Business Review No.10, March 28 - April 3

Talent: Luciana Zamfirescu, managing partner of TopDeals.ro, tells BR how she took the collective buying concept and made it a success on the local market with her website, which she is now hoping will break the European market too »page 9

ROMANIA’S PREMIERE BUSINESS WEEKLY

MARCH 28 - April 3, 2011 / VOLUME 16, NUMBER 10

AIRPORT EXPANSION ROMANIA’S SKIES COULD GET BUSIER AS NEW AIRPORTS LOOK SET TO JOIN THE COUNTRY’S EXISTING CAPACITY. BR LOOKS AT THE DEVELOPMENT RUNWAY »PAGES 16-17

WATCH OUT: BLING IS BACK

While most of us tighten our belts in the age of austerity, the super-rich continue to splash the cash.

BR talks to experts on the luxury market and hears how high-end is still on the up »page 8-11

NEWS

INTERVIEW

Goodbye Arpechim Biomassive Petrom is to finally close its Arpechim refinery, after failing to find a suitable buyer for the landlocked facility » page 6

Roger Preston, Eco2’s official in Romania, talks to BR about its projects in biomass, the next big thing in the energy sector » page 13

LINKS

Better LTE than never LTE technology is the way ahead for the IT industry. But is the Romanian market ready for it yet? » page 14-15

PLUS Is The Fishery cod awful or trout of this world? Read our review » page 20 Bryan Ferry set to sail into town on May 1 » page 21

www.business-review.ro Business Review | March 28 - April 3, 2011

NEWS 3

NEWS in brief

Agerpres

IMAGES of the week Romania sends King Ferdinand to Libya Romania will take part in the military operations in Libya, sending 205 troops and two officers on board the ship King Ferdinand to the Mediterranean Sea within 30 days. The ship has military capacities at sea, under water and in the air and has already undertaken a number of sorties. The King Ferdinand will be part of the blockade preventing weapon sales to Libya. The battle ship served for 16 years for the British Royal Navy and seven for the Romanian Navy.

The mission of King Ferdinand will cost Romania some EUR 4.5 mln.

LEGISLATION

Registry and all application procedures will be approved within 10 days of that date.

Romanian government OKs debt payment in installments

Flat tax and VAT to stay same this year, says PM

The Romanian government has adopted an emergency ordinance regulating the granting of scheduled payment to support the business environment and economic activity, the Finance Ministry has announced.

Ministry officials say the act will create a stable fiscal mechanism and support active taxpayers who have encountered temporary difficulties.

The document regulates the payment of debts to the National Tax Administration Agency (ANAF) in installments. Beneficiaries may be both legal entities and individual taxpayers.

The emergency ordinance will take effect after publication in the Official

The Romanian government will keep the flat tax and VAT at their current level this year, and consider changing them only in the future, Prime Minister Emil Boc said last week, according to Mediafax newswire.

“As agreed with the European Commission and the International Monetary Fund, today we have macroeconomic stability. Currently, the state budget is based on a flat tax of 16 percent and VAT of 24 percent and these levels will be kept in 2011. We will see in the future what we will do,” said the PM Democratic Liberal Party vice-president Adriean Videanu said recently that the ruling coalition would discuss a pack-

Local MEP booed in European Parliament over bribe scandal Romanian MEP Adrian Severin is embroiled in a corruption scandal after reportedly agreeing to accept payment for forwarding an amendment, when approached by Sunday Times journalists posing as lobbyists. Two other MEPs named in the scandal have tendered their resignation, but Severin refused to do so, for which he was booed in the EP. “Resignations on corruption charges are virtually unknown in Romania, and bribery scandals are so common that they rarely make international news,” says The Economist. age of economic measures that could include reducing the flat tax and simplifying the tax system.

A similar stance was taken by Andreea Paul-Vass, adviser to the PM, last month when she said that among the government’s fiscal priorities this year was reducing social contributions, and on the long run, cutting VAT and reducing the flat tax. She said at that time that there was a “high probability” that social contributions would be cut during the second semester of 2011.

STATISTICS Unemployment falls to 6.6 percent in February The unemployment rate declined to 6.58 percent in February, from 6.74 percent a month earlier, according to the National Employment Agency (ANOFM). In Feb-

ruary, the jobless total stood at 8.3 percent.

The total number of unemployed people reached 600,308 in February, down from 614,976 people in the previous month, the ANOFM said.

LEGAL Bostina & Asociatii to provide legal consultancy in large environmental project in Cluj and Salaj Law firm Bostina & Asociatii will provide legal advice for a major environmental project in Cluj and Salaj.

The firm will give legal support to the beneficiary of the project to repair water and sewage infrastructure in the region of Cluj-Salaj, in Compania de Apa Somes.

The project comes to nearly RON 733

www.business-review.ro Business Review | March 28 - April 3, 2011

4 NEWS

NEWS in brief million. Some 85 percent of the necessary funds will come from the cohesion fund, 13 percent will be financed from the state budget and 2 percent from local funds.

OPSPI selects Musat & Asociatii for listing of 15 percent in Transelectrica Law firm Musat & Asociatii has been selected by the Office for State Interests and Industrial Privatization (OPSPI) to provide legal advice throughout the process of selecting and contracting the intermediary for the secondary offering for 15 percent of Transelectrica shares, one of the largest transactions to take place this year on the Bucharest Stock Exchange (BSE).

“In the coming period we will prepare the task book and launch the tender to select

the brokerage house which will mediate the stake for sale on the BSE,” said Miruna Suciu, who will coordinate the Musat & Associates team for the project. The law firm’s portfolio for the energy sector includes projects such as the privatization of Electrica Muntenia Sud, Termoelectrica debt restructuring worth EUR 1.2 billion and Enel assisting in the construction of reactors 3 and 4 at Cernavoda, an investment estimated at EUR 4 billion.

RETAIL bauMax opens second store in Bucharest Austrian DIY retailer bauMax has opened a new store in Bucharest. bauMax Chiti-

la is the company’s second store in the capital after the one in Sun Plaza and the 14th on the local market.

It has a surface of 15,000 sqm. Out of all the foreign players active on the local DIY market, bauMax was the retailer with the most dynamic expansion last year.

The Austrian chain opened four new units in Bucharest, Pitesti, Constanta and Timisoara, bringing its local network to 13 outlets.

The expansion provided the company with a 25 percent turnover increase in 2010 on 2009.

In 2011, the company expects a 5 percent turnover increase in like-for-like stores and a 30 percent increase in the total national turnover, based on new openings.

Arctic posts EUR 200 mln turnover in 2010 Electronic appliances producer Arctic posted a turnover of EUR 200 million in 2010, 6 percent more than in the previous year. More than 80 percent of this sum came from the sale of products made in Gaesti.

Last year the plant expanded its production unit by 17 percent compared to the previous year, to 1.4 million units. Exports represent 80 percent of Arctic’s local production.

The volume of exported units increased by 18 percent from 835,000 in 2009 to 986,000 units last year.

The refrigerators manufactured in Gaesti are sold on markets such as Turkey, Spain, France, Germany, England and Poland.

Arctic invested EUR 6.5 million in its production unit in Gaesti, mainly in making processes more efficient, new technologies and growing production capacity.

The company reached a market share of 35.5 percent in 2010. Arctic is part of the group Arcelik, the third largest European producer of electronic appliances.

It has 2,438 employees.

IT&C New Tech Consulting opens first subsidiary in Timisoara New Tech Consulting, a Romanian provider of IT consultancy and services, has opened its first subsidiary in Timisoara.

The unit will be functional as of this month and is the first in a series that the company plans to open.

The decision to open in Timisoara was based on demand for this type of IT business services and the local and regional potential of companies in the city.

The firm’s activities at a regional level will be coordinated by Cristian Raiescu, territory manager, west region.

“The western part of the country has significant importance for New Tech Consulting in our national and regional expansion plans. It is a region in which many companies have reached technological maturity, which brings the need to optimize IT processes and security,” said Raiescu.

The company aims to offer assistance to companies in business optimization as well as training solutions. By the end of the year, New Tech plans to open a training center in Timisoara.

Company representatives say the IT outsourcing market will grow over the next two years and demand will come mostly from SMEs. By the end of the year, New Tech plans to open another two subsidiaries while in the following two years, the company plans to cover all the developing regions in Romania.

New Tech Consulting is a company with Romanian private capital that was founded in 2005. Last year it posted a turnover of EUR 300,000.

www.business-review.ro Business Review | March 28 - April 3, 2011

6 NEWS POWER

3Q TOLGA ORAN sales & marketing country manager, Gefco Romania

The experience I have in the car industry is for sure an advantage as the automotive sector is a core business for the Gefco Group and for Gefco Romania, even though we are now diversifying our customer portfolio and providing services to various other sectors: retail, white goods, electronics, aerospace and industry.

The duration of my stay in Romania is not determined; it will very much depend on the opportunities. And this country is full of opportunities.

Courtesy of Petrom

How has your background in engineering, pharmaceuticals and the car industry helped you in your current position?

My educational background in engineering gives me a clear methodology and logical mindset which definitely helps when studying a complex logistics scheme and when I have to find the most productive solution. Indeed, methodology and the continuous search for productivity are two key success factors in the logistics and transport business.

Petrom closes Arpechim refinery

This is the end: landlocked Arpechim has been declared unviable by Petrom

O

il company Petrom is permanently closing the Arpechim refinery, the firm has announced.

Company officials attributed the move to

the need to increase efficiency.

The option of selling the facility, which was under consideration last year, is not feasible, say Petrom officials, since

RETAIL

IT&C

Metro Group posts local sales of EUR 1.83 billion in 2010

What are your main marketing strategies at Gefco and what companies do they generally target?

Our budget last year allowed us to implement various communication and marketing projects, including the celebration of our five years of presence in Romania. From the marketing point of view, we have four main objectives: strengthen our relationship with our current and prospective customer, increase our awareness of the local market, position ourselves as experts in multi-modal solutions and complex logistics schemes and implement environmental and CSR projects.

What have your biggest challenges been so far in Romania?

The biggest challenge for me was to become familiar with the market specifics which have a huge impact on our business; for instance, infrastructure or unbalanced flows. It gave me the opportunity to learn about the local specifics and to develop regional expertise. corina.dumitrescu@business-review.ro

DCS invests EUR 3 million in internet bandwidth

D

Courtesy of Metro

Our competitive advantage is that we have a very well developed marketing and communication department in our group headquarters (Paris) which sets the strategic guidelines. We are able to adapt those guidelines to the local specifics and also to carry out local actions, adapted to the market.

no credible buyer with the operating expertise and financial resources to undertake such a project was identified.

Investments in Arpechim are a challenge as it is a landlocked refinery, which imports crude oil and exports finished products.The decision will have a negative impact on the local fuel supply market. After halting the refinery, a series of tanks, logistics infrastructure and other facilities will continue to be operated as a deposit. To this end, a skeleton staff will continue to work at the site, said the company.

Employees affected by the decision will receive compensation based on seniority. On top of this, Petrom has undertaken to bear the costs of its former employees undergoing vocational re-training courses. The total amount of compensation and other social protection measures will reach about EUR 10 million.

Europe’s total refining capacity is expected to drop significantly in the coming years as companies try to adapt their business strategies to the market conditions. According to Petrom officials, Romania has registered an increase in refining units. ∫ Dana Verdes

Metro Cash & Carry saw its sales fall 7.3 percent last year

G

erman Metro Group, which operates Metro Cash & Carry and Real hypermarkets locally, posted sales of EUR 1.83 billion in Romania last year, down 3.5 percent against 2009. The drop was generated by a 7.3 percent sales decrease for Metro Cash & Carry (EUR 1.13 billion) while Real saw its sales go up by 3.4 (EUR 694 million) in 2010.

“Sales in Eastern Europe increased by 13.1 percent to EUR 3.1 billion (in local currencies: +6.1 percent). While sales in Russia and Turkey grew dynamically, the difficult economic environment caused sales in Romania to decline,” reads the company’s report.

Worldwide, Metro Group registered sales of EUR 67.3 billion, 2.6 percent more than in 2009. The EBIT before special items soared by nearly 20 percent to EUR 2.41 billion. In 2010, the company opened 100 new stores worldwide, two of which were in Romania, one Real hypermarket and one Metro Cash & Carry unit.

Metro Group’s local network is made up of 26 Metro Cash & Carry stores and 25 Real hypermarkets. Plans for 2011 include the opening of another 110 units, with a clear focus on the Asian market.

Currently, the retailer operates more than 2,100 stores in 33 countries. ∫ Simona Bazavan

CS has invested EUR 3 million in internet bandwidth. The project was implemented on a national level over the course of one year and was carried out with an investment of EUR 3 million. “According to a recent study, the ratio of internet users in Romania has increased tenfold, from 3.6 percent in 2000 to 35.5 percent in 2010 in urban areas.

However, there are differences between the urban, small-urban and rural environments, which will lead to the growth of the market. We are confident in the chances of evolution of rural areas over the next three-five years so that the gaps between the three areas will become less significant,” said Dinu Malacopol, CEO of DCS. Internet services represent more than 25 percent of the total revenues of AKTA division. Over the last two years, the number of internet subscribers posted annual growth in excess of 35 percent. The company offers three types of internet subscriptions, of 8 Mbps, 14 Mbps and 20Mbps, and internet clients are divided fairly evenly among the three. Digital Cable Systems was founded in 2005 and comprises two divisions, the AKTA division for residential consumers and Dial Telecom, for business customers. ∫ Otilia Haraga

www.business-review.ro Business Review | March 28 - April 3, 2011

NEWS 7

INSURANCE

POWER

Signal Iduna Romania increases social capital

by EUR 2 mln

Iberdrola Renovables starts wind IT firms ‘to farm construction in Dobrogea raise salaries’

I

nsurance firm Signal Iduna has announced that it increased its social capital by almost EUR 2 million this month to EUR 14.99 million.

The company’s main shareholders are Signal Iduna Holding AG and Signal Krankenversicherung AG. Leslie Breer, president of Signal Iduna Romania, said the recent capital injection confirms the company’s commitment to the local market and its plans to continue investing here. In 2010 and 2011 the company has increased its social capital by almost EUR 4 million. “The prolonged local crisis hasn’t changed our objectives as a company. Signal Iduna continues to be committed to the goal of bringing quality private health insurance to Romania,” said Breer. He added that this year the firm also plans to focus on expanding its accident and life insurance product portfolio ∫ Simona Bazavan

HEALTHCARE

Roche diagnosis division expects RON 90 mln turnover

T

he diagnostics division of Roche Romania registered a 10.2 percent increase in turnover against 2009, reaching RON 86.9 million. Expectations for the year to come are moderate. Harald Wolf, country manager at Roche Romania diagnostics division, expects RON 90 million of sales this year.

Moreover, the company has announced the availability of a new test for the detection of HPV. Speaking at a press conference, Mihaela Badea, doctor and managing director at the Micomi clinic, said that cervical cancer was one of the most serious diseases facing women today.

In Romania, it is the second biggest cause of death for women, after breast cancer. Some 2,000 deaths are registered in Romania yearly, while a total of 15,000 local patients suffer from the disease.

Marcel Gmuender, head of EMEA Subregion 1 at Roche Diagnostics, said, “Although the complete potential of personalized medicine has not yet been reached, in medical practice we are already seeing the gradual change from a generalized approach to targeted, personalized treatments.”

Roche’s diagnostics division has been on the Romanian market for two years, since May 2009. It currently has 75 employees, covering the entire country, of whom 27 were recruited last year. ∫ Corina Dumitrescu

The wind farm is being built in Dobrogea

I

berdrola Renovables has begun construction work at the 80 megawatt (MW) Mihai Viteazu wind farm in

IT&C

Romania, which will be the company’s first in Romania. The wind farm is being built in Constanta county in the Dobrogea region. The Mihai Viteazu facility is to be built with Gamesa technology (comprising forty 2 MW wind turbines) and will be commissioned by year-end. This largescale project will involve the starting up of as many as 50 wind farms with combined capacity of up to 1,500 MW. The company plans to build these facilities gradually between 2011 and 2017.Iberdrola Renovables has already signed an off-take agreement with the Romanian network operator setting the terms for connecting the planned 1,500 MW of new capacity to the national grid, including the agreement for the grid connection of phase one, encompassing 600 MW. ∫ Dana Verdes

I

T companies in the western part of Romania will increase the level of salaries by 10 percent on average in 2011, according to the AIMS Salary Map IT Study carried out by AIMS Human Capital. The study focuses exclusively on the R&D area in the western part of the country. The average gross monthly salary for a senior software developer is RON 6,711 while a junior developer earns on average RON 2,994 per month. However, there are companies that pay juniors in programming better, so their salaries can vary between RON 1,040 and RON 6,060 per month. The difference is based on skills, salary policies and the candidate’s negotiation skills when hired.

The study focused on salaries for 25 specific positions in the IT industry. It included 30 companies. ∫ Otilia Haraga

www.business-review.ro Business Review | March 28 - April 3, 2011

8 NEWS RETAIL

Romanian beer market declines for second consecutive year

Photo: Laurentiu Obae

according to Jan Derck van Karnebeek, president of the Brewers of Romania Association. Due to market conditions, 2010 saw the closure of three local breweries

by Ursus, Heineken and Bergenbier.

“Although the beer industry in 2010 faced a series of changes due to the economic recession, strongly affecting the level of investment and labor, and also the closure of some breweries, we hope that through our sustained efforts we will maintain stability and also see the recovery of this sector with mainly local production,” said Constantin Bratu, general manager of Gone flat: the beer market is declining the Brewers of Romania Association.

The association’s members are Bergenbier, Heineken Romania, Romaqua The Romanian beer market contracted by Group, United Romanian Breweries and 3.5 percent last year, to 17 million hectoUrsus Breweries. Their cumulated inliters, announced the Brewers of Romavestments reached EUR 51 million in nia Association. In the past two years, the 2010, while their contribution to the market fell 16 percent against 2008, when state budget through taxes amounted the beer sales volume reached a peak of to EUR 270 million, up EUR 7 million 20.2 million hectoliters. Beer consumpcompared with 2009, according to data tion per capita in 2010 was 78 liters, continuing the slide which started in 2009. from the association. The five firm operate a total of ten beer factories and pro“This proves that the economic situation duced a total volume of 15.3 million hechas affected consumers and their contoliters in 2010, 4.4 percent less than in sumption habits,” said the association. In the previous year. This year, two new terms of packaging, consumers’ prefermembers have joined the Association, ences remained constant – PET (49.3 Soufflet Malt Romania and the Associapercent), glass bottle (31.7 percent), can (16 percent) and draught (3 percent). tion of Hops Producers from Romania. ∫ About 99 percent of the beer consumed Simona Bazavan in Romania is covered by local production,

WHO’S NEWS

Business Review welcomes information for Who’s News from readers. Submissions may be edited for length and clarity. Get in touch at simona.bazavan@business-review.ro

Alexandra Gatej of Maldon & Wat is the newly elected president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Romania (AmCham Romania) for the March 2011-March 2012 mandate. The new board of directors also includes Carmen Neagu, (General Electric) and Ionut Simion (PwC) as vice-presidents. Peter Weiss (Bancpost) was appointed treasurer while the other board members are: Wolfgang Schoiswohl (Banca Comerciala Romana), Tibor Pandi (Citibank), Pascal Prigent (GlaxoSmithKline), Radu Enache (Hewlett-Packard), Bogdan Balaci (IBM Romania), Ronald Binkofski (Microsoft) and Anda Todor (Salans).

an MBA from the Kadir Has University in Istanbul.

Mihai Barbut (41) has assumed the position of sales and customer care division director of Cosmote Romania. He is taking over from Nikolaos Choumis who was appointed chief commercial officer at Globul Bulgaria. Barbut joined the company in 2008 as indirect sales department senior manager. He has 14 years’ experience in telecommunications, in the area of direct and indirect sales, having worked for companies such as Orange and Telemobil. He graduated from the Technical University Gheorghe Asachi.

Peter de Ruiter

Alina Cranga

partner, tax and legal services, at PricewaterhouseCoopers, was elected as the new president of the Netherlands-Romanian Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture (NRCC). He graduated as a tax lawyer from the University of Leiden, and started his career as a tax advisor in the Netherlands. He continued his work in Poland and in 2005 came to Romania with PricewaterhouseCoopers. As PwC partner, de Ruiter is responsible for the tax and legal advisory practices. He also manages the PwC CEE Tax Academy, an internal post-graduate master development program.

joins BrandTailors as client service coordinator. In this position she will be responsible for coordinating the team’s client service and project management activities, in addition to other management duties. She previously worked for the firm between 2007 and February 2010 in the position of account manager. Cranga has also worked for the Tiriac Holding as marketing specialist.

Okan Yurtsever (39) is the new general director of Garanti Leasing. He previously led the retail banking and bancassurance division of Garanti Bank from April 2007.

Yurtsever began his career in banking in 1996 and joined Garanti Bank Turkey the following year. He graduated from the Faculty of Political Science from the Ankara University. Yurtsever also holds

Raluca Teodorescu joins Oxygen PR as account manager. She has professional experience of over 11 years in journalism and marketing. Teodorescu previously worked for Mediafax Group where she served as marketing manager business press. Between 2004 and 2006 she worked as a journalist specialized in media and advertising. Teodorescu began her career in journalism in 2000.

She graduated from the Faculty of Journalism in Bucharest.

POWER

Petrom sees management changes Petrom has announced a series of management changes which have been decided by the company’s supervising council. After Wolfgang Ruttenstorfer left OMV, Gerhard Roiss, former vicepresident of the supervising council of Petrom and the new CEO of OMV Aktiengessellschaft starting next month, was appointed president of the supervising council effective March 25. Manfred Leitner was appointed interim member of the supervising council starting March 25 and until the next shareholders’ meeting. Leitner will also be a member of the OMV Aktiengessellschaft directorate, replacing Roiss.

The directorate has also undergone some changes which include the appointment of Rainer Schlang as responsible for the management of OMV Petrom

Marketing, covering Romania, Serbia, Bulgaria and the Republic of Moldova. He will also continue as president of the board of directors of Petrom LPG SA & Petrom Aviation SA. From April 17 the Petrom directorate will have five members elected for a four-year period: Mariana Gheorghe, president of the directorate and general executive director; Daniel Turnheim, member of the directorate and financial director; Johann Pleninger, member of the directorate responsible for exploring and production activities; Neil Anthony Morgan, member of the directorate responsible for refining and marketing; and Hilmar Kroat-Reder, member of the directorate responsible for activities related to natural gas, energy and chemical products.

www.business-review.ro Business Review | March 28 - April 3, 2011

TALENT 9

Dealing in discounts As consumers tighten their belts and companies try to survive, Luciana Zamfirescu seized on the zeitgeist by adopting the collective buying concept and has built her business into one of the major players on the local market.

She talked to BR about the genesis of her company and her strategy: today Romania, tomorrow Europe. ∫ ANDA SEBESI

Photo: Laurentiu Obae

Luciana Zamfirescu, managing partner of Top Deals, decided to become an entrepreneur in 2003. Her professional background is varied, as she spent ten years working for different multinational companies as trainer, sales manager and deputy general manager.

As an entrepreneur, Zamfirescu has embraced innovation, with the latest business she has launched being Top Deals (www.topdeals.ro), an online collection of discounts offered by local restaurants, pubs, clubs, beauty salons, spas, theaters, cinemas, concerts and many other products and services.

The formula is simple: a user creates her or his own account on the site and agrees to receive daily offers. A specific offer can be taken up directly from www.topdeals.ro, with the customer paying by card or through bank transfer. Offers posted on the site are valid for three to four days, not just 24 hours as is typical on such websites. The company takes a fee for each transaction completed through its website.

“I was familiar with the concept of collective buying from the US and I thought it would be a very interesting business to launch in Romania. Initially, when we started to build this project there was no such website, at least not using our specific format. But by the time we went live, there were about four-five,” says Zamfirescu. The businesswoman initially intended to operate as a franchise – livingsocial.com – but later realized that would not have worked as well.

The idea to set up topdeals.ro was prompted by the current economic conditions, as consumers have less money in their pockets and businesspeople are striving to keep their companies afloat.

“Our concept involves free advertising while the customer pays a very low price for a specific product or service. In short, the current downturn generated this business and it is the right business for the right economic context. On top of that, it represents a win-win situation for all the parties involved in the process,” says the entrepreneur.

Top business: Luciana Zamfirescu built her business on the collective buying concept Asked to identify the most difficult moment her business has faced, Zamfirescu says that it is important to draw a clear distinction between hard times and the general prudence required to run such a business.

“You need to be very careful to make sure that customers who buy from topdeals.ro enjoy high quality services despite paying a lower price. In addition, our partners have been advised to treat customers who have vouchers from topdeals.ro as the best and most loyal ones, in order to make our promotional campaign very efficient and to have a good return, both in terms of new business and customer retention,” adds the entrepreneur.

If she started another company, Zamfirescu would draw on all of her experiences in business, because each of them has had an impact to her and she has learned a lot from all the situations she has faced. “No one has the recipe for success in business from the very beginning, so each step you take – right or wrong –

serves its own purpose: making you more experienced. Plus, it offers you the opportunity to extend yourself,” says the businesswoman. “Each experience helps you to evolve. So I treat all of them as useful learning experiences.”

Established: 2010 Zamfirescu chose to set up a business Number of employees: 12 in an environment full of professional 2011 estimated turnover: EUR 1 million hurdles, but as she is a bold entrepreneur Initial investment: EUR 30,000 she looks on the bright side of that decision.

“There are a lot of challenges but at the “But our real competition is the top end of the day it is all about foreseeing the three-four players on the market,” says the dynamic of the business and adapting rapmanaging partner. On top of that she says idly to the new context. The collective buythat the market positioning of her site – top er is a new and successful concept but it services for premium customers – is what is changing rapidly. If you are not on top differentiates her firm from the crowd. of things and careful you will be left be- “Besides, we were both the innovator hind. And after that it is very difficult to reand pioneer on this market,” adds Zamgain your previous position on the market,” firescu.

As for her future plans, Zamfirescu says cautions the entrepreneur. she intends to transform www.topdeals.ro Among the many challenges inherent in her line of work, Zamfirescu is active on into a market leader from all perspectives a pretty crowded market – she says about and to expand its activity on other Euro100 similar sites have appeared locally in pean markets, most likely next year. the last three months. anda.sebesi@business-review.ro

COMPANY PROFILE TopDeals

www.business-review.ro Business Review | March 28 - April 3, 2011

10 FOCUS

Downturn do upend upma

The local luxury market is described as mature by specialists ranking Poland, for example. Although local brands have so f market is expected to grow – in spite of the crisis – due to Ro zling diamonds, huge houses and catwalk clothes seem to pr bling-hungry wannabes. BR talked to the experts to get the lo

∫ CORINA DUMITRESCU To a foreigner, Romania often seems like a country of contrasts. Decades-old Dacias punt along the road, overtaken by the latest Italian, German or British sports cars that only a small percentage of the world’s population can afford. Some of their drivers may spend a lifetime paying for their fancy vehicles and may never own a house of their own. But first impressions count to such people, who want to impress others with their apparent successful lives and careers, the prestige of owning a luxury brand and of standing out from the crowd. Of course, besides the occasional consumers of extravagant products, there are the privileged few for whom luxury is their dayto-day lifestyle, and these are the main focus of this article.

Oliver Petcu, Cpp Luxury Industry Management Consultants managing director, estimates the current value of the local luxury market at EUR 450 million per year (without including fivestar hotels and perfumes). “Currently we are at the level of Poland, above Bulgaria, but below Ukraine, Russia and even Serbia,” adds Petcu. He tells Business Review that the best sold products on the local high-class market are perfumes (Chanel, Dior, Givenchy, Armani), accessories (Louis Vuitton), champagne (Moet Chandon) and fashion – “generally menswear, but not a particular brand”.

Luxury brands continue to enter the market, as is the case of Gucci, which officially launched its 290-sqm shop on the ground floor of the Athenee Palace Hilton hotel this month (an opening postponed from 2008), after an investment reportedly reaching EUR 1.5 million. Burberry and Prada are also expected to join the fray.

But not all the big names are on their way. “We still do not have major brands such as Hermes, Burberry, Ralph Lauren and Chanel because the local franchisers or partners with the necessary experience and funds are missing,” says Petcu. Moreover, he adds, a dedicated commercial artery is also needed and Bucharest seems

to lack “a department store or real-estate project like a shopping center or mall to include more brands and become a destination.” Some might suggest that Cocor Store, launched in September last year as a luxury department store, fits the bill.

However, the location is not currently luxury-exclusive, as more affordable brands

www.business-review.ro Business Review | March 28 - April 3, 2011

FOCUS 11

doesn’t arket sector

alists and said to be one of the largest in the region, oute so far failed to gain entry to this exclusive category, the to Romanians’ appetite for status symbols. Costly cars, dazto present an irresistible attraction to both the rich and the lowdown on the high-end market.

Photo: Laurentiu Obae

are also stocked. Moreover, the store seems to be focusing more and more on local designers’ creations, which do not yet meet luxury criteria.

Wanted: Serial luxury shopper But who is this much talked about customer that luxury brands are so avid-

ly targeting? “There are around four categories,” says Petcu.

“There is the connoisseur: a doctor, lawyer, notary, top executive, aged between 30 and 60 and from Bucharest, Cluj, Timisoara, Constanta or Iasi.” Next is the “aspirational” user, who Petcu says may be found in middle management po-

www.business-review.ro Business Review | March 28 - April 3, 2011

12 FOCUS pean capitals. The typical user of spa services, Paraipan explains, is “an active person interested in adopting a healthy lifestyle to improve their wellbeing and function better.” Both men and women use spas, and they are generally aged between 25 and 45.

Things also seem to be looking up for the local car industry. Forza Rossa, Ferrari’s importer in Romania, has received 27 orders locally since the beginning of the year, almost 2011’s target of 28 units, said the director of the dealership in a recent announcement.

Forza Rossa will launch two new models this year, the Ferrari Four in MayJune, and towards the end of the year another model about which no details have been disclosed.

Local luxury brands still on the starting blocks Courtesy of Eden Spa

Liliana Paraipan, general manager of Eden Spa, speaks of a flourishing market

sitions in large companies. Of course, there is also the “on-off” buyer, marked by the instability of his/her occupation or source of funds – “those who make socalled quick money, the entrepreneurs,” who are by no means faithful and stable consumers. And don’t forget the “snobbish” user – “sportsmen, VIPs, television stars, owners of small businesses (the corner shop type).”

What matters the most to these users, regardless of their profile, is the resonance of the brand, says Petcu, especially as concerns fashion, accessories and jewelry. Quality comes next, “an advancement from previous years when it used to rank third.”

High-class brands defy crisis with development plans Dana Petcu, country manager at EPCD RO, Dior’s subsidiary in Romania, which was founded in November 2010 and become operational in March 2011, spoke of how luxury brands had had to adapt to the financial downturn.

“The crisis affected different categories, cosmetics included, due to some direct or indirect factors. Our partners, the retailers, have already opted for market repositioning, by closing some nonperforming locations, opening or relocating others. Bearing in mind the customer, the brands have become closer and closer to them, competing with top services, which is mandatory for the luxury business.”

So, if the customer doesn’t come to the store, then the store must come nearer to the customer.

On the same note, Italian jeweler Cielo Venezia 1273 announced last year

per year, the current value of the local luxury market

“In the end, if a location is properly designed by architects, the products can be placed as per the guidelines. But what takes time, for all local luxury segments, is to get the mentality and quality of staff,” Dana Petcu, country manager at EPCD RO, Dior subsidiary in Romania

“The market for luxury goods is a highly competitive, marketing intensive, very volatile niche one. Current and midterm domestic demand in Romania is not sufficient to feed the necessary growth in this market. The key challenge for such a strategy will be to avoid a copy-paste of successful results in one market onto another. What works in Romania might not work somewhere else and vice versa,” said consultant Michael Weiss of AT Kearney in a recent discussion with Busisome other companies in services that are ness Review. not yet visible. What is still missing is perWhat local brands seem to be lacking haps a flagship luxury brand with its in is the creativity and heritage of the top own products, but this will emerge in the international brands, Petcu explained, future hopefully.” adding that they, more interestingly, sufMoreover, Dana Petcu emphasizes fer due to a somewhat unexplained “hosanother key issue that affects the local tility to local products”. To achieve sucluxury market and sends shoppers abroad. cess abroad, Romanian firms need to “In the end, if a location is properly dework a little harder. Weiss adds: “New signed by architects, the products can be brands from Italy and France have the adplaced as per the guidelines. But what vantage that they can benefit from the takes time, for all local luxury segments, decades of intensive marketing of these is to get the mentality and quality of staff. countries. Compared to this, a new label Not only education makes the differfrom Romania needs to invest signifience, but mainly ‘bonnes manieres’, real cantly more to drum up similar awarecare for customers and general attitude ness.” and behavior, from the owners and top Dana Petcu of Dior, however, remains management to the front line, the sales people.” optimistic and is looking forward to the emergence of the first Romanian luxury corina.dumitrescu@business-review.ro

Dreamstime

EUR 450 mln

the launch of five new stores in Romania in the future.

The targeted locations were Iasi, Cluj, Brasov, Craiova and Pitesti. The company entered the local market in 2008, through a partnership with the jewelry chain Royal Caro, which resulted in the company Cielo Venezia 1270 RO. In 2008, it opened four shops in Romania, which it had upped to 10 by 2010.

The jeweler estimated its turnover for 2010 at RON 10 million, almost double the value registered in 2009, officials said during a press conference last year. The firm’s most expensive and sought after pieces can reach and even surpass EUR 25,000.

In Romania, the company has monthly sales of around EUR 200,000 per store, a rather low sum due to the economic context. “It takes six months for a store to reach break-even point,” said Alexandru Caravaniez, managing partner of the Romanian subsidiary, at the same press conference.

In estimations made by CPP-Luxury last year for the 2011 evolution of the luxury market, a slight growth was expected for the spa segment. Orhideea Health & Spa, located in Orhideea Gardens residential complex, opened in March this year, as the largest spa center in Bucharest.

The 3,000-sqm location offers various means of relaxation, including an artificial surface salt mine, a swimming pool, saunas and a fitness area. The operator, Eden Spa, invested EUR 3 million in the location.

“The spa market is in full development in Romania. Consumption demand is growing even during the crisis,” says Liliana Paraipan, general manager of Eden Spa. One explanation for this might lie in the fact that in the stressful context of the financial crisis the consumer requires more time for herself and to find an inner balance, adds Paraipan. The same desire may explain why CPP-Luxury’s evaluation also sees luxury travel consumers embracing trends such as: once-a-year and shorter vacations and more frequent weekend breaks in Euro-

brand. “There are some local brands, some fashion retailers positioned as luxury brands with multi-brand presence in their shops, and I should say that the situation is constantly improving, although these brands’ image is mixed with the portfolio products’ image. There are also

Driving ahead: luxury vehicles are defying crisis with unexpectedly high orders

www.business-review.ro Business Review | March 28 - April 3, 2011

INTERVIEW 13 Spain where we have nine projects all in different stages. We plan to sell the energy to Enel and up until now we have received positive feedback from them.

Photo: Laurentiu Obae

Legal uncertainty is last straw for biomass projects Hundreds of millions of euros worth of investments in biomass are expected to be completed in Romania by 2014. Roger Preston, Eco2 representative in Romania, told Business Review that the main difficulty in giving a green light to these projects is the legislative uncertainty around the number of green certificates for biomass investments. ∫ DANA VERDES What are Eco2’s plans for the local market?

Eco2 has started the process to build two 40 MW straw-fired biomass power plant projects in Romania to produce electricity along the country’s cereal belt. The total investment in each plant could exceed EUR 100 million, while both plants will have installed power of 40 MW. Construction of the first biomass plant in Slobozia could begin at the end of 2012 with a finish date of 2014. We have focused on biomass as in many ways it is better than wind; for example a 10MW biomass plant will produce three times more electricity than a 10MW wind farm.

With biomass you get electricity 24 hours per day, but with wind you get energy only when the wind blows.

Why did Eco2 choose Romania for these investments?

I’ve been coming to Romania for about six-seven years and I have lived here permanently for three and a half years.

I’m beginning to know how things work

and what the main problems are. Traveling in the country I saw people burning their land, which is actually illegal, and I thought “what a waste of energy”. Then I contacted Eco2. At the beginning they were reluctant as they had heard about the corruption in Romania, but I managed to convince them as Romania has plenty of straw for such an investment project and also the green certificates scheme to support green energy investments. It took me a year to convince them. This was before the crisis happened. There were some delays because of the turmoil and because each project represents a EUR 100 million investment.

What is the current status of these projects?

Currently, we have secured the land in both Slobozia (5 hectares) and Rosiori de Vede (10 hectares). We are getting municipal land, as both mayors are keen on these investments as they will create jobs. At the beginning we wanted to buy the land in Slobozia from a private owner. We didn’t go through with the deal as

this private owner demanded too much money.

It is a slow process as there are 36 permits which we have to secure in order to get a green light for the actual investment.

We estimate that it will take us between one year and 18 months to get all the approvals and permits. It will be a turn-key operation and we are going to use up-todate German, Danish or Swedish technology. We will employ about 200 people in the construction phase from the local area and 30 in the operational phase.

What are the main challenges for these projects?

So, the first investment will be started in Slobozia. We need to collect 240,000 tons per year of corn, rape, maize or sunflower straw from local farms to be transported to each biomass plant. For the project to work we will have to collect the straw within a 60 km range of local farm, otherwise it becomes too expensive as we will have to add transportation costs.

We have been running this business quite successfully in the UK and also in

Do you have contracts inked with local farmers?

We have talked with some major farmers about supplying raw material, but they need very big bailers. Of all the farmers with whom we have talked so far, very few of them have the necessary equipment to do the job. It is very important as this could mean about EUR 2-3 million per year for them. To get the machines the farmers could access European funds.

In fact, we have organized roadshows to promote the advantages of accessing EU funds for agricultural technologies.

The plan is to sign 12-year contracts with farmers and we guarantee them EUR 40 per ton of straw delivered as we are going to spend EUR 8-10 million per year.

We will give them a good price similar to the prices in the UK and Spain. This is why we didn’t want to cheat them. Up until now we haven’t signed any contracts with farmers as we have just started: it takes us 18 months to get the licensing and an additional two years to actually build the plant. We can also use some 20 percent wood chips for the plants. One good thing about Romania is because of the various harvests we will have several months to collect straw from the fields which means lots of raw material for our plant. We should have about six big trucks with raw materials entering the plant every day.

Where will you get the financing?

The company will partly finance the project, but we will also get funds from financial institutions interested in supporting green energy projects. The way that Eco2 works is that they sell their projects. Currently there are investors – Spanish ones – interested in buying these projects. It takes up to six years to reach the break-even point, provided that they maintain the green certificates level. Also, there is another certificate for high efficiency cogeneration – currently unclear – as we will try to sell the heat to business.

This could be another revenue stream which we haven’t researched in depth.

Until all these aspects are clarified it is difficult to make forecasts.

Under what circumstances could Eco2 not complete these investments?

We will continue and keep our commitments providing the Romanian law supporting green energy investments stays as it is. We will not start the investment until we are sure about this. The Romanian authorities have to keep it the same, otherwise they will miss billions of euros of investments. We think there is a conflict between green certificates and structural fund concepts. We are not looking for structural funds. As long as they maintain the level of three green certificates for biomass investments it make financial sense to go ahead with the projects. We are a little bit cautious so we have contracted the land for the investment for two years, with the clause that if during the period we do not get the permits we have no obligation to buy the land. We still have time as we started the permit procedures – which cost us EUR 500,000 – about two months ago. We are also looking to get a wood chip plant in the Carpathians.

www.business-review.ro Business Review | March 21 - 27, 2011

14 LINKS

Industry looks ahead to LTE implementation Countries like the United States, Japan and some northern European states are spearheading the transition to LTE/4G, described as the cutting-edge technology of the future for mobile data. Romania is a market at odds with itself, as it is driven both by the penchant of the end-user for low prices but also by the big pull of last-generation services, which may set it on the 4G path before other countries in the region. The market is already starting to move in this direction, with preliminary talks underway among suppliers of network capabilities and telecom operators. ∫ OTILIA HARAGA

STOCKEXCHANGE

“4G/LTE is a reality. The question is not if this technology will be introduced, but when exactly. From a technological standpoint, Europe is following in the footsteps of the USA. In the US, this technology is already functional, owned by two large operators AT&T and Verizon Wireless,” Raoul Ros, vice-president of Alcatel-Lucent for Eastern and Southern Europe, tells BR. Long Term Evolution (LTE) is said to enhance the experience of the end-user since it provides a superior network and higher transfer speeds, which can surpass 100 Mb/second. 4G/LTE is the first radio mobile technology tailor-made for data traffic, and so is more efficient than 2G and 3G, which were developed and optimized mainly for voice traffic.

LTE can offer mobile access at lower prices than 3G and 3.5G technologies that are now in use, say industry players, and will penetrate the market when the need for higher speeds becomes obvious.

The growth in traffic will also push up prices, thus creating the demand for the introduction of LTE. To set the 4G/LTE technology in place, there are several requirements: available spectrum for this technology, licenses granted for the spectrum, compatible handsets and telecom operators willing to make the necessary investments. “A realistic term from our point of view for having the first completely functional commercial network in Romania is approximately three to five years,” says Ros. This year and the next should see significant progress in the launch of data and voice handsets to accommodate this technology. Their penetration on the market will depend on when the 4G networks are in place and when 4G commercial services are launched.

Countries in Western Europe, especially northern ones like Sweden, Norway, Germany and Austria, are spearheading this change. Some of them have already launched mobile data services commercially; others have granted licenses and started to install the networks.

By 2015, it is estimated that Romanians will use over 7.5 million laptops and

Industry insiders say LTE technology will bring time and cost savings – but is the local market ready for it yet?

PCs and over 26.7 million mobile phones daily. According to Nokia Siemens Networks, more than 13,221,544 Terabytes of traffic per year will be generated. In this context, LTE will be the technology able to provide higher broadband speeds.

“Based on the progress registered by devices, networks and new services, there has been a boom in the use of mobile broadband which has transformed the habits and expectations of the users.

They are starting to use more sophisticated applications and services than just e-mail and internet surfing. LTE offers greater network efficiency, an optimum use of the spectrum and impressive speeds,” says Dragos Chivu, country director at Nokia Siemens Networks.

“The Romanian authorities have said that the switch to digital television should be made by 2015. In this context, operators will soon be able to expand the coverage of broadband services by exploiting the digital dividends that will become available.”

The implementation of LTE technology in Romania will first of all require available spectrum – in this case, the digital dividend and 2.6 GHz bandwidth.

At the moment, the spectrum is not available. “There are ongoing discussions to clear this spectrum. Here at ANCOM, we hope the Romanian government will approve a new strategy for digital television this year. In this way, the authority will be able to grant the licenses

for radio frequencies in the terrestrial digital system,” Catalin Marinescu, president of ANCOM, tells BR. Once the radio spectrum is clear, the digital dividend will become available and can be put up for public bidding, so that operators are able to develop and make available 4th generation services.

In Romania, the telecom regulator received requests from three companies for LTE experimental licenses in the spectrum 2.5-2.69 GHz, and granted them all. These requests came from operators Alcatel-Lucent, which asked for two licenses, in Bucharest and Timisoara, Nokia Siemens and Orange Romania, each requesting a license for Bucharest.

www.business-review.ro Business Review | March 21 - 27, 2011

LINKS 15

Courtesy of PwC

Courtesy of ANCOM

Catalin Marinescu, president of ANCOM

Gabi Mustea, PwC consultancy manager

Madalina Suceveanu, chief technology officer at Orange Romania, tells BR: “We have had preliminary discussions both with ANCOM and with the main suppliers of this technology.” She adds that the investments the company will have to make are “significant” and would require “a major transformation of the current network architecture. Not only will the radio access level (the antennas) be affected, but also the telephony centers. The total investment will be directly dependent both on the frequency spectrum and the requirements that come with the decision to grant the licenses for this new technology,” says Suceveanu.

Alcatel-Lucent opened one of its six existing global centers for R&D of LTE

technology in the Romanian city of Timisoara. Earlier this year the company gave a public demonstration to interested parties – operators and authorities – of the LTE technology on a platform brought from the R&D center in Timisoara. Nokia Siemens Networks also gave a demonstration of its LTE end-to-end solution two weeks ago.

Next year it should be possible to organize public auctions to award LTE licenses in both spectrums that will be cleared by ANCOM. However, LTE adoption will also depend on how fast this technology evolves, since it is not yet a mature technology and at this point there are no voice handsets on the market compatible with it. Secondly, it will also depend on the economic climate in

Romania. “Without a doubt, Romanians ments in 4G networks here before this have shown a great deal of interest in mo- technological generation has proven itself bile internet services as well as in intel- in other countries in Europe, and before ligent handsets that facilitate the use of 3G-3.5G technology reaches maturity these services. This is visible in the high from the point of view of coverage, users growth rate in the number of mobile in- and traffic. ternet subscribers: at this point, factoring “A tighter budget crunch for end-users in all types of connections (including has led to a slight decrease in the conthose with lower capacity such as GPRS), sumption of telecom services and, as a rethe number of mobile internet sub- sult, operators have been more cautious scribers is higher than that of subscribers over new investments. Nevertheless, the to fixed internet,” Gabi Mustea, man- beginning of the year has, in my opinion, agement consultancy manager at PwC brought a bit more relief to the market Romania, tells BR. and we have seen operators speaking However, given the low average revmore freely about new investments and enue per subscriber in Romania com- projects. It is difficult to anticipate how pared to that of most EU countries, as well the market will develop, but I expect to as the cost of the investment necessary to see increased operator interest and some make the transition to LTE, he says it is interesting moves in terms of LTE soludifficult to anticipate the moment when tions in the next one or two years,” mobile operators in Romania will de- Michele Gressani, country manager at Ercide to adopt this standard. “The adop- icsson Romania, tells BR. One of the aces that a country like Rotion of LTE is contingent not only on the purchasing power of the public but also mania, which had “a relatively late start on the availability of content and appli- in the race for telecom development,” cations to create the demand for broad- has up its sleeve, is precisely the fact that band mobile internet that provides down- “it has little to worry about in terms of legaload capacities superior to those offered cy infrastructure. This makes it easier for Romania as a market to develop faster by 3G technology,” says Mustea.

Industry pundits seem to agree that in and move on to implementing the Romania, like anywhere, the investment latest technologies, such as LTE,” Gressani needed in LTE infrastructure will also de- says.

He adds that Romania is one the pend on the previous investments that telecom operators have made in their net- biggest IT&C markets in the region and works as well as the structure of those “singular” in terms of the speed at which it is developing. “Once the necessary networks.

The ANCOM president is of the opin- bandwidth for supporting LTE is freed, I ion that the competitive aspect of the Ro- am confident that Romania will be among manian market compared to other Euro- the first, if not the first, to implement pean markets suggests that it is less like- commercial LTE services,” predicts Gresly operators will make massive invest- sani.

www.business-review.ro Business Review | March 28 - April 3, 2011

16 INFRASTRUCTURE

Authorities hope airport expansions will get off the ground Fueled by the increasing presence of airlines, especially that of low-cost carriers, as well as by the authorities’ commitment to implement Schengen standards, Romanian airports have undergone various modernization projects over the past few years. In addition to this, promises of new commercial airports are pouring forth from politicians once again now that elections are looming. All this should make airport compounds and properties close to airports an attractive alternative investment. ∫ SIMONA BAZAVAN

Courtesy of Otopeni Airport

“Romania will be a construction site this year and I can guarantee you that this is a bet we are going to win,” said Anca Boagiu, minister of transport and infrastructure, during a transport conference last week. While Boagiu was mainly referring to the country’s network of roads and highways, Romania’s airport infrastructure could also well benefit from the same attention.

In addition to the two international airports in Bucharest, Henri Coanda International Airport and Bucharest Baneasa Aurel Vlaicu International Airport, there are another 15 commercial airports country-wide.

Out of these, only two, the international airport in Timisoara and the one in Cluj-Napoca, registered more than one million passengers last year. Fueled by the increasing presence of airlines, especially that of low-cost carriers that have included Romanian regional airports in their expansion programs, most of these regional airports have seen passenger increases in recent years and are confident that their number will continue to rise. All of Romania’s airports were built before 1990 and are in dire need of investment. While most of them have undergone various revamping projects in the past few years, work is still needed in order to bring them up to international standards and there still remains the question of having to build new commercial airports, a task that has proven impossible for the Romanian authorities so far.

“Since entering the European Union in 2007, all (Romanian) airports have come a long way but there is still room for improvement, especially at a regional level.

Many airports have the potential to become key hubs for the airline industry.

The airports where Wizz Air operates from are examples of operational efficiency, this being one decisive element when our company selects a future base,” said Balazs Varro, corporate communications manager at Wizz Air. Wizz Air operates in Romania from three bases, Bucharest Baneasa, Timisoara and Cluj Napoca. The company has recently announced the opening of its fourth base, in Targu-Mures. In 2010, Wizz Air transported 2.2 million passengers to and from Romania.

Aiming high: various plans for new airports and improvements to existing hubs are being floated

Local airports undergo facelifts Romania’s most important commercial airport, Henri Coanda International Airport, saw passenger traffic rise by almost ten percent last year, to about 4.9 million. The number is expected to reach 5.25 million by the end of 2011.

Bucharest’s two airports are managed by the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure through the Bucharest Airport National Company. The authorities’ current strategic program for the Otopeni airport runs from 2007 and 2022. Phase three of this program is expected to be finished in 2012 and requires an investment of EUR 150 million. The money is

coming from the company’s own funds and credit. A banking consortium made up of Banca Comerciala Romana BCR and BRD – Groupe Societe Generale is granting a EUR 100 loan to finance the third phase of the airport’s development and expansion phase. The credit is granted for a ten-year period.

At the end of March the expansion project of the airport’s Finger departure terminal, including implementing Schengen standards, will be completed. Following this, works will start on expanding the international departure terminal, the future Schengen/non-Schengen departure terminal, which should be delivered in July 2012. Other works on redesigning the

international arrivals and internal flights terminals into the new Schengen/nonSchengen arrival terminal should be completed by the end of December 2011.

Following all these infrastructure works, at the end of 2012 the Henri Coanda International Airport will have a capacity of 6 million passengers per year (from 4.5 million currently), 104 check-in desks (52 currently), 24 gates (10 currently), 6 baggage carousels (4 currently) and 14 jet bridges (6 currently). Overall, the airport’s level of services and comfort will be upgraded from a “C” category to “B”.

The long-term plan for the Baneasa airport, Bucharest’s second hub, is to transform it to host mainly business

www.business-review.ro Business Review | March 28 - April 3, 2011

INFRASTRUCTURE 17

Courtesy of Otopeni Airport

Airport capacity is being increased

flights, announced Boagiu last year. With a EUR 1 million investment, the airport will be reorganized, and most flights taking off from Baneasa will have a reduced capacity of around eight to ten seats.

The airport will have dedicated terminals for general aviation and VIPs. Other infrastructure works will accompany the transformation of the airport, such as the access infrastructure which will include an underground subway station and parking places. Low-cost flights are expected to be routed through Otopeni airport.

Regional airports across Romania have also seen various refurbishment and expansion projects over the last two years. Approximately RON 15.3 million was invested in building a new arrivals

terminal at the Traian Vuia International Airport in Timisoara. “The terminal will be used for all non-Schengen arrivals and the investment included not only the greenfield building but also acquiring all the necessary equipment,” airport representatives told Business Review. The investment was financed by the Ministry of Transport.

For 2011 the airport management has big plans that include repairing the runway, upgrading and expanding the planes’ platform, modernizing the air station as well as building a new one and starting work on a nearby hotel. The airport management would like to start work this year but the budget for these projects hasn’t yet been approved.

In 2010 the Traian Vuia International Airport in Timisoara saw 1.14 million passengers, 17 percent more than the previous year.

All Romanian airports that transit fewer than one million passengers per year, which means roughly 13 of the existing 17 commercial airports, are managed by county councils while the rest come under the control of the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure.

The Transilvania Targu Mures Airport had 74,893 passengers last year, 11 percent down on 2009. “In 2011 we plan to double this number to 150,000 passengers based on the contracts we have signed with various airlines,” airport representatives told Business Review. In the last few years, investments focused on upgrading the airport from a technological perspective. This included expanding the runway and the airport ramp, modernizing the lighting system and ac-

quiring new equipment. “These technical measures were redoubled by a strategy to cut by half the airport fees for airline operators and an aggressive marketing plan that targets increasing the number of passengers to up to 450,000 per year,” airport representatives added.

New airports on the runway In addition to upgrading existing infrastructure, the authorities have announced ambitious plans to build new airports, first mooted several years ago. So far, the projects remain on paper due to lack of financing and to red tape. Such is the case of the airport that should have been built in Brasov.

But over the coming years, Brasov could have not one, but two airports.

First there is the project of a small scale airport supported by the local authorities in Brasov, whose mayor, George Scripcaru, is a member of the ruling Democratic Liberal Party (PDL). The project is also backed by central PDL authorities in Bucharest.

The second project is that of a larger international airport, the Brasov Ghimbav International Airport, this one being endorsed by the Brasov County Council whose president, Aristotel Cancescu, is a member of the National Liberal Party (PNL). This second project is also being lobbied for by local representatives of the Social Democratic Party (PSD).

After year of debates over which project to chose, the authorities decided last year to give the green light to both projects and works should start this year.

Representatives of the Brasov Coun-

ty Council have announced that by the end of the month the public auction for the Brasov Ghimbav International Airport will be held. Several international companies and banks are interested in investing in the project, said Cancescu according to local media reports. He also stressed the fact that the investors will not be chosen based on the new PPP (public private partnership) law as it is “inapplicable and will remain so for at least the next six months” in his opinion. The new airport will cover a surface of 212 ha and will require an investment of EUR 60 million. Cancescu added that he is confident that the airport’s runway will be ready by June 2012.

Works on the Brasov Ghimbav International Airport could have started as early as 2007 when Canadian company Intelcan was selected to run the project. At that time the investment was set at EUR 100 million but the contract was re-written as Intelcan couldn’t find the necessary financing.

So far, Brasov County Council has spent RON 9.2 million on works on the site of the future airport. An additional EUR 2 million will be spent this year on changing the course of the Belsecin spring in the grounds of the airport.

Another airport is possible in Iasi. ”Currently there is a technical project for the building of a second airport in Iasi, following an investment of EUR 200 million,” Gheorghe Corjautanu, general manager of the Iasi Airport, told Business Review. The project is still in the process of finding the necessary financing.

simona.bazavan@business-review.ro

www.business-review.ro Business Review | March 28 - April 3, 2011

18

Winning line-up: the winners of the nine categories at this year’s Business Review gala awards take to the stage with their trophies

Business Review rewards innovative business practices in dark times Business Review has celebrated the best business practices of 2010 at a gala event which brought top figures from the business community to the Hilton hotel. ∫ STAFF During these times of economic turmoil, both nationally and internationally, Business Review last week honored the best business people and strategies of last year at its sixth annual gala awards. The jury selected nine winners from 46 nominees across nine categories: clean business, online project of the year, effective marketing, customer focus strategy, en-

trepreneur of the year, sustainable business practices, business leader of the year, deal of the year and excellence in business.

Steven van Groningen, Raiffeisen Bank president and president of the Business Review jury, commented that the competition was much tighter than on previous occasions.

“We had a very good list of nominees this year, and the jury results were much

closer than last year, which showed the fierce competition between the nominees.

The jury discussed and reviewed the criteria for each category, and the extent to which nominees met these criteria was evaluated by each member,” said van Groningen.

This year’s Business Review Annual Investments award jury was made up of van Groningen, Raiffeisen Bank; Serban Toader, senior partner and head of advi-

sory of KPMG Romania; Jean Valvis, CEO of Valvis Holding; Doru Lionachescu, chairman at Capital Partners; Linda Griffin, general manager at Athenee Palace Hilton; Eliza Rogalski, CEO of Tempo Creative Group; Robert Maxim, managing partner at Ensight Management Consulting; and Daniel Anghel, partner, indirect taxes, PwC.

editorial@business-review.ro

www.business-review.ro Business Review | March 28 - April 3, 2011

Ramona Brad, P&G Romania Clean Business Award

19

Yorgos Ioannidis, Romtelecom Online Project of the Year Award

Inaki Berroeta, CEO Vodafone Romania (right) Effective Marketing Award

Mariana Gheorghe, Foreign Investors Council (right) Business Leader of the Year Award

Xavier Piesvaux, Mega-Image Delhaize Group – Excellence in Business Award

Rucsandra Hurezeanu, Ivatherm Entrepreneur of the Year Award

Wargha Enayati, Regina Maria Private Medical Center (right) Deal of the Year Award

Bibiana Stanciulov, Magiun Topoloveni Sustainable Business Practices Award

Roxana Baias, Mercadia Group Customer Focus Strategy Award

All photos: Laurentiu Obae

Around 200 members of the business community attended the gala awards, which took place at the Hilton Hotel

The evening also provided networking opportunities

www.business-review.ro Business Review | March 28 - April 3, 2011

20 CITY RESTAURANT REVIEW

FILM REVIEW

Another fishy story

Wild Target

The Fishery, 17 B-dul Decebal MICHAEL BARCLAY

Photo: Laurentiu Obae

I could happily spend a lot of time in Decebal. It is lined with restaurants and bars which are so numerous they disappear over the horizon. The street is a grown up and adult alternative to Lipscani, and this is where grown up people like to meet, drink and dine.

So off we go to The Fishery. I have reached a point of despair trying to find fish restaurants in Romania which are the equal of fish restaurants in Europe. But I continue my lonely task and I can only report the best seafood restaurants in the land, and leave it up to you to decide if they match your expectations of fine fish cuisine. And on that note, The Fishery is OK! That means OK by Romanian standards, but not by mine.

The menu revealed ‘the usual suspects’ of fish which can be found on any menu in the land. And here begins the first problem. Romanian restaurateurs are prisoners of three fish importers who hold them to ransom by limiting their choices to the same, boring, river and Mediterranean fish. This results in a culinary prison sentence for the restaurateurs,

they could take you to heaven. But no! In this Balkan (Romania is not European) country the tradition is to heat fish, slap it on a plate and throw it at you. Skill and talent in the kitchen is not a requirement.

So the best you can expect is for your chosen fish to be tender and moist, rather than over cooked and burned. I am happy to say that this House gives it to you correctly.

So let’s eat. Starters were reasonably priced between RON 10-15. They were a selection of fish eggs and slices of smoked fish. If that does not turn you on, there were fish balls (an interesting concept) and numerous ‘gujons’ (schnitzel fried tiny pieces of fish) in small proportions at a small price. I saw ‘sardines in garlic sauce’ which were not sardines at all.

They arrived deep fried in flour as large ‘whitebait’… but they were not sardines!

Main courses were reasonably priced between RON 28-50. Yes, you have guessed it: you were restricted to prawns, trout, turbot, dorada, swordfish, carp and mullet. But only IF they had them!!

I asked my waiter to tell me what was NOT available, and I got bored listening to him before he finished his list.

Cod forsaken: Romania gets few fish Blondie and I waited for 30 minutes for our orders in a near empty restaurant, which told me that the kitchen was dewhich restricts them to unimaginative frosting our frozen fish. dishes. And worse still, if Romanian Away I went to a ‘trout in champagne chefs had formal training in cooking fish, sauce with andives’. But the fabulously sounding sauce was nothing more than a sickly yoghurt. The trout however was perfect, after I had scraped off the yog, which they should have warned us about on the menu.

And that was not the only menu mistake they made. For I ordered ‘clams (vongole) in white wine sauce. No they were not clams, but mussels (moules).

How could they be so stupid? This was not an English translation problem because they described them as ‘midii’ in Romanian, ergo ‘clams’. They just did not know what clams are, and yet they are a fish restaurant. But they were not bad.

They were generous in size, horribly coated in flour but mercifully undercooked and juicy.

Off we went to a large ‘salmon in caper sauce on a bed of ruccola’. Again, the salmon was perfect, but there was no ‘caper sauce.’ It was just a sprinkling of capers.

We ordered wine from an overpriced wine list. Romanian wines were listed as: Feteasca, or Cabernet Sauvignon, or Chardonnay… but without naming the brand. Given domestic prices, they were too expensive at RON 60, but unbelievably they had a bargain priced cocktail list at around RON 15. I defy you to find anywhere which sells a five liqueur ‘Long Island’ at that price.

But despite their mistakes, I would still urge you to go there. They are not bad, rather they are one of the best of a bad bunch. However, neither this House nor any other fish restaurant threatens the Crowne Plaza, which remains the top seafood restaurant in the land.

mab.media@dnt.ro

Wildly implausible: Nighy, Brint, Blunt

Directed by: Jonathan Lynn Starring: Bill Nighy, Emily Blunt, Rupert Grint

∫ DEBBIE STOWE You wait ages for a professional assassin action comedy, and then two come along at once. First there was Red, which spent tons of money wasting an A-list cast (Bruce Willis, John Malkovich, Helen Mirren, Morgan Freeman) on a lame plot.

Now comes Wild Target, which spent presumably less money (it’s British) wasting a jolly decent cast (Bill Nighy, Emily Blunt, Martin Freeman – no relation to Morgan), on the same lame plot.

That plot is this: Bill Nighy is Victor, a top-notch hitman from a long family line of paid killers. His latest assignment is to dispatch Rose (Emily Blunt), a charming kleptomaniac who has upset snooty villain Ferguson (a woefully underused Rupert Everett) by flogging him a fake Rembrandt. But sweet Rose wins his heart and he can’t pull the trigger – much to the despair of his murderous mummy who fears the family losing its ruthless reputation. So Ferguson hires another killer (Martin Freeman) to do away with both Victor and Rose, who go on the run after embroiling an innocent passer-by (Rupert Grint) in the deadly proceedings.

Of course, it’s preposterous. And that’s fine, as long as it sort of hangs together and gets the audience to suspend their disbelief. The problem is that Wild Target doesn’t quite manage it. It jars with some clunking scenes and dialogue, shoehorned in to propel the plot awkwardly forward.

Another problem here, and with the genre, is that action comedies are funny and murder, well, isn’t. In fact, murder is one of the least funny things, and murderers are, by and large, pretty unlikeable people. So an action comedy that tries to make murder funny and murderers likeable without the whole thing falling apart needs a deft touch and smart approach for its black humor to work, neither of which Wild Target enjoys.

But there are compensations: some witty lines, the irony of toffs who care about fine wines and table arrangements killing for a living, lively and laconic performances from Blunt and Nighy respectively and a dash of the British charm that on a good day gives us a Full Monty or a Four Weddings and on a not so good day gives some decent actors a nice payday and the audience a smatter of laughs.

www.business-review.ro Business Review | March 28 - April 3, 2011

CITY 21

INSPIRATION

FILM

Romanian mountaineer tries third highest peak

Periferic reaches Romanian screens in April

Alex Gavan, a Romanian mountain climber whose expeditions have earned him many local “firsts”, is taking on a new challenge – scaling Mount Kangchenjun-

WORLD MUSIC

Bryan Ferry brings smooth sounds to Romania

Courtesy of One Event

Ferry’s show is much anticipated locally

Former Roxy Music star Bryan Ferry will perform at Sala Palatului on May 1. The concert, by one of the major pop figures of the 1980s, is taking place on Labor Day, and offers a less traditional way to spend the public holiday than the typical barbecues and picnics.

Ferry, whose hits include Slave to Love, More Than This and Avalon, was dubbed “the coolest man in pop” by the Sunday Times, which said that his sound had been left untouched by the passing of time. The musician, lyricist and composer “sounds cool as ever… He finds soul beneath a surface of glamour that is pure pop… It’s luxurious as all get-out… It’s absolutely undeniable,” added the Chicago Tribune.

The Electric Lounge Lizard, as he is sometimes called, began his solo career in 1973 while still a member of Roxy Music, along with another renowned English musician and composer, Brian Eno. Throughout his career, he has recorded no fewer than 13 solo albums For his new album, Olympia, Ferry collaborated with David Stewart (Eurythmics), Johnny Greenwood (Radiohead), Flea (Red Hot Chili Peppers), Scissor Sisters, Groove Armada and David Gilmour (Pink Floyd), as well his former Roxy Music bandmates. The disc also includes two covers, one of Tim Buckley’s Song To The Siren and another of Traffic’s No Face, No Name, No Number.

Model Kate Moss graces the album cover, with the image inspired by the Edouard Manet painting of the same name.

Tickets cost RON 120, 160, 210, 280 and 350. They can be bought from the Eventim network, Germanos and Vodafone stores, Carturesti and Humanitas bookstores or online from the site www.eventim.ro. The concert is produced by One Event. ∫ Corina Dumitrescu

Periferic (Peripheral), the debut film of Bogdan George Apetri, will have its gala premiere on March 31, at Cinema Studio.

The event will be attended by the actors and crew. For three weeks from April 1, the movie will be shown in other cinemas in Bucharest, Cluj, Iasi, Timisoara, Brasov, Constanta, Craiova, Arad, Vaslui and Oradea.

The film tells the story of a female prisoner on day release. In the 24 hours she is given to attend her mother’s funeral, Matilda ponders taking her son and fleeing the country. Apetri studied film directing at Columbia University, having previously practiced law in Romania before moving to the US. His short films have played at festivals including Clermont-Ferrand, Rotterdam, Palm Springs, Cottbus and Montreal. He also co-produced the American movie 3 Backyards, directed by Eric Mendelsohn, which won the best director award at the 2010 Sundance Festival.

Periferic is based on a story written by Cristian Mungiu and Ioana Uricaru, adapted into a script by Tudor Voican and Apetri. It has received several awards, including one for Ana Ularu’s performance as Matilda at Locarno, while at La Viennale, the film received the FIPRESCI

Courtesy of Saga Film

Courtesy of PeliFilipT

Gavan takes on new horizons

ga, which at 8,586m high is the world’s third highest peak.

The expedition will last for 70 days with the final ascent scheduled for the middle of May. Gavan’s team includes three other mountaineers, the Pole Pawel Michalski and the Italians Mario Panzeri and Antonello Martines.

Mount Kangchenjunga is situated at the border between Nepal and India and is considered to be one of the most difficult peaks to scale. The expedition is a Romanian premiere and will be made through Nepal, at the south-western side of the mountain. As usual, the team will make their ascent without the use of extra oxygen or the aid of sherpas.

In 2006, after scaling mount Cho Oyu (8,201m), Gavan became the first Romanian mountain climber to climb over 8,000 metres. In 2007, he climbed Pakistan’s Gasherbrum 1 (8,068m high) and the year after ascended mount Makalu (8,463m) in the Himalayas, two Romanian firsts. ∫ Corina Dumitrescu

Prison break: another Romanian film is set to make a splash (the International Federation of Film Critics) award. “Throughout the process of rewriting this movie, I was captivated not only by the characters but also by the constraints brought by the 24-hour timeframe. Naturally, this limits the ways in which the audience can discover and understand the characters. I’ve always been drawn to strong character stories and, undoubtedly, the center of Periferic is Matilda. But how much can you learn about a person in one day? And, most importantly, how?” said Apetri. ∫ Corina Dumitrescu

MUSIC FESTIVAL

Imagine Festival promotes young musicians This year’s Imagine Festival aims to promote young, emerging artists of various styles.

Participants must be aged between 12 and 20 and will be selected based on musical competence, originality, preparation, stage presence and communication skills.

The festival will run from April to September.

Entries will start in April, while a three-day marathon will take place in Sibiu’s Piata Mare at the start of September. Finalists and semi-finalists will take

to the stage, as along with special guests byron, Paradigma and bands from Sweden, Belgium, Croatia and Norway, as well as previous winners of local competition rounds. Participants will also be invited to jam sessions.

The festival is being organized in Romania by Elite Art Club Unesco and is globally developed by Jeunesses Musicales International. Local band byron are supporting this year’s national event. ∫ Corina Dumitrescu

SCHOOL CAMP

Medieval camp for children opens its gates for summer vacation The third medieval camp for children will take place over six weeks between June 19 and August 13. For a whole week, aspiring young knights and ladies will be surrounded by medieval decor and wear costumes from the times.

As well as last year’s workshops (medieval sword handling, archery, painting and medieval heraldry, manual paper manufacturing, medieval theater and improvisation), there will be two more (medieval music and dance, as well as clay modeling).

In the evenings, children will listen to

medieval legends or watch historical films. On the last day of camp, participants will take part in a festive evening, during which they will be given noble titles.

As in 2010, the camp will take place in the Rucar-Bran area, in Fundata (Casa Muntelui B&B) and Moeciu de Sus (Dor de Moeciu B&B).

More information is available on the camp’s site, www.tabara-medievala.ro, unfortunately currently only available in Romania. ∫ Corina Dumitrescu

www.business-review.ro Business Review | March 28 - April 3, 2011

22 IN TOUCH

QUOTE of the week

FROM OUR READERS Online comments

Medication and ADHD Back to the crisis?

Online comment by Nootzi submitted in response to “The right solution – which I the article on ADHD in Roemphasized in vain as it mania: wasn’t taken seriously – is "Be careful. I live in the USA responsibility and a little and ADHD is overdiagnosed. solidarity. You know what There are perfectly healthy kids taking medications terrifies me: what if the cri- pushed by big pharma sis returns? What if it recompanies. I even know adults who were taking Riturns?” said President Tratalin (Methylphenidate) and ian Basescu last week on TV. Aderall (dextroamphetamine and The president added that on amphetamine) for ADHD. It is habit forming and will create more drug problems a previous occasion he said that Prime Mister Emil Boc would have been irresponsible if he had decided to raise the salaries of public workers. “If he had raised AFP article on local film pensions, you would have industry, March 24 applauded him, but he would have wrecked the The lack of cinemas across Romania has country,” he went on. The become an international issue.

"Romanian films may be praised president added that he has around the world, but they can had enough of economic rarely be seen at home due to the lack of cinemas. To fill this gap, prize-winforecasts, both those comning movie Periferic will be released oning from Romanian instituline in April," observes AFP in an article published on March 24. tions and those from the The article continues, "the movie, which IMF as all the forecasts won key awards in Locarno and Thessahave been revised too many loniki film festivals, will be available against payment from April 1 in high defitimes and nobody can make nition quality on the Internet site www.webkino.ro simultaneously with its launch in previsions.

than you currently have.

Just sharing what is common knowledge in the USA."

El Greco restaurant Alina’s comment on the restaurant review featured in BR 9: "Sorry to hear this. I used to eat at El Greco and they had great food and pretty good service. Maybe you caught them on a bad day, or maybe (as the saying goes) all good things eventually come to an end."

ROMANIA IN THE INTERNATIONAL PRESS Romanian cinemas, production company Voodoo Films said Thursday in a press release." Moreover, "Romania counts one of the smallest numbers of cinemas in all of Europe: 74 for 21.5 million inhabitants, or 182 screens. By comparison, France, with three times the residents, has 30 times the number of film screens. Numerous arthouse cinemas have been shut down by local authorities who transformed them into police stations, concert halls or even shops."

Romanian director Cristian Mungiu is also quoted on the matter, as he “last year said he was ‘very disappointed’ at the lack of arthouse theatres in his country."

WHAT WE ARE WORKING ON Otilia Haraga Senior Journalist is working on a piece about how salaries have evolved in the IT& telecom industry this past year. The sector is one of the most important drivers of the Romanian economy, and specialists are better paid in this industry than in many other fields, but salaries vary across the regions. otilia.haraga@business-review.ro

Corina Dumitrescu Journalist is preparing a piece on a controversial issue in Romania: psychotherapy. Although in Western countries, seeking a shrink is not so frowned upon, locally many are reluctant to go to a psychologist. Issues such as the current market situation and its shortand long-term perspectives will figure. corina.dumitrescu@business-review.ro

Simona Bazavan Journalist is researching an article on the recent rebranding of CMU and Euroclinic as Regina Maria and the company’s plans for 2011.

Overall, the private medical services market weathered the economic crisis well and 2011 should see growth. simona.bazavan@business-review.ro

EVENTS, BUSINESS & POLITICAL AGENDA March 28 The 2011 edition of Business of Luxury Forum will take place in Bucharest at the Epoque Hotel. By invitation only.

March 29 15:00 HP organizes a press meeting at Howard Johnson Grand Plaza. By invitation only.

March 30 10:00 The RENINCO Association organizes a press conference at Hotel Novotel. By invitation only.

March 31 ∫EVENT Business Review and Beyond Transylvania organize the first edition of the International Investment Forum at Howard Johnson Grand Plaza Hotel.

For more information about registration and future Business Review events, please visit www.business-review.ro/events.

11:30 The Association for the Reforming of the Tax System (ARSIT) organizes an event to mark its official launch at JW Marriott. By invitation only.

April 7 10:00 The Dinu Patriciu Foundation organizes a conference on the return to Romania of young people who studied abroad. The event will take place at Athenee Palace Hilton. By invitation only.

April 14 ∫EVENT Business Review organizes the Energy - Focus on Renewable Energy event at Ramada Plaza Hotel. For more information about registration and future Business Review events, please visit www.business-review.ro/events.

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ISSN No. 1453 - 729X

FOUNDING EDITOR Bill Avery EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Simona Fodor SENIOR JOURNALISTS Otilia Haraga, Dana Verdes JOURNALISTS Simona Bazavan, Corina Dumitrescu COPY EDITOR Debbie Stowe COLLABORATORS Anca Ionescu, Michael Barclay ART DIRECTOR Alexandru Oriean PHOTOGRAPHER Laurentiu Obae LAYOUT Beatrice Gheorghiu

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR George Moise SALES & EVENTS DIRECTOR Oana Molodoi MARKETING MANAGER Adina Milea SALES & EVENTS Ana-Maria Nedelcu, Claudia Munteanu RESEARCH & SUBSCRIPTION Lili Voineag PRODUCTION Dan Mitroi DISTRIBUTION Eugen Musat

ADDRESS No. 10 Italiana St., 2nd floor, ap. 3 Bucharest, Romania LANDLINE Editorial: 031.040.09.31 Office: 031.040.09.32 Fax: 031.040.09.34 EMAILS Editorial: editorial@business-review.ro Sales: sales@business-review.ro Events: events@business-review.ro