagement, and digital games. It may also be helpful for virtual events in order to get participants closer to one another and create an experi ence that’s more similar to in-person atten
lacking press freedom. “NGOs could build safe havens in the Metaverse to offer help to people in need of dialogue, counselling or professional advice. NFTs have been used to harness the power of good in activations such as the recently Cannes Lions-awarded ‘Breakchains with Blockchain,’ an investment designed to release women from prison in Egypt, or ‘Buy my Cancer,’ a unique NFT se ries by the Alivia Cancer Foundation created from actual living cancer cells to help fight cancer in Poland,” the KUBIS Meta represen tative
www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
dance, with an emphasis on engagement and the feeling of being present. However, she doesn’t foresee a bigger or different impact than other hot trends from the past have had on advertising agencies. Roxana Memetea is happy to see that advertising people have the
chance to be small pioneers in building this new world and she is quite sure that it will be extremely important in any communica tion strategy within a couple of years. “My colleagues have already had the opportunity to work on a big launch in the Metaverse this spring, and it was amazing. It was a global project, yet I understand it was well received by the young Romanian generation. Also, judging by the most awarded campaigns at the international creativity festivals, I would place my bets on the Metaverse.”
Roxana Memetea, DDB & Tribal Romania
But how will the Metaverse impact the adver tising industry as a whole? In Radu Bucur’s view, what we are seeing now is surely an early version of what an educated guess suggests will be a much larger network of 3D and virtual environments for interaction and experiences, but one thing is certain at this point. “The impact of the Metaverse on the industry is currently low, but definitely grow ing, with Bloomberg estimating an USD 800 billion total market size for the Metaverse by 2024. Today, the Metaverse is a spearhead for change, innovation, and creativity in the marketing world. Bold brands and creative agencies are tapping into the new potential
Radu Bucur, Ogilvy Romania
www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
By Romanita Oprea
Mih Lovin, Le Squad
Alina Galeriu - Olteanu, Galeriu & Partners
ing an online brand ambassador for brands in their portfolio are: affinity to brand core values, authenticity in their communication style, an overall balanced approach in their online discourse, and of course, metrics relat ed to their potential to reach a big audience, to generate engagement and conversions for the“Brandbrand. ambassador-based influencer marketing is not recommended in the very beginning, but it should be something that brands get to in time, after having deployed other tactics. Before hiring brand ambas sadors, brands should test the waters of what handling influencer marketing actu ally feels like from a business perspective: is it efficient? How different is it from other marketing tactics? Is the influencer you’ve chosen the right one? Are they responsible enough? Who is their manager and can that
Lately,
26 BRANDING
The best way for a brand to boost or refresh its image nowadays may be through an ambassador. As more and more business transactions are being conducted online, the consumer journey is getting increasingly fragmented, so having a strong brand ambassador programme is proving to be an important part of any marketing campaign.
sona or being relevant for a communication territory—depend on the brand and the brief,” FocsaAddingnoted.to that, Alina Galeriu, general manager at Galeriu & Partners, believes that a brand needs a variety of ambassadors throughout its history, for different stages of its evolution. We live in a fast-paced, always connected world, and brands must be present in the lives of their target audiences in various ways—or face oblivion. “How can you remain visible and relevant for your target? With the help of others who are talking about you. These are your brand ambassadors, whether they’re loyal consumers who simply recom mend the brand to their friends and family or an influencer creating online buzz about the brand and recommending it to their commu nity,” Galeriu argued. The criteria she and her colleagues keep in mind when recommend
How to choose a brand ambassador
brands have been associating themselves with influencers or public figures who share the same values in order to create alliances designed to boost the images of all parties involved. But when in a brand’s journey is it the right moment to choose an ambassador, and why? According to Sinziana Focsa, strategic planner at Oxy gen, a brand is a conceptual entity—a story. To make this story relevant to other people and get closer to them, marketers strive to make it as human and relatable as possible. “Selecting a brand ambassador can be a powerful tool for this endeavour, especially when building brand awareness or when trying to expand to new target segments. A clear common set of values with the brand, influence on the core target, and a clean track record are three mandatory aspects. Other criteria—such as being a close representation of the brand per
and afterwards,” Lovin added. But as pointed out by Madalin Munteanu, communication manager at Pandorra Story Style, there is no single perfect time to choose an ambassador. It depends on the situation and on the brand's desire to communicate around a particular topic. Some might go their whole existence without working with ambassadors, while
“Another criterion should have to do with the influencer’s position in the popularity chart. Are they at their all-time high? Are they heading towards that point on a winning streak or is the influencer in a decline towards lower numbers (in terms of notoriety, reach, engagement). One should see each influencer campaign as an investment—not so much in financial terms but more in terms of growth, awareness, and legitimacy. Due diligence is a must. One must know whether the influencer has ever experienced backlash or has been cancelled in any shape or form, and more importantly, understand how they and their management team managed that situation. This could shed some light not only on the beliefs of that influencer but on how that team manages damage control in different situations. Maturity and hedging against critical situations should be key factors,” Mih Lovin
Influencersnoted.
that we act as brand guardians and prioritise a partnership based on common values and quality content,” said Oxygen representative Sinziana“ContinuityFocsa. is a plus. It boosts the au thenticity of the brand testimonial when it’s
COVER STORY 14 www.business-review.eu Business Review | May 2016 BRANDING
person vouch for the professionalism of the campaign implementation? Will the influ encer and the management team see the real responsibility the brand takes while handling the campaign?” said Mih Lovin, creative part ner at Le Squad.
When it comes to criteria for choosing am bassadors, Mih Lovin says that the first filter should always be the relevance of the influ encer considering what the brand/business is representing and implicitly selling. It should take into account the age and demographic of the creator and whether those are on par with the brand’s target audience. If targets align, it could be a good match. If they don’t, it could be a way to test out new audiences.
positioning on social media—whether these fit together. The second one is the influencer’s reputation. It’s critical to work with someone who believes in the product,” he argued.
are popular because, in es sence, they are special people who effortless ly share their lives with their online audience. But special people tend to be spontaneous and perhaps difficult or focused on sharing more rather than sharing better. “It is impor tant and less of a liability if the influencer is represented by a manager or team of manag ers (agency) so that the urge to share is never more important than the appropriateness of what gets shared. And that is what you may want from a marketing campaign. At the end of the day, a brand ambassador collaboration with an influencer implies that they must maintain a moral mindset and a proper busi ness attitude throughout the collaboration
others might need more than one key opinion leader. “There are two main criteria which are very important when we choose these collaborators: the first one is to see whether there is a match between the way the brand usually communicates and the influencer’s
www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
Is it always about a client-brand partner ship? And should it be? “In the matter of selecting a long-term ambassador, the brand comes first. It’s in the client’s best interest
• MEASURABLE METRICS ARE REQUIRED AROUND ETHICS AND SUSTAINABILITY: SELLING THROUGH JOY, NOT FEAR
Yet, according to Madalin Munteanu, it’s important to find the middle ground and try to see what’s best for each brand. Sometimes you can really end up doing too much.
www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
• FOCUS ON SIMPLIFICATION; OVERCONSUMPTION IS OUT
• DAILY ROUTINES & TASKS CAN BE TURNED INTO FUN ACTIVITIES BEING CONSCIOUS OF THESE POINTS ALLOWS US TO CONSOLIDATE OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH CONSUMERS AND TRANSFORM THEM INTO BRAND AMBASSADORS. WHEN WE’RE TALKING ABOUT BRAND AMBASSADORS, WE’RE ALSO TALKING ABOUT ONLINE INFLUENCERS, WHO ARE EXTREMELY IMPORTANT NOWADAYS, AND CAREFULLY PICKING THEM TOGETHER WITH OUR AGENCY DEPENDING ON: THEIR AFFINITY TO THE BRAND’S CORE VALUES, THEIR AUTHENTIC ITY IN COMMUNICATION, THEM HAVING A BALANCED APPROACH IN THEIR ONLINE DISCOURSE, AND OF COURSE METRICS RELATED TO THEIR POTENTIAL TO REACH A BIG AUDIENCE AND TO GENERATE ENGAGEMENT AND CONVERSIONS FOR THE BRAND.”
Sinziana Focsa, strategic planner at Oxygen
• IN CRAZY TIMES, CONSUMERS LOOK FOR POSITIVE, FUN, AND PLAYFUL MESSAGING
Ioana Cebuc, Himalaya Romania, Bulgaria, and Serbia
Madalin Munteanu, Pandorra Story Style
28 BRANDING
“WE ARE CONNECTED TO THE LATEST TRENDS ON THE MARKET AND WE ARE ALWAYS TRYING TO UNDERSTAND THE WAY OUR CONSUM ERS THINK AND WHAT THEIR NEEDS ARE. GIVEN THE LATEST ECO NOMIC TENSIONS, PEOPLE ARE NOW CHANGING THEIR PRIORITIES AND THEY ARE BEING MORE CAREFUL WITH THEIR BUDGETS IN ORDER NOT TO OVERSPEND, AS THEY ARE STRUGGLING FINANCIAL LY, SLIGHTLY WORRYING ABOUT THEIR JOB OR NOT WORKING AT ALL.
OUR CONCLUSIONS AFTER HAVING OBSERVED THE MARKET SITUA TION AND OTHER BRANDS’ COMMUNICATION APPROACHES ARE:
coming from an influencer that constantly uses and recommends the product or service in question,” argued Alina Galeriu, while Mih Lovin noted that brand partnerships can be punctual with specific on-point deliveries from the influencer’s side, on a particular timeline: influencer posts X times on platform Y, on the topic Z, on days K and L. “This is the most common type of influ encer marketing campaign, and it makes up the highest share of campaigns inside talent management agencies. This type of campaign aggregates content from 2-3-4 influencers or more,” Lovin said.
On the other hand, he also pointed out that brand partnerships with a brand ambassador-type collaboration imply that the creator is going to be dedicated to that brand for a longer period. These are usually oneyear or even longer-lasting collaborations. “The underlying implication of this type of campaign is that the influencer not only leverages their own audience to advertise the brand, but that on top of that, the brand uses its own media outlets, budget, and campaigns to advertise using the influencer’s image rights. This is a pivotal change in terms of how the actual campaign is thought out, budgeted, and handled.”
By Ioana Cebuc, Personal Care Category Manager at Himalaya Romania, Bulgaria, and Serbia
Currently, the Romanian state has only one lever to support foreign investments in Romania, namely the state aid scheme for investments with a significant impact on the economy, a project coordinated by the Fi nance Ministry. This programme has attracted the interest of many international companies, especially those in the automotive industry, such as Star Assembly, Continental, and Re nault. With the RON 1 billion budget increase for this project between June 15 and July 26, 2022, from RON 6.38 billion to 7.38 billion, there was growing demand for investments higher than EUR 1 million. The evaluation of these grant requests is based on the following criteria: investment value, type of initial in vestment, location of investment, profitability of turnover (in the case of active enterprises), amount of subscribed and paid capital (in the case of newly established enterprises).
Foreign direct investments in Romania are still developing stably in 2022
ranks in the top 10 globally and 6th in Europe in Investment Monitor's 2022 Inward FDI Perfor mance Index, which measures a country's inward investment levels against its gross domestic product (GDP) based on new green field projects. This means that with a score of 4.4, Romania received more than four times its fair share of inward greenfield foreign direct investment compared with what could be expected given its GDP level.
Foreign direct investments in Romania are still developing stably in 2022, despite the economic uncertainties. They amounted to EUR 4.37 billion in the first half of this year, up 21.4 percent compared to the same period of last year, according to data from the National Bank of Romania. Furthermore, in the first six months of this year, the number
By Claudiu Vrinceanu
30 FDI www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
FDI to GDP ratio: how well is Romania doing?
When researching a country's performance,economiconeof the indicators we should explore is the foreign direct investments (FDI) to GDP ratio, which compares a country's fund inflows to its gross domestic product. The new economic context redraws the map of the world's best FDI performers relative to the size of their global gross domestic product (GDP).
Romania
LEVERAGE FOR NEW FOREIGN INVEST MENTS IN ROMANIA
of companies with foreign capital that were newly established in Romania increased by 35.1 percent compared to the similar period of 2021, reaching 3,476 units.
The Inward FDI Performance Index ex amines the number of inbound FDI projects in each country as a share of the world total. The result is then divided by the country's GDP as a share of world GDP. If the resulting value is a number greater than 1, it indicates that the country is receiving a higher ratio of inbound greenfield FDI than one may predict, given its economic contributions to the global economy. For comparison, Singapore has a score of 4.9, Finland gets 3.7, and countries like Poland and Ireland score 3.6, based on data presented by Investment Monitor.
Why is it important to understand how for eign investments evolve alongside economic growth and GDP? Foreign direct investment indicators—such as financial flows, invest ment positions, and income flows—are not components of gross domestic product. A set of normalised ratios may be calculated com paring these indicators to the GDP, thereby permitting a comparison of results between economies of different sizes. The resulting FDI intensity ratios provide one means for assessing investment integration within the international economy.
By Ovidiu Posirca
www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
32 ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Why should an early-stage startup join an incubation initiative?
Incubators are safe, yet challenging play grounds where future entrepreneurs can nur ture and expand their business ideas based on the concepts they learn here. Startup Reaktor has these principles at its core and it brings to the market a complex and applied curriculum for startups, covering a wide vari ety of areas, from MVP validation to market ing, sales, management, and legal.
Over 70 startup teams from Romania and neighbouring countries have already registered for the new Startup Reaktor incubation programme, launched by the Romanian Tech Startups Association (ROTSA). Tudor Pasc, incubation director at ROTSA, spoke to Business Review about the organisation’s efforts to attract startups operating in emerging sectors across Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and the challenges faced by entrepreneurs as a result of the geopolitical tensions in the region.
Plus, the incubator has a wide mentor net work and startups have the opportunity to schedule 1:1 sessions with them as needed. Lastly, startups can benefit from regional expertise and receive valuable feedback that is tailored to the region.
What role does an incubation programme play in the overall development of the startup ecosystem and what is Startup Reaktor bringing to the market?
Startup Reaktor is open to early-stage teams or startups, whether or not they have reached the MVP (Minimum Viable Product) stage. Applying teams must not have already established a legal entity for the project. Each team or startup can register a single project. In short, for three main reasons—fail fast if it’s the case, learn from industry experts, expand your network—, getting to know likeminded people is always a win! It is a great opportunity to start building up core skills and to build up a network.
Startup Reaktor aiming to build stronger ties between CEE-based startups
After the 10 weeks of training sessions, itera tion on existing solutions, and 1:1 mentoring, Startup Reaktor will look at setting up a fund ing framework. This means that if startups are ready to be funded, we will facilitate the experience.Giventhe
ENTREPRENEURSHIP 33
How should entrepreneurs prepare for the evaluation stage as they seek to join Startup Reaktor?
The project evaluation criteria include the composition and expertise of the team, the
How is the CEE-based startup ecosystem developing considering the geopolitical tensions in the region?
We are fully aware and mindful of the current geopolitical context in the CEE region and we are actively supporting startups, especially through the hub infrastructure which is available in our portfolio.
Tudor Pasc, Incubation Director, ROTSA
fact that we are working with early-stage startups, we are planning to follow up with the teams after the 10 weeks they spend in the incubator and see how ad ditional help could be provided.
The startups that have applied so far come from various fields such as finance, health, education, human resources, ecology, hos pitality, transportation, gaming, hardware & software, data & analytics, agriculture, sport, and construction.
If we had to sum it up into a single area cover
ABOUT
Curiosity and eagerness to learn and improve. There is also their willingness to thrive in the entrepreneurial sector, especially because it’s a pretty new concept that’s being explored as a professional path in the CEE region.
startups emerging from CEE countries. This goes hand in hand with easily connecting with investors or subject matter experts from otherTheregions.opportunity for knowledge transfer among startups is also a key value, as they can share national experience and start nur turing strategic partnerships.
Once the application phase closes, start ups will be contacted for an interview and the points above are the most important ones to clarify.
www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
On the other hand, despite any global ten sions, it is very important to continue to scale up various sectors so that we can minimise the effect of currently affected markets. The whole ecosystem must make a common ef fort in order to keep things above water.
has extensive experience in the entrepreneurial ecosystem, having been an active player for more than 10 years and having supported over 500 tech startups in finding their growth path. Besides Startup Reaktor, he was recently involved in the EIT Digital Venture Programme as incubation director. He was the managing partner of ClujHub, the biggest coworking space/hub in Cluj, for more than 8 years. Pasc is also the curator of TEDxCluj.
Which funds will join the project?
We think that Startup Reaktor can be the foundation to a strong network among
phase, we will benefit from input from experts and investors who are highly skilled in specific areas, which will allow us to make the best choices.
Your incubation platform is looking to at tract startups from the entire CEE region. What are some of the strengths of emerg ing entrepreneurs in this area?
During the interviewing and selection
We are looking at enrolling up to 10-15 startups in the first year, with the plan to expand our efforts exponentially and reach 200 startups in three years’ time. So far, over 70 teams from Romania, Hungary, Greece, Serbia, Croatia, Albania, and Slovenia have registered for Startup Reaktor.
ing the most competitive startup industry, it would be technology. This is also ROTSA’s fo cus: tech startups. We have noticed that the biggest hype is around MedTech, FinTech, and AI/IoT. Startup Reaktor’s acceptance cri teria are mainly focused on business model, scalability, and market potential, rather than following specific industry verticals. This means that startups have equal chances, regardless of the tech category they focus on.
Which sectors are more competitive in the Romanian startup industry and how will this be reflected by the final structure of Startup Reaktor?
How many startups are you looking to enrol in in the first year?
business model, the solution’s impact on cus tomers, the innovativeness of the solution, and the development plan.
Will startups be able to negotiate funding rounds during the incubation period?
The
New hotel deliveries set to bolster market recovery
compared to 18.6 percent in April 2021 and 7.1 percent in April 2020. Still, this was consider ably lower than the April 2019 level, which was 35.5 percent, say representatives of real estate consultancy JLL Romania.
Upgrades are already underway at some of the largest hotels in Bucharest. Radisson Blu will become one of the largest five-star hotels in Central and Eastern Europe, with 623 keys. Revetas Capital, the owner of the Bucharestbased project, will add 200 new keys in two rebuilt wings. The new rooms will be open for tourists in early 2023, as part of an EUR 24 million investment programme.
The local hotel market is still reeling from the effects of the pandemic, with leisure tourism recovering at a faster pace in resorts. In large cities, demand for accommodation from the business segment is growing rather slowly, while hotel operators are expected to deliver at least 1,000 new rooms in Bucharest and regional cities by the end of 2023.
The effects of the elimination of restrictions were felt right away. According to official statistics, in April 2022, the average hotel occupancy rate in Romania was 29.2 percent,
34 HOTEL MARKET
hotel sector saw one of the sharp est falls in demand during the pan demic as travel restrictions and quar antine measures were imposed to limit health risks. The market is still in recovery mode and it should get back to its pre-pandemic level by 2024, according to consultants.
Bucharest’s hotel market is not oversupplied and we could see more projects being launched over the medium term
By Ovidiu Posirca
"Considering the fact that the pandemic has slowed down, it would be a good moment for upgrades and refurbishments in order to be prepared to take advantage of the upcoming rebound in tourism activity," Alexandru Da vid, head of research at JLL Romania, tells BR.
www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
Athénée Palace Hilton, part of ANA Hotels, also has a major refurbishment plan in the
In central Bucharest, Niro Investment Group will reopen Grand Hotel du Bou levard, featuring 30 luxury suites, under the Corinthia brand. Next year, the group will open a hotel under Ac cor’s Swissôtel brand in the north of the city.
operthesametime,develhaskicked off the construction of a hotel and resi dential project in Brasov. The complex will
Echinox.AsforBucharest, the market is not oversupplied, and we could see more projects being launched over the medium term, consultants say.
"After a successful 2021, when global restrictions triggered a rise in domestic tourism, the future of the Romanian hotel market seems to be somewhat divergent: while a full recov ery happened quickly for seaside and mountain resorts, large cities are still affected by the interruption in business activities, therefore market readjustment in Bucharest or regional cities will be slower," Ilinca Timofte, head of research at real estate consultancy Crosspoint Real Estate, tells BR. Demand for accommo dation skyrocketed in larger cities following Russia's inva sion of Ukraine, with millions of people fleeing the country in search of safety.
developer Nordis Group aims to deliver the first two hotel buildings of its Mamaia-based
manage the accommodation process, offering owners an annual yield of 7 percent.
works. The company is investing EUR 40 million in its renovation programme, which is slated for completion in the summer of 2022.
COVER STORY 14 www.business-review.eu Business Review | May 2016
HOTEL
Brasov is already one of the most popular cities for domestic and foreign tourists, and some 660 rooms branded by interna tional and domestic hotel chains will be completed by 2023, according to data from real estate consultan cy Cushman & Wakefield
MARKET
feature 158 hotel rooms and 43 residential units. The group will sell the hotel rooms and
The building that hosts Grand Hotel Bucharest will also be renovated by 2024, following an investment of EUR 21 million.
ibis RomanianBucharest,stock.Bucharestadditionyear’sOtopeni,port,BucharestStylesAirlocatedinisthisnewesttothehotelOutside
project, which include 712 rooms, while two additional buildings in the first development phase will have 620 apart ments. At the
www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
For the past two decades, with the digi talization of the creative industries, many proven and fair income streams for inde pendent artists no longer exist. Many of the digital services that have been launched in the past couple of years have failed—or have never tried—to become impactful economic alternatives for the majority of artists.
I often like to use the example of a store. Have you ever gone into a store where the owner greeted you and said, would you please leave 200 euros at my store today and support me? You’d be shocked and leave. That’s not how this works. Instead, the owner would point out their attractive offerings. That’s what would potentially convince you to purchase something. It’s the same with membership. Offer great benefits that are attractive to your audience and keep talking about the great experiences they can get through membership. Share snippets of gatherings, recordings, and other exclusive benefits for patrons, do it frequently, and over time you’ll see more and more or your fans joining.
COVER STORY 14 www.business-review.eu Business Review | May 201636 MUSIC
From September 6-8, Bucharest has hosted Mastering the Music Business, Romania’s first international event for professionals in the music industry. The conference is dedicated to artists, managers, bookers, promoters, labels, and all other music business professionals. Business Review talked to Ronny Krieger, the General Manager for Europe at Patreon, who will be one of the key speakers at the event.
Ronny Krieger (Patreon): “We paid out several million euros to creators in Romania last year”
Are there any figures worth mentioning for Romania? How many creatives are listed on Patreon, and what are their average earnings?
Spending also varies. From a patron sup porting one creator with 1 euro per month, we also see patrons supporting multiple creators with hundreds of euros per month.
that number has nearly doubled every year so far.
By Oana Vasiliu
Patreon was the first digital platform that prioritised fair creator monetisation.
I can’t really give you specific numbers, but I can tell you that we paid out several million euros to creators in Romania last year, and
You have an economic and corporate background, having mentioned in previ ous interviews that your parents wanted a safe career for you. I guess this is the case for most independent artists and creatives. How has Patreon helped them monetise their creativity?
With such a diverse set of creators on the plat form, there is no typical subscriber persona and it completely depends on the creator and their content/benefits. Audiences can be as young as 18+, in their 20s, 30s or even their 60s. It really varies.
Patreon has paid out over USD 3.5 billion, coming directly from fans. This has support ed countless creative projects and brought many wonderful ideas to life. It also means that hundreds of thousands of creators worldwide can make a living from their art. How stunning is that?
Is there any particular case study you could share of a Patreon artist who has had amazing results?
There are too many to single out just one. Once more, it completely depends on the individual scenario. Which art form and interests are we talking about? What is the community like? What are the goals for mem bership? All these factors influence success or failure. If anybody is interested to learn more about how membership could work for them, I recommend getting in touch with our partnerships team to explore what an individually tailored approach could look like: berlin-team@patreon.com.
Patreon is a membership platform that al lows creators to be paid by their fans on a subscription basis. Supporters are referred to as patrons.
What is a creative’s main concern when starting a profile on Patreon?
One of the key blockers for creators, musi cians in particular, is the idea that they have to ask for money. “Beg for money” is also a phrase we hear frequently. But that’s not how membership works. You don’t ask for money. You don’t have to ask for support.
Can you profile the average subscriber? Gender, age, how much money they spend monthly, etc.
Can you explain Patreon’s business model?
www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
By Oana Vasiliu
children's awareness of how nature should and must be protected, as well as promote nature-based activities. The solutions offered by Triptic and the World Bank consist of playground areas with a low carbon impact, recycled materials, photovoltaic panels, smart lighting, and spaces to charge electric cars and scooters for teachers, visitors, and kids.
www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
Local architecture studio Triptic worked with the World Bank to design possible reinterpretations of public schoolyards, offering 16 case studies for different types of schools from several areas of Romania. Business Review talked to the team behind the project to find out how a schoolyard can be environmentally friendly and benefit the whole community.
The project consists of 16 case studies from public schools all over Romania, where the architects took several characteristics into account, including the shape of the school, its appearance, when it was last refurbished, and its location inside the community. They chose very different schools in order to diversify the case studies and the possible options for implementing the project. Moreover, the research underlined the importance of having an area designated to pre-schoolers, which
“Schools may be between the mountains or near the seaside, in open areas with strong winds or strong sun all year round, which means they must adapt to the environment and be properly equipped, with canopies or protective fences for rain, snow, sun, wind. Secondly, it is necessary to create an environment that will facilitate the development of playgrounds. Adapting to the phenomenon of global warming by maximis ing green spaces, introducing new types of vegetation of various sizes while keeping the geographical position in mind would be key elements in creating a proper schoolyard,” Basuc explains. Focus should also be placed on green spaces, with areas full of concrete that could be transformed into spaces with trees, which will provide shade and create an environment that is as natural as possible.
“This idea has a positive impact both inside the school as well as for the whole communi ty, turning the school yard into a small urban park, mostly because most public schools are located inside residential neighbourhoods, between large buildings, where there is little to no space for parks,” Aurel Basuc also notes.
modern concept of education sees it as a non-formal process that tends to promote social integrity and multicultural knowledge. Ideally, reconfigu ration and the elaboration of new ideas would maintain a permanent correlation between the world in which we live today and the world of tomorrow, where climate change is a pressing subject. This is the case for architec ture as well, especially when it comes to pub lic spaces such as schools. To create a space where nature and environmental principles bring joy to children, the architecture studio looked at several education approaches, such as Montessori, which they later translated into“Childrendesign. who live in urban environments today spend less time in nature compared to previous generations. They also spend a lot of time at school, which is why green schoolyards can be one strategy for providing children with more access to nature and its benefits,” argues Aurel Basuc, co-founder of TripticIntroducingStudio. nature spaces into school yards may not guarantee their use, but pro viding institutional support and professional development for teachers may help enhance
The
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should be equipped with specific gear and protective elements for small children, which currently do not exist.
Since the project was launched in 2020, the most active communities in terms of implementing parts of the green schoolyard concept have been from Cluj-Napoca and Bucharest’s District 6, but not a single fullscale project has been developed from scratch based on these recommendations so far.
Nature and sports, two key ingredients for children’s development
“The need for a systematic approach to education means moving into the current context and responding to the challenges involved in a child’s accumulation of futureready skills. Each playground space must have its own personality and be different from others, mixing sports with leisure activities and also using the schoolyard as a laboratory for observing nature,” Basuc adds.
Reimagining schoolyards: how nature can be integrated into local schools
After a three-year pause, Bucha rest Jazz Festival returns with performances from ZMEI3, Sorin Zlat, Ion Tuntu Baciu Jr., Trigon, Eva Maria Garlea & Robert Coz
Art Safari – 10th edition
www.business-review.eu Business Review | September 2022
Starting September 23, Dacia-Romania Palace
By Oana Vasiliu
George Enescu Interna tional Competition
After a rescheduling from the March 2022 original date, Sting is set to perform in Cluj as part of his European “My Songs” tour. For this event, Sting will be ac companied by an ensemble made up of Dominic Miller (guitar), Josh Freese (drums), Rufus Miller (guitar), Kevon Webster (key board), Shane Sager (harmonica), and Melissa Musique and Gene Noble (backing vocals). The concert will feature hits such as “Fields of Gold,” “Shape of my Heart,” “Roxanne,” “Demolition Man,” “Englishman in New York,” and many others.
September 21-25, several locations
Bucharest Jazz Festival September Combinatul16-18,Fondului Plastic
For this edition of the competi tion, 34 young musicians from across the world have quali fied for the semi-finals, in the Cello, Violin, and Piano sections. Additionally, 22 orchestral and chamber works will enter the competition in the Composition Section, where an Originality Award will also be given out. The Competition’s programme includes an Extraordinary Opening Concert, scheduled for September 4, five recitals performed by established artists, as well as the Cello, Violin, and Piano Finals where three of the best young musicians selected by the specialised jury, accompanied by the “George Enescu” Philhar monic Orchestra, will perform a
Dokstation Music Docu mentary Film Festival
September 4-18, the Romanian Athenaeum
Cultural calendar
38 CITY
Sting September 30, Cluj-Napoca
full concert. The winner of the competition will be announced at the end of the evening.
DokStation Music Documentary Film Festival is the only music documentary festival in Roma nia, designed to attract broad communities by mixing two of the most popular arts—film and music—, through screenings of music documentary films and live concerts, in buildings with special history and tradition, as well as in unconventional spaces.
The main exhibition of the 10th edition of Art Safari is “Seeking Truth: The Art of John Con stable,” curated by Dr Emily Knight and Katharine Martin and organised by the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, which covers works by English land scape painter John Constable. The public will also get a chance to see works by Albrecht Dürer, Rembrandt van Rijn, Claude Lorrain, William Turner, Thomas Gainsborough, and Jacob van Ruisdael, as well as an interna tional pavilion for Korean Beauty in Poster Art by Byoungil Sun and others.
ma, and a collaboration between Luiza Zan and Big Band Radio directed by Ionel Tudor.
