2022 was marked by new growth in terms of foreign direct investment, despite the general unsteadiness of the last 12 months, while greenfield investments in manufacturing have balanced out the increasing risk of disinvestment in critical sectors. For now, we are mainly talking about the local energy market, which is periodically affected by legislative changes, but other areas may also be prone to departures in the coming period.
Enel was the latest major player to announce its departure from the Romanian energy market, but 2022 also saw the exit of several investors from the food industry. At a lower level, several companies in the mobility field also left the local market earlier this year, including ridesharing company Free Now and delivery service Just Eat Takeaway.
Next year will be an unstable one in terms of the macroeconomic context, so the number of IPOs will be on the low side. The hopes of Romanian companies will concentrate on new private equity and venture capital funds, some established with backing from Brussels. As a result, all eyes will be on new private equity players, namely the investment funds created using financing from the National Plan for Recovery and Resilience (PNRR). The good news is that prospective investors have submitted 20 applications for the equity investment programme, which has a budget of EUR 400 million.
With all these concerns on our minds, all we can do is hope for 2023 to be better than we expect, and for the local business environment to find ways to turn difficult situations into major opportunities!
BR welcomes information for Who’s News. Submissions may be edited for length and clarity. Get in touch at mihai.cristea@business-review.eu
Gemma Webb has been appointed CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors of RetuRO Sistem Garanție Returnare S.A., the company that has been designated as the administrator of the deposit-return system by the Romanian government. Webb has over 25 years of experience in both B2B and B2C across a range of industries including FMCG, chemical, plastic packaging, print, tobacco, and waste management services. In her new role, she will coordinate the implementation and management of the depositreturn system in Romania.
A quarter of organisations in Romania use coaching services that improve employees’ communication skills, increase productivity and individual or team performance, and help people find balance between their personal and professional lives, according to an analysis carried out by the International Coaching Federation (ICF) in Romania.
According to the ICF, over 70 percent of people who have benefitted from coaching services have improved their per-
formance at work, strengthened their relationships, and gained more effective communication skills. 86 percent of organisations that have used coaching services believe they have seen a return on investment from the process.
“Most organisations in Romania use coaching services to develop their employees’ personal and professional skills, but also to improve their job performance. In the current context dominated by labour shortages, a war at the border, and inflation, companies turn to such services
as retention tools, to keep their best and most talented employees and build solid businesses over the long term, because nothing can be done without good employees, after all. Our studies show that companies that believe in coaching see significant improvements in their engagement and retention indicators,” says Madi Radulescu, Vice-President of ICF Romania.
Both women and men in Romania are equally interested in coaching. The differences become more visible when it comes to age or occupation. There is a much greater interest among active, working people who are part of the millennial generation (25-42 years old), with almost 50 percent of those surveyed in the ICF study mentioning that they have participated in coaching sessions. However, most coaches are over 55 years old, followed by the 25-34 age group.
Florentina Ciontea a specialist with over 15 years of experience in multiple areas of human resources, has been appointed HR director by Sodexo Benefits & Rewards Services (BRS) Romania. Florentina brings her expertise in the development and implementation of organisational culture transformation strategies, as well as her passion for people, personal development, and change leadership. Before joining the Sodexo team, she worked in companies such as Novo Nordisk, Intesa Sanpaolo Bank Romania, Unicredit Tiriac Bank, and Banca Romaneasca.
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Average net salaries for the most sought-after jobs in the banking sector have increased by between 4 and 46 percent between 2018 and 2022, according to data from Undelucram.ro. The smallest average wage increases have been recorded for financial analyst roles, while credit analysis specialists have experienced the
largest growth. The most soughtafter job titles in banking include: financial analyst, relationship manager, branch manager, loan officer/credit analyst, and banking services consultant. Salaries for these positions range from RON 3,300 to 7,000; in 2018, they stood between RON 2,310 and 5,470. “We can see that the
The smallest average wage increases have been recorded for financial analyst roles
Dental services are much more expensive in the west
Prices for dental services in Romania are up to 75 percent more affordable than those in the west, and interest in medical tourism has grown steadily year after year. With prices 4 times lower in Romania than in Western Europe or the US, thousands of Romanians living abroad are expected to visit dental clinics in their home country in December, according to an analysis by Life Dental
Spa, a network of dental clinics specialising in pain-free, state-ofthe-art laser treatments.
In this context, approximately 15 percent of the Romanians who return to the country during the winter holidays visit a dental clinic at least once for treatment or a simple consultation.
“More than two years after the outbreak of the pandemic, medical tourism is again a successful practice in Romania and
we expect a record number of patients, both in our own clinics as well as across the market. It is a fact that dental services are much more expensive in the west, so Romanians tend to come back to the country during the winter holidays with a dual purpose: spend time with their loved ones and fix certain dental problems or get a routine check-up. We have thousands of patients who live and work abroad and who plan their schedules in a way that allows them to pay us a visit,” says Cristina Obreja, MD, dental laser specialist and founder of Life Dental Spa.
Every year, thousands of patients from Spain, Italy, Germany, the UK, and even the US, where the cost of dental treatments may be as much as 4 times higher than in Romania, visit Life Dental Spa clinics during the winter holidays.
Ziv Gigi has been promoted to the position of Executive Director for the SEE Region at GTC.
In his new role, he will be responsible for all office sector operations in Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia, and Croatia. He will be in charge of the company’s strategy and development plan, as well as all of its operational activities, including leasing and asset management.
lowest salaries in banking are also the ones that have seen the highest increases in the industry. We believe that an increase of only 4 percent over four years in financial analysis positions may lead to candidates being less motivated. We hope this data will provide more transparency, clarity, and insight, both for employers to make the right decisions regarding salaries as well as for candidates to make better informed career moves,” says Costin Tudor, founder and CEO of Undelucram.ro.
(AREI), for the upcoming 2-year term.
In this role, he will represent the Association and its members in interactions with all relevant stakeholders from the public and private sectors and civil society, maintaining a transparent and constructive dialogue.
is the new Commercial Director of Nusco Imobiliara. Iliescu has over 15 years of experience on the real estate market and has contributed his expertise in many successful projects. Previously, Bogdan has served in sales, coordination, and management roles in several real estate companies operating in both consulting and development.
This year is likely to end with new records on the Bucharest residential market, certainly in terms of units sold but possibly also in terms of the number of dwellings delivered, according a market report released by real estate consultancy SVN Romania, which is based on official statistics and the company’s own research.
By Aurel ConstantinHome sales have increased by over 53 percent over the last three years
Over 52,000 homes were sold in Bucharest and its surroundings in the first ten months of 2022, up 9.16 percent compared to the same period of 2021, according to data published by the National Agency for Cadastre and Land Registration. 2021 was the best year in the local residential market’s modern history, with a 37 percent annual increase in home sales in the region, after 2020 had also ended with a 5.3 percent advance on the previous year.
At the same time, over 27,000 new homes were under construction at the beginning of this year in Bucharest and its surroundings, according to SVN Romania’s research, this being the biggest figure of recent years. 2022 could therefore also bring a new delivery record, as the most recent data published by the National Institute of Statistics showed that deliveries had increased by 14.7 percent in H1 2022 compared to H1 2021.
“2022 was another very good year for the
local residential market, despite the generally unfavourable context, the constant rises in inflation and interest rates, and the relentless negative forecasts. 2023 will most likely bring a lower number of deliveries in Bucharest and the surrounding areas, and implicitly fewer transactions, considering the fact that the reporting base is represented by absolute records. Overall, home sales have increased by over 53 percent over the last three years, so 2023’s results must be analysed with this context in mind,” said Andrei Sarbu, the CEO of SVN Romania.
This year’s results were recorded in a context in which the accessibility of buying a new home maintained a satisfactory level, according to the profile index calculated by SVN Romania based on average prices and national statistics.
In September, the most recent month with available official data regarding wages, 103.8 average national wages—or 8.6 years’
worth of incomes—were needed to buy a new one-bedroom apartment in Bucharest with a net surface area of 50 square metres. For comparison, one year earlier, one would need 102.3 average wages (8.5 years) to buy a similar apartment. That’s only a 1.5 percent decline over the last 12 months, during which general economic conditions have deteriorated to a significant extent.
The research took into account a 16 percent annual price increase on the new segment, while the national average wage has risen by 13.8 percent in the last year and the RON-EUR exchange rates remained stable. The current value of the SVN index is still almost four times smaller than its 2008 peak, when buying a one-bedroom apartment in Bucharest required 393 average wages or a working period of almost 33 years. Official statistics also show that over 50 percent of home sales in the region are cash-based, with no mortgage loans.
Real estate investors and developers operating in Romania argue that inflation, the rising costs of financing and construction, and the geopolitical situation are the main macroeconomic factors that may impact the Romanian real estate market, as they are expected to put pressure on both demand and rental levels. However, despite all the above-mentioned issues, investors maintain a positive outlook and their expansion plans in Romania are mostly intact, according to the first edition of Cushman & Wakefield Echinox’s “Real Estate Investor Sentiment Barometer.”
Cushman & Wakefield Echinox surveyed the top management of 45 local, regional, and global investment companies with a com-
bined real estate portfolio of more than EUR 10 billion in Romania, reaching a share of approximately 50 percent of the local real estate market. The survey was conducted between October 1 and November 1.
Inflation was almost unanimously (93 percent) indicated as the top macroeconomic risk for the Romanian real estate market, which will also be affected by increasing financing costs (based on 86 percent of responses) and the geopolitical situation (76 percent).
Despite the challenges the market faces, a clear majority of the responding investors (71 percent) said they were looking to expand their portfolios. The remaining 29 percent aimed to maintain their existing portfolios over the next three years. None of the respondents had plans to downsize their operations.
“The results of the survey conducted among real estate investors and developers in Romania reveal the level of maturity that the local market has reached, as the vast majority of players, whether local and foreign, are making long-term plans, fully understanding the cyclical evolution of the market. 2022 is likely to reach transaction volumes of more than EUR 1.2 billion, despite the fact that a number of investors have decided to be more cautious in a highly volatile context. 2023 will be influenced by the evolution of inflation and by that of financing costs. Once these are on a downward trajectory, the appetite for major real estate investments will return to high levels,” said Cristi Moga, Head of Capital Markets at Cushman & Wakefield Echinox.
Bucharest remains the preferred destination for future real estate investments, while secondary markets (cities with a population of over 250,000) are also popular targets among investors and developers. In the survey, 63 percent of respondents indicated Bucharest as their key location for new investments, while only 20 percent were actively targeting tertiary locations (cities with less than 250,000 inhabitants). Almost 50 percent of investors also saw secondary cities as attractive investment targets.
As for market segments that will attract new investments in the next 12 months, only 5 percent of respondents expected more development activity on the office market. The explanation for the low appetite for this segment has to do with the bureaucratic issues in Bucharest and the uncertainty surrounding the authorisation process pertaining to new projects. A special mention also goes to the Private Rented Sector (PRS), which is forecast to see more investments than the office sector in 2023.
the office market, while expectations were more optimistic when it came to industrial and retail spaces.
The top five factors that may influence demand (either positively or negatively) are overall inflation, the geopolitical situation, the growth of e-commerce, the emergence of new companies on the market, and the lifting of pandemic restrictions. Some investors were also concerned by the deterioration of economic activity/recession and also by the unclear status of employees returning to offices.
A vast majority (64 percent) of respondents foresaw more developments in the industrial segment, while 18 percent expected new investments to be made in retail projects.
Most respondents predicted an upward movement for rents in the office (58 percent) and industrial (55 percent) segments, while the share of those indicating a rise in rental levels for retail assets was only 38 percent.
Inflation (86 percent) and construction costs (79 percent) were indicated as the main factors that could influence rental levels. Other notable factors were the level of competition on the market and the lack of new supply for the office sector in particular.
Questioned about the evolution of demand, most investors expected medium-term stability for all types of spaces. On the other hand, 30 percent of interviewed companies indicated a worsening occupier demand on
Most investors believed that their portfolio values would remain unchanged in the following 12 months. By asset class, 30 percent of respondents estimated an increase in value for retail properties, while 23 percent of them indicated a further appreciation for industrial and office projects.
In terms of the general business conditions in Romania, among the most appreciated were the quality of the IT infrastructure, the labour market, the tax framework, and the country’s macroeconomic stability. The least appreciated aspects were related to the quality of the transport infrastructure and bureaucracy.
Investors were found to hold quite positive views about the Romanian economy and its short-term evolution, with 45 percent of survey participants expecting the GDP to increase, 38 percent predicting a stagnation, and 17 percent foreseeing a decline.
With over 20 years of experience in entrepreneurship, business, and marketing, Florina Onetiu is also the creator and leader of a unique and innovative product, a business of the future, based in the United Arab Emirates: Xclusiverse. With the goal of becoming the world's largest metaverse for premium products and services, the Xclusiverse platform provides users across the globe with a complete virtual business experience.
What is the Xclusiverse platform, when did you launch it, and what was the reason behind this innovative initiative?
Xclusiverse is a game changer, the first step into the future or, better said, the present future. That’s mainly because it offers a complete virtual business experience for users, addressing global markets, in a reality that is becoming a part of our daily and digitalized life. Xclusiverse is a complex product with multiple uses and varied domains; it is the only metaverse that connects entrepreneurs and helps them take their business to the next level. We are aiming to become the world’s leading cross-platform with our 5X™ process: Xtended Reality platform, Xtraordinary people, Xclusive physical and virtual products, Xquisite experiences, and Xciting interactions.
The idea of creating these business connections in a new world, which is different from anything I knew before, was born in my mind 12 years ago—back when Second Life was gaining popularity. At that time, of course, I didn't know anything about the concept of the metaverse. But the idea stuck with me in the years that followed and I knew that someday I would start a business that would enhance the world of business through virtual interactions. Cristian, my business partner also had a dream of developing a business in which real estate properties could be fractionalised and sold to investors this way. Our ideas brought us together again as business partners.
We therefore decided to build a holding of companies with several focus areas: an investment fund for real estate, a software company that could fractionalise assets, and a virtual reality platform to bring these assets and other luxury products and services together, in an immersive experience through a new version of shopping in the Web3 space. Before the pandemic, in 2019, our idea had been to start this revolutionary business, with a major technology component, in the US. We had prepared for that, but when the pandemic came along we couldn’t implement our plan and we had to "reconfigure" our route. After moving to Germany, we went to
Dubai on holiday and we ended up staying for a few months due to the lockdown in Germany. Arriving there, we realised that Dubai was a very important technology hub for the new technologies we wanted to build. We discovered a place that was very open to the new business environment, with an amazing rate of implementation of new technologies, starting from the development of blockchain businesses to the introduction of all operations into the metaverse, and not just at the business level, but at the government level as well. That's why we chose to create this business product here while targeting the entire world.
In the beginning of 2021 we started working and developing the business, and in March 2022 we launched the Alpha version of the Xclusiverse platform, which is under continuous development, with new features being added constantly.
Who developed the platform and how large is the project team?
Our team has grown significantly within a very short time. By the end of this year, we expect to have an even larger team, probably reaching 60 employees and collaborators. More than 60 percent of them are Romanians, which makes me very proud, as do our colleagues’ professionalism, knowledge, and expertise.
If we were to strictly refer to the development of the platform, we’d be talking about a mixed team, consisting of an internal team located in Dubai and an external team located in Romania. Currently, there are 28 people working on the platform in these two areas. For the design and architecture components of the platform, we also have a team in Sweden, with about 7 people, so in total there are about 35 people (Dubai, Romania, Sweden), and that number is going to grow in the near future.
As for the NFTs, the artwork is being developed together with a very talented team of Romanian designers who live in Barcelona, Spain. The development work for the NFTs is carried out internally, by our programmers.
How much have you invested in the development of the platform so far? Is the development process going to continue?
The first part of the development and implementation process took more than a year. And yes, the platform is in continuous growth, with new features, products, departments. To date, the investment has reached a total of USD 1.4 million.
Xclusiverse primarily targets companies that offer premium & luxury products and services to their clients, those that want to scale their business using an innovative tool that will bring traction in front of a demanding audience, and are early adopters of technology, channels, and new methods of marketing and promotion. We are talking about industries like luxury real estate & development, fashion, beauty, hospitality, concierge services, architecture, and art.
The end users of the platform will be high income individuals who want to explore new ways of interacting, shopping, and having fun.
What is your business model and what are its core elements?
The Xclusiverse World was built using advanced research and design techniques from the entertainment and gaming worlds. By creating shared languages embedded within collective wisdom, ideas can be passed across time and space. Humanity's evolution and progression has been shaped by stories, which have spanned generations and societies. Through the transmission of cultural memory, storytelling evolved to help us make sense of the world. A shared language is a means of passing down collective knowledge.
The Xclusiverse ecosystem will begin with 5 districts: Downtown, Business, Luxury, Art, and Experience (which includes Entertainment, Learning, Education, and Events). All districts have been created with the world's most important industries in mind and with the aim of providing an immersive environment for users. The first three districts were launched in preview mode in December and will be fully available at the beginning of next year. In March 2023 we will launch the Experience district, with a focus
on Entertainment, and in the following months we will launch other conferences and events dedicated to the business district. The Art district will be the final one, to be released in August.
The business model is based on both business customers (B2B) and individual customers (B2C). Through the way it has been conceived, designed, and implemented, this metaverse—which is an extended virtual reality—serves the world globally and has the power to offer people and businesses from the most important industries an extraordinary level of online interaction and connection, as well as a perfect environment for doing business at the highest level.
As for the key elements of this metavere business model, they are also based on statistics and extensive research. For example, 30 percent of businesses are expected to have offices in the metaverse by 2026 and in the next 5 years more than 25 percent of people will be present and active in the metaverse, according to a study by KPMG.
Currently, according to Statista, there are 50,000 B2C users in the metaverse, and the number is expected to grow to 2 billion by 2026.
For B2B clients, the main benefit is that they can find new revenue streams, grow their business, and position themselves as innovative brands.
In the Business district, for example, companies will have virtual offices which will be tailored to their core needs. Here they can attract and meet new customers from all over the world, because there are no space and time limitations, so they can become truly global companies. In other words, they can scale up their business very easily. Having an office in a virtual world will be a step up from the website they had before. In the platform, the possibilities for interaction become endless, as people can actually come in to see you and what you are doing. This will become one of the most effective ways to promote and grow a business.
On the other hand, the Xclusiverse metaverse gives businesses the opportunity to develop their product portfolios and target market segments that they would not normally be able to reach
What are the benefits for individuals or companies who decide to make their entrance into the metaverse through Xclusiverse?
using traditional means of exposure and promotion. In the Luxury District, people will not only have amazing fashion, jewellery, and beauty experiences, but they could also enjoy exquisite services and products from industries like cars, yachts, private planes or hotels. In this area, for example, the user can customise their avatar by purchasing different outfits and accessories. They can also try out products for both the virtual world and the physical world.
The Experience (Entertainment) District is a suitable environment for event organisers, regardless of the number of participants and whether we are talking about local or international events. Everyone can have an experience that is somehow doubled by a kind of "digital twin" at these events. So, besides the fact that more people can have the opportunity to attend your event, even if they can't physically be there, they can also enjoy other kinds of products here that they wouldn't have access to in the real world—including a different kind of interaction. This world has no limits and you can essentially do anything you want to enhance your experience. You can connect with people you may not normally get a chance to talk to, you can meet up with your friends from other corners of the world at a virtual concert, and you can even fly, because the Entertainment District comes with superpowers.
Another benefit for all Xclusiverse users is that they can interact without being restricted by space and meet business leaders, celebrities or high-profile people, whom they would normally have little chance to meet in real life due to distance, time or money, in the dedicated "MEET & GREET" area. Here, people will have the chance to interact with global stars, celebrities, and thought leaders in a non-limiting virtual environment where they can shake hands or even have a brief conversation.
Are Romanian investors ready to develop their businesses in the metaverse? Are global players better paid for this type of venture?
Xclusiverse’s initial strategy was to only target B2B customers. They should be prepared to expand into the metaverse now, because if we were to look a bit more closely at what happened 10-15 years ago, at the Web 2.0 level, we’d see that many companies missed the opportunity to open online shops or develop their apps, and I am convinced that they’ve come to regret that in recent years. But now they have a chance to regain the ground they’ve lost. Many luxury brands went through the same thing. They were very reluctant when online shops first appeared and only a few wanted to go in that direction. And when the pandemic came, it hit them pretty hard. That's why now, in the Web3 space, luxury brands are the more enthusiastic ones. As for Romania, I already know for sure that there are companies—in technology, architecture, hospitality or logistics—who want to be ahead of the times.
For the moment, it is clear that the metaverse is still not for everyone. It’s for those who are inspired enough to see that in the next two-three years, many of their B2C customers will become active in the metaverse. To conclude, I very much believe that some Romanian companies are ready for the metaverse, especially since Romanians generally have a keen interest in technology and digitalization. At the same time, as far as our B2C customers are concerned, they will come along with the market growth. We are ready to offer them great experiences in the metaverse. But as more influencers and thought leaders will begin talking about it, their followers will start exploring the new medium as well. Just like what happened with social media, e-commerce, and everything else.
It all depends on what each company wants to achieve. Our rental services for standard spaces, for example, start from USD 4,000/year for a virtual office, going up to USD 14,000/month for showrooms in the retail area. Of course, companies can choose spaces that are customised to their needs, and we have the capabilities to offer the best solutions.
On the technology side of the business, 2023 and 2024 should bring the completion and launch of the final product, with all five of its main districts—Downtown, Business, Luxury, Art, Experience. We aim to attract customers for each of the B2B districts and to exponentially increase the number of B2C customers every month. We aim to achieve this through various brand activations. In terms of business growth, another goal would be to attract investors to support and further develop the product. As a financial goal, for 2023 we are estimating that revenue will increase to USD 4.5 million. How important is the role of the luxury industry in the platform’s development on other markets? Which markets are you targeting for your expansion?
As I mentioned earlier, we pay special attention to the district that will feature premium and luxury brands. The companies in the Luxury district of Xclusiverse will have a different product category. While these brands have so far been selling physical products online, now they can also create digital products that they can sell in Web 2.0 or Web 3.0, in the metaverse. And on top of that, they can also build their NFT collections, which is basically art. Users and customers of these companies in Xclusiverse will enjoy an innovative experience and interaction with the products. In the B2C area, in collaboration with renowned designers and in association with international fashion magazines, we are preparing a collection of Xclusiverse-branded outfits for avatars in our metaverse. We look
forward to making this exclusive collection available to our users through our partnership with Ready Player Me, after they’ve been created and validated by top specialists in the field.
From a Shopping 3.0 perspective, we are very excited about what we have created as a team. In addition to a variety of physical and virtual products, users will get the chance to try on and test their favourite products: clothes, shoes, cosmetics, but also cars, planes, yachts, gadgets—all in a new, novel, revolutionary way. Especially with the Luxury and Business divisions, we are planning an expansion to the US, Middle East, and Western Europe.
How does Xclusiverse integrate the real world with the virtual one to provide tangible benefits to both the B2B and B2C segments?
XCLUSIVERSE is the only metaverse that connects real-world vendors, specialists, real estate agents, educators or business people to help all of them take their businesses to the next level. The platform consists of 3 components: the metaverse, the new digital world with a zone of intense interaction in the virtual environment; e-commerce, a space where brands can rent showrooms, commercial spaces where they can sell their products either digitally as NFTs or for real; and crypto investment, where utility and security tokens will be issued and allow users to make investments and trade assets on exchange platforms. Those who enter the Xclusiverse world will be able to buy virtual products as individuals.
They can even purchase security tokens, which can represent fractions of real properties in Dubai or other metropolises, to own and trade. Companies can rent virtual offices where business people can meet clients from all over the world and showcase products and services from all segments through a complex and interactive virtual journey. Unlike current platforms for business meetings or courses, Xclusiverse offers a much more engaging and real experience where you don't feel the barrier of a screen, but share the same reality.
What can you tell us about the launch event for Xclusiverse’s first three districts and NFT collection, which took place in Dubai on December 5?
Xclusiverse closed the year with a super event that united the real world and the virtual world, officially opening the doors of the Xclusiverse Metaverse to all innovation and technology enthusiasts.
We met physically on December 5 in an exclusive location in Dubai, but the event was also streamed live in the metaverse. During this private event, we showed our guests a preview of the first 3 districts of Xclusiverse: Downtown, where users can interact freely; Business, for companies who want customised virtual offices; and Luxury, for brands that will be able to showcase their products in virtual showrooms and users who will enjoy amazing shopping experiences. This preview was based on interactions, allowing people to discover some of the showrooms and shops that will be made available next year.
We also launched our first NFT collection about the first part of the Xclusiverse story, told in a meaningful and artful way. The whole collection is about rebirth and reinventing worlds, aiming for an evolution of ourselves as a species. This first Xclusiverse event was dedicated to people who have chosen to contribute to this dream and become investors and business partners. This initial share of the collection celebrating the first citizens to arrive to the Xclusiverse will be named The Settlers. 2,000 NFTs with unique traits and perks will form the first part of collection, divided into 4 main sub-categories: The Main, The First, The Chosen Ones, and The Ambassadors. The special subcollection is endorsed by 4 International Key Opinion Leaders from various industries for each Xclusiverse district: Downtown – Carlos Calva, Business – Dr. Jonas Ridderstrale, Luxury – Diana Verde Nieto, Art & Experience – Ferdi Alici.
The physical event was streamed live in the metaverse and a live video with people from the metaverse (at the same time) was streamed in the physical event. People present in the metaverse used both platforms: the web and Oculus. On the web platform, it was the first time in the world that a physical event was streamed in the metaverse. We had almost 200 participants in the physical event and 1100 people on metaverse, during the entire event. 4 rare NFTs were auctioned and purchased in both worlds simultaneously, at an auction broadcasted live in the metaverse from the physical event and also in the real world, from the metaverse platform.
At a lower level, 2022 also recorded several departures by companies in the field of mobility
Divestment is beginning to resurface in Romania as a potential trend in the field of foreign investments. For now, we are mainly talking about the local energy market, which is periodically affected by legislative changes. Still, other areas may also be prone to departures in the coming period.
Enel is the latest major player to announce its departure from the Romanian energy market. As one of the largest private investors in the industry, Enel has been operating in the electricity distribution and supply sector as well as in the production of electricity from renewable sources since 2005. In the spring of this year, Exxon Mobil announced that it would be selling its Romania branch to gas producer Romgaz for over one billion dollars. The transaction also includes Exxon’s participation in the Neptun Deep project.
2022 also saw the departure of some investors from the food industry. At the beginning of the year, industrial giant Tereos, the largest sugar producer in France and the second largest worldwide, decided to give up its business in Romania. The reason? Since it was first acquired by Tereos, the sugar factory in Ludus (Mures county) had collected signifi-
cant losses and had been struggling, mainly due to the constant reduction of the areas for sugar beet cultivation, despite actions aimed at compensating for these losses. In response to this disinvestment, the government then reported that it had analysed several scenarios, including a series of measures aimed at saving, restructuring, and pursuing the competitiveness of the Ludus sugar factory. A solution could come from state aid for rescue or restructuring, but this type of project must first be approved by the European Commission.
At a lower level, 2022 also recorded several departures by companies in the field of mobility: ridesharing company Free Now halted its operations this year, while Just Eat Takeaway stopped its delivery operations in Romania.
In 2021, Romania passed the EUR 100 billion threshold for its foreign direct investment balance, and 2022 brought new greenfield investments, which are the most economically significant due to their long-term effect. German company Diehl Controls, a manufacturer
By Claudiu Vrinceanu2022 was marked by new growth in terms of foreign direct investment, despite the fact that the last 12 months have been unsteady. Greenfield investments in manufacturing have balanced out the increasing risk of disinvestment in critical areas such as energy and the food industry. of components for household appliances, completed a greenfield investment that highlighted Romania’s strengths, especially since investors had looked at a long list of 20 target countries. The company is investing EUR 40 million in a research centre and production unit in Brasov. Bihor county also stood out in 2022 as it drew new investments: EUR 125 million from Stihl and EUR 650 million from Nokian, with both companies expected to invest more in the coming years. Also in manufacturing, Austrian company Syn Trac will build a new tractor factory in Arad county. Its investment of more than EUR 400 million will create around 600 jobs.
On the other hand, there are also tensions in the FDI ecosystem: German battery manufacturer Varta announced that it was facing a difficult economic situation amid which revenues have declined, so its strategic investment of EUR 1 billion in Romania is still on hold. However, additional investments by current players on the local market could balance out these delays. Stada and Hella have revealed new such plans, which will lead to a 20 percent growth in FDI for 2022 compared to 2021. The new ventures confirm Romania’s potential, ranked 4th at the European level in terms of investment intent for next year, after Portugal, the United Kingdom, and Lithuania, whether it’s for setting up new businesses or expanding existing operations, according to an EY survey.
2022 was a tough year for startups across Europe, which raised USD 85 billion in funding, a decline of USD 15 billion from 2021, according to State of European Tech. Let’s take a look at Romanian tech scaleups that have managed to raise more than 1 million in a new round. We’ll also highlight the trends behind the four selected case studies.
By Claudiu VrinceanuY Combinator-backed startup Nestor, an HRtech platform changing the way businesses retain talent by building a language for skills at work, raised a USD 2 million seed round for further expansion. Founded in 2018 by Raluca and Bogdan Apostol, Nestor is headquartered in San Francisco and targets HR people in Fortune 500 companies across Europe, North America, and Latin America.
The trend: Over the past few years, the transition to hybrid work environments, coupled with ongoing phenomena such as the Great Resignation and Quiet Quitting, have forced organisations to rethink their workforce development strategies. Workforce development is agile, business-focused, and democratised to give people more ownership, opportunity, and equity. Rigid job structures and the push for employee training from the top down, assuming that the organisation is the one who best knows what skills people need, clearly do not work in this new dynamic. This hurts employees, leaving them with the feeling that they have no say over the work they do.
SWISSPOD
Swisspod Technologies, a high-speed ground transportation system founded by entrepreneur Denis Tudor, has attracted an investment round of EUR 1.8 million. The new
financing adds to a seed round that reached EUR 1.1 million, earlier in 2022. In addition, the startup also got a grant from the Swiss government, which was assigned for building a circular testing Hyperloop infrastructure and a propulsion system for high speeds on long distances. Recently, the Swiss government decided to extend the funding period to support R&D activities for the project in Switzerland until 2025.
The trend: the migration to electric and energy-autonomous transport solutions. This new direction streamlines the output of new startups addressing issues such as carbon emissions, energy consumption, traffic, and capacity while aiming to transform fragmented logistics architectures into automated networks.
Bucharest-born open app ecosystem business Licenseware has raised EUR 1 million from investors led by Early Game Ventures in what is being billed as a late seed stage raise. Backers include Fortech Investments, Acequia Capital, and Hellen's Rock, with further interest from ROCA X, Growceanu, Transylvania Angels Network, and Startup Wise Guys. Fortech and Early Game Ventures also previously backed Licenseware last December with EUR 500,000 in pre-seed funds.
The trend: While companies are looking to re-
duce cloud costs, some cloud providers automatically provision more storage space than clients need, which can lead to unnecessary expenses. In this context, users are looking to access a range of third-party enterprise apps with competitive licensing fees underpinned by public development frameworks that reduce development times and costs.
Machinations.io, the Romanian web platform that allows game developers to optimise the mechanics and economics of premium, free2play, and play2earn games, stood out this year with Series A funding of USD 3.3 million. The funds are being invested in growing the team and launching new products and services to support the rapid advance in the number of users. The financing round was led by Hiro Capital¬—a European investment fund focused on the gaming segment—and also included follow-on investments from GapMinder, Acequia Capital, and Venrex Investment Management.
Trend: The video gaming industry has undergone a radical transformation. The web3 gaming revolution is now in full swing, with developers harnessing the power of blockchain technology to create new concepts that redefine the gaming experience. This new trend highlights the great challenge of designing Sustainable Game Economies.
Irina Siminenco, Corporate Affairs Manager at Nestlé Romania, sat down with Business Review to talk about the company’s commitment to sustainability both in Romania and at the international level.
By Anda Sebesi
What are the key sustainability projects being developed by Nestlé in Romania?
Nestlé’s ambition in terms of sustainable development is to reach net zero emissions globally by 2050, through a transition to 100 percent renewable energy, the development of alternative packaging, innovation in recipes, and concrete involvement in activities that increase biodiversity and reduce the amount of carbon dioxide through tree planting, under the sustainability pillar called "Nestlé for a Waste-Free World."
Nestlé’s sustainable development strategy is based on several projects, including awareness campaigns. One of our biggest community-based educational projects is "The Blue Planet is Counting on You!", a project initiated by the PRAIS Foundation in partnership with Nestlé Romania. The programme targets teachers, primary school students, their families, and all those who want to contribute to protecting the environment, through simple daily gestures.
What can you tell us about Nescafé Plan 2030, an initiative that aims to make coffee farming more sustainable?
The Nescafé Plan 2030 is meant to help drive regenerative agriculture, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and improve farmers’ lives. Nescafé will provide farmers with training, technical assistance, and high-yielding coffee plantlets to support their transition to regenerative coffee farming practices.
The brand is investing over EUR 1 billion in the plan and this investment builds on the existing Nescafé Plan as the brand expands its sustainability work.
Can you provide some details about the company’s policy on sustainable sourcing?
At Nestlé, our goal is to minimise our impact on the world’s resources, doing our best to make sure they remain available for coming generations. To that end, we are operating responsibly, creating a positive business environment, and empowering our employees to make sustainable business decisions. Our approach is centred on farmers, supporting solutions that are right for their regions and crops.
Our Sustainable Sourcing team makes sure that the raw materials, the packaging, and the services we source have been produced in accordance with our Responsible Sourcing Standard. Our initiatives aim to protect and promote human rights and animal welfare while protecting and restoring forests and natural ecosystems that are critical to the sourcing of our ingredients. We have 540 sourcing specialists and more than 4,500 support staff who are assisting in the transition towards regenerative agriculture.
What are the objectives of the Nestle Cocoa Plan?
The main goal of the Nestlé Cocoa Plan is to contribute to better farming, better
lives, and better cocoa. The plan, along with our Rainforest Alliance certification, allows us to take steps to address social and environmental issues and create a sustainable cocoa supply chain. We are committed to sourcing 100 percent of our cocoa through this plan by 2025. We also aim to provide training and resources to help farmers improve their crops, increase their incomes, and improve their lives. We make lives better by tackling child labour, empowering women, and improving education to help communities thrive, as well as making better cocoa by enhancing supply chain traceability and tackling deforestation.
What can you tell us about Nestlé’s reforestation initiatives in Romania?
Globally, Nestlé is committed to planting 20 million trees a year, with Nestlé Romania being an essential part of this objective. In Romania, we planted 55,000 trees between 2019 and 2021 together with the Cozia National Park, and this year we’ve planted 20,000 acacia trees with the help of the Mai Mult Verde Association, as part of the Honey Forest initiative.
Carried out under the "Nestlé for a WasteFree World" sustainability pillar, Honey Forest brings together all our afforestation projects as well as our education and awareness campaigns in schools and for the wider public, which map and promote biodiversity in Romania. We strongly believe in the role bees play in the local ecosystem and we direct our efforts towards helping them and supporting local communities of beekeepers, while contributing to the restoration of degraded soils and areas.
Catalin Pozdarie, general manager at Hervis Romania, tells Business Review about the company’s new approaches for the local market and how it intends to strengthen its leading position in Romania over the coming years.
By Anda Sebesi
When did you launch the Hervis App?
What was the reason behind it and what are your main expectations for this app?
In a continuously changing retail environment, where every company is looking for ways to keep its customers as close as possible, the launch of the HERVIS App was a natural and necessary step for us. Nowadays, more than 60 percent of all online purchases are carried out through a mobile device, mainly phones. The app is a tool that allows us to improve the customer journey and further simplify the buying experience.
What are the key benefits for the users of this app?
First of all, our customer is always connected to HERVIS. They get information about our latest campaigns, store openings, new products releases, sports events, and so on. The customer can find all their account benefits in one place: for example, bonus points from previous purchases or bonus points they
get on their birthday and other personal events. With this app, customers can more easily access the HERVIS online shop and use the points from their accounts for future purchases, all in a simple and intuitive user interface.
What can you tell us about the company’s development plans in Romania?
Economists are expecting the near future to be under the influence of a higher cost of money. That means that a lot of companies are going to postpone their investments from 2023 to 2024 or later. Hervis Romania, as part of SPAR Group Austria, is proud to announce that it will continue to invest on the local market even under these circumstances. We have several openings planned in new cities in 2023, as well as an increase of the number of stores in cities where we already have a presence. We are also working to expand our logistics capabilities on the local market.
How does the Hervis brand position itself on the local market? Can you provide some details about your exclusive brands?
Hervis is known as a specialist sports retailer. This field has become increasingly crowded in recent years. New players have entered the market, while existing ones have rapidly grown in terms of number of stores. Even so, Hervis has managed to hold on to its leading role on the local market, with a strong online and offline presence.
Hervis exclusive brands will help us maintain and strengthen our position. We are continuously developing the range of products being offered under Hervis exclusive brands to provide quality and comfort at more affordable prices. As proof of the fact that we believe in our brands and as a way to test them under real life conditions, we have signed a partnership with Salvamont Romania. Hervis is providing the apparel and gear for the entire Romanian Salvamont team. We are proud and honoured to have this opportunity and the feedback has been very positive. We will soon launch a new product range that’s more focused on lifestyle and the casual athlete.
Hervis shops have a new look. Why did you decide to adopt this strategy and how do you expect it to impact your results?
Retailers that want to maintain their position on the market and develop new ways of interacting with customers are always looking to improve their appearance. HERVIS has introduced this new fitting concept at an international level, and it has been implemented in all the countries in which we are present. We are displaying the merchandise in a cleaner manner; the brands are more visible for the customer and the instore flow is easier to understand. This new mode of presentation ensures that the store keeps its modern and dynamic vibe.
The Bosch Group is one of the biggest investors in Romania’s automotive industry, with both its manufacturing sites and engineering centre having seen steady development over the years. Business Review talked to Mihai Boldijar, the General Manager of Robert Bosch S.R.L. and the representative of the Bosch Group in Romania, Vice-president with regional responsibilities to get some insight into the company’s plans.
By Aurel Constantinapproximately 8,800 in Romania, all involved in state-of-the-art technology projects.
Romania is a strategic market for the Bosch Group, which invested approximately EUR 700 million here between 2005 and 2021. Last year alone we made investments that reached EUR 83 million, mainly in the development of our production units in Cluj and Blaj. In parallel, we recorded encouraging financial results, which allowed us to continue with the business development process. The successful outcome was made possible by the extraordinary engagement and resilience of our associates, as together we’ve managed to overcome many major challenges.
Bosch's investments in Romania are considerable and they underline the Group's commitment to this country. In 2021, we inaugurated a third production plant in Cluj, where we manufacture electrical control units. The Bosch Engineering Centre in Romania has started the construction of a new office building in Cluj-Napoca, which will be completed next year, following an investment of EUR 21 million. In addition, we’ve extended the Bosch Engineering Centre in Bucharest and we currently have more than 1,200 employees across all the sites of the engineering centre, out of a total of
What measures have you taken to counterbalance the rise in prices for energy and raw materials?
The increased prices of raw materials and energy have affected the entire economy. We have implemented several energy efficiency projects within the Bosch units in Romania, including solutions for energy consumption monitoring, replacing old lighting with LED technology, using motion and brightness sensors, and installing solar panels. The annual average energy generated by this system is 8,252 MWh, enough to cover the needs of approximately 4,000 households. The savings are important and we are taking the first steps towards energy independence. The total investment in solar panels amounts to more than EUR 5 million, and the project in our plant in Cluj is among the biggest in the country considering the total power installed on the roof.
We plan to continue our investment and development plans in 2023, as our commitment to Romania is very strong. At the moment, we have hundreds of open positions within our organisation and we want to expand our teams with professionals
who adhere to the values of the Bosch Group. We also continue to support young people who are just starting out their careers with over 1,000 opportunities available for juniors, young graduates, and students. We will also continue our partnerships with the top universities in the country. Last but not least, there will be further development in our production units and engineering centre.
What are the top trends in the automotive industry and what is Bosch’s approach towards them?
There are several important development directions in the automotive industry, and I am happy to say that Bosch is one of the market leaders in terms of innovation. We are systematically adjusting our Mobility Solutions business segment to areas of future importance such as electromobility, automated driving, and future electronics architectures. At the Engineering Centre in Cluj, we are already working on a series of interesting projects, and in the future we intend to continue to grow in terms of the number of projects and our skills as well as take on more responsibility in several areas. For example, in Cluj we develop software for electric cars, such as control units for battery management or cloud-based services to increase battery life and performance. In addition, we continue to invest in AIoT solutions, which represent a combination of AI and IoT.
How has Bosch’s business in Romania developed up to this point?
What are the main investments Bosch has made in Romania?
The outlook for the startup funding environment in Europe has worsened in recent months, as the economy is dealing with the impact of inflation, which remains stubbornly high, while interest rates continue to go up. Venture capital funding in Europe fell by 37.5 percent to USD 14.8 billion in the third quarter compared to the same period of last year. However, the Central and Eastern Europe region continues to attract investments despite the ongoing crisis in Ukraine.
By Ovidiu Posirca
The Romanian startup ecosystem stayed on a development path in 2022 and had reached a combined value of EUR 2.9 billion by October 2022, according to a Dealroom.co report. If we included the value of startups that were founded in Romania but have since relocated to other markets outside CEE, the total value would climb to EUR 8.5 billion.
Cristian Munteanu, managing partner at Early Game Ventures (EGV), points out that
everyone should be aware of the “storm” that will be heading our way in 2023.
“For startups in Romania, next year will be marked by less available capital, employees who will be less tempted to quit their jobs and join startup teams, and clients who will be more reluctant to test new products and services. The excruciatingly difficult job of startup founders will be even harder next year. On a positive note, the economic downturn will drive away both ‘tourist founders’
and ‘tourist investors,’” he tells BR.
Munteanu adds that savvy investors will look to deploy capital in deep tech startups that still need several years of product development before entering the market or in startups whose business models tend to thrive in times of crisis. For instance, EGV has invested in OxidOS, a developer of software that gets embedded into microprocessors for the automotive industry, as well as in BonApp, a mobile app offering heavy dis-
counts for food products. Serial entrepreneur Radu Georgescu wrote last August about the beginning of an economic crisis and the ways in which founders can step up to ensure the survival of their startups.
“Don't ignore the writing on the wall these days. Sitting ducks are always shot. Lay or double down depending on the opportunity (not on your dreams),” he wrote in a post published on crowdfunding platform SeedBlink.
In the last part of this year, VC funds are consolidating their conservative approach to fresh investments, which will also translate into prolonged negotiations over deals.
“Startups will likely also place more emphasis on rightsizing their business so they can conserve cash and better position themselves for a new funding round,” experts noted in a report published by professional services firm KPMG.
Cristian Dascalu, managing partner at Techcelerator and partner at GapMinder, believes that the Romanian & CEE startup market will not feel as big of an impact in 2023 as the one in Western Europe will. He notes that local funding volumes reached EUR 110 million in 2021 and public data on the first
six months signals a decline of around 20 percent in Romania compared to 2021.
Asked about the categories of tech that are going to drive the development of Romania’s startup ecosystem, Dascalu mentions
so much more efficient with their time and early-stage investors' money. Funding money will continue to exist, but the competition will be more intense,” Dascalu argues.
Despite the economic uncertainty, the CEE startup industry has attracted 19 new funds to the region in the year to date. This includes the Catalyst Romania Fund II, which has a budget of EUR 50 million.
“Next year will see the birth of many public-led initiatives, such as the West Region’s accelerator and venture capital programme. If we were to look at other CEE countries with similar experiences, we would expect strong growth in startups across verticals. Of course, given the high degree of local technical expertise, software and AI will probably be over-represented,” says Ciprian Man, co-founder of angel investment platform Growceanu.
Man also points out that some investors have started to shy away from early-stage
advanced analytics, AI/ML, data & cloud, cybersecurity, and fintech.
“Founders are now more skilled at obtaining cheaper and faster product traction. They are pursuing customer insights and testing their hypotheses internationally before coding a full-fledged MVP. This is making them
startups due to the general sense of uncertainty and the discounted investment opportunities available in other, more established asset classes.
“This trend is likely to continue into 2023, but that does not mean that the startup sector will be deprived of investment money. In-
deed, Romania’s ecosystem still lacks strong deal flows, meaning there are not enough high-potential startups being created. Those
thrown at us throughout the years have shaped generations that face difficulties with a ‘bring it on’ attitude, and that’s an advan-
funding. Regardless of the financial context, our focus remains on protecting our users from fraud by empowering them to delete their data from companies that should not have it,” Vasile adds.
Looking to next year, EGV’s Munteanu suggests that there are some good signs for the Romanian startup sector. He explains: “The first has to do with talent: many developers who have been working for tech giants abroad, mainly in the US, will be terminated and ready to join or launch a startup. Then comes capital: over the last few years we’ve seen the birth of the first generation of professional investors: good people who are connected to the ecosystem, with strong networks and experience under their belts. Lastly, it is the economic crisis itself: what better time to reassess your options, gather your courage, and start a company than a recession?”
The majority of investments made in 2022 have been in bridge rounds to
that do exist require a lot of work, acceleration, and support in order to perform,” he adds.
Nevertheless, the Growceanu co-founder reckons that a stronger involvement of public funds in the startup ecosystem could mobilise more investment activity in CEE from specialised VC firms over the course of several years.
Data from the past five years shows that CEE has been one of the fastest growing regions in Europe by enterprise value. Since 2017, the value of startups founded or HQ-ed in the CEE region has grown 4x to EUR 190 billion, while the rest of European markets saw an average growth of newly founded firms of 3.1x, to EUR 3.4 trillion, according to Dealroom.co. What is truly remarkable about the CEE entrepreneurial ecosystem is that almost a quarter of its startups whose valuation topped USD 1 billion were not VC-backed. By comparison, the Europe-wide average of bootstrapped unicorn firms is just 7 percent, while Western Europe’s is as low as 5 percent.
“I believe the funding opportunities are there; all we need is the resilience to keep building. And no one does resilience like Romanians. The problems that have been
tage that Romanians have over many other nations,” says Alexandru Vasile, the CEO of Romanian startup AgainstData.com. The firm helps users find out what kind of data companies have collected from them. Until now, the startup has attracted over EUR 200,000 from investors and it is planning to raise another EUR 500,000 in a separate funding round.
“At AgainstData. com, we believe startup funding and investments in Romania will continue into 2023, and the teams that will be able to unlock opportunities will also be able to unlock
prolong the runway of portfolio companies in the form of convertible loans or debt financing, rather than the high valuation equity
rounds that kept the headlines in 2021, according to Alexandru Bogdan, CEO of ROCA X. The fund has completed 11 investment transactions to date with a volume of EUR 3 million.
”2023 has the potential to be a new peak for Romanian startups' financing as extra money and new VC players will enter the ecosystem through initiatives such as PNRR, while many of the promising startups which slowed down a bit due to the negative sentiment will be in a good position to attract top cash for accelerating their growth,” he tells BR.
The KPMG report points out that during Q3, debt financing gained new attention in Europe as large PE firms made forays into offering lending products to startups. This comes on the back of rising interest rates, which make such operations more profitable.
“With geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainty expected to continue, VC investors in Europe will likely become even more aggressive in their investment decision-making heading into Q4’22. Early-stage companies could feel the biggest impact, which could hinder the health of the deals pipeline long-term. Energy and ESG are expected to remain hot areas of investment in Europe heading into Q4’22, particularly as they relate to alternative energy and battery storage. B2B is also expected to remain very attractive to investors, as companies across the board focus on improving efficiencies and enhancing their profitability,” the report notes.
The biggest financing deal closed in Q3 went to German B2B software developer Celonis. The company got USD 1.4 billion in a
Series D round. In second place was Swedish Northvolt, a cleantech that got USD 1 billion. The third biggest funding volume was attracted by Swedish fintech Klarna, which secured USD 800 million in a late-stage VC deal. UK-based fintech SumUp and French AI & ML startup ContentSquare each got around USD 600 million in fresh funding.
On the other hand, inflation concerns and the risk of recession in Europe have led to a significant decline in corporate venture capital investment (CVC). The participation of CVCs in venture deals amounted to USD 8.8 billion in Q3 2022, compared to USD 13.1 billion in the same period of last year.
“Corporate players have pulled back in tandem with most of the venture investor universe, joining fewer rounds for a smaller aggregate than in prior quarters of the past couple years. Again, tallies are still historically robust, but a pullback is still evident as corporations look to assess the extant panoply of risks more closely,” KPMG experts write. Despite all the challenges, first-time venture financing of companies in Europe is proving resilient as investors see the long-term prospects of the entrepreneurial sector. Around USD 12 billion was attracted by startups as first-time funding during 2021, with this year’s estimate set to get close to USD 8 billion, according to KPMG data. This would be the second biggest volume since 2014.
"In 2023 we will see an echo of the high-pressure points of this year so probably many energy related startups due to the high prices affecting all sectors of the economy from solutions to reduce consumption and make savings at consumer level to new and more efficient energy production solutions like biogas, biohydrogen etc. On the European continent we will also see some technological independency initiatives to replace US giants like Google Drive, Google services or AWS, but it will probably be difficult to identify the potential winners," concludes the CEO of ROCA X.
Secrecy is sometimes the best way to market a business. Facebook Groups are a very good example, as they are considered to be the most effective way to gain valuable insights from, and engage with, a brand’s top customers.
By Romanita Oprea
“There are 1.8 billion people who say they use Facebook groups every month. These opt-in communities offer businesses a great way to bypass the merciless Facebook news feed algorithm and connect with audiences where they are actually likely to see and interact with branded posts. Groups are effective because people want to be there. Think about it: is someone going to opt in to a group for a company they don’t really like?” said Michelle Martin for blog.hootsuite.com. Moreover, according to the specialist, these groups bring together the brand’s #1 BFFs, who are ready to be its personal cheerleading squad. Brands should solidify and enhance that relationship and make use of the exclusive access a Facebook group provides, along with special content or privileges.
“Being able to test new strategies and ideas in this small focus group will give you a lot of information. As a bonus, your super fans will appreciate being ‘in the know.’ It’s your job to keep the group productive, on topic, and respectful. But don’t try to control it too
much. Encourage members to start conversations and feel comfortable enough to speak the truth. Maybe your latest product launch didn’t wow as much as you thought it would. Instead of policing negative opinions and keeping the group as a positive echo chamber, welcome the feedback. Allow users to share their true opinions of what went wrong, thank them for it, and keep the conversation going,” Martin explained.
“Get your Facebook group members talking by actively sharing discussions relevant to your brand niche. This strategy not only enhances more activity in your group but also boosts the probability of your posts appearing in your members’ feeds. The information you’ll want to receive in asking the users include the kind of content they want to see on your group regularly. By asking questions, you can better understand what your customers need. In addition, the information you gather will help you learn what your existing consumers like and dislike about your product offerings,” said Neal Schaffer, CMO at Fractional and teacher at Rutgers
Business School and the Irish Management Institute. Facebook groups are providing more and more opportunities for brands to expand their reach and they are most helpful in creating more compelling customer loyalty programmes. This is why Facebook is likely to continue adding new features to its groups, and why Facebook group marketing is expected to become an increasingly powerful advertising tactic.
A SUCCESSFUL EXAMPLE FROM ROMANIA Birra Moretti® and Tribal Worldwide created a group on Facebook, where users were invited to join to have fun like they would at the Electric Castle festival—before the festival actually took place. With lots of featured activities and artists, the group encouraged users to role play as if they were at the event, commenting, posting, and interacting with each other.
But the goal of the group was to not only create a strong community around the brand, but also to reward the most active fans, with 50 double tickets for the Electric Castle festival in play. The group format follows a popular trend among Millennials, where members play pretend on different topics. Among the most well-known groups are “A group where we pretend that we’re in student halls” and “A group where we pretend that we’re at the Vama Veche beach.”
“Electric Aperitivo: A group where you win tickets to EC2022,” created by Birra Moretti® and Tribal, gathered people who were already familiar with this group format and who joined the game naturally. Birra reinvented the way groups were traditionally being used by brands and transformed them into an authentic communication tool with a closeknit community. Artists that performed on the Electric Castle 2022 stage also joined the
group, including Robin and the Backstabbers, Byron, Ana Coman, Dimitri’s Bats. Members also included well-known influencers Sore and Sanziana Negru, local radio station Virgin Radio, and even the official festival page. All of them posted and interacted with members, and some even created exclusive content for the group.
“It seems ambitious to develop a consumer promo inside a closed group that’s created especially for this purpose. But we understood the insight and the dynamics of closed groups. The results were beyond expectations and a strong community was born, one that we will definitely be reactivated,” says Sharon Annette, Marketing Director at HEINEKEN Romania.
Users interacted with the brand and with each other, and some even created content themselves, without it being a requirement for the campaign.
“We wanted to speak the language of the person who goes to EC and create an activation that they want to be a part of. We didn’t just want to promote something, but to create a natural experience that can be organically integrated into people’s everyday lives. We noticed the popularity of this type of group and we realised that there was room for one more, one that would reward you for having fun like you would at the Electric Castle festival,” says Simina Zidaru, managing director at Tribal Worldwide Romania.
The results were excellent, with over 2.5k members in the group, smart user-generated content, and authentic brand interactions. In fact, the level of engagement within the group exceeded that of regular social media profiles. The community still exists and it will be reactivated at various times throughout the year.
But how different is it from other types of social media campaigns? What does it essentially require?
According to Simina Zidaru, this approach is not for everyone. And if you embark on such journey, you should really know who you’re talking to. Because, as Zidaru notes, if you want the group to work you must be truly relevant; all the content you create and all your community management must be done in a way that means something to the people who are active on that group. Otherwise, you’ll lose them. Is the strategy more likely to
be successful for certain types of brands and not for others?
“My mom is on a plant group, my friend on a motherhood one, my creative colleagues go on meme groups, and I have friends on vintage clothes, curly hair, skincare routine or investment banking groups. And these are just a few examples that highlight the variety of people’s interests and the highly specific nature of some groups. I would say that the right type of group can be created for every
analyse their behaviours and conversations on those channels. As social media grows in both size and importance, becoming a core part of daily life, it is vital to apply research tools to begin to understand this new discussion forum.
product category out there. You just have to find the people who are interested in what you do. Groups really are a big deal nowadays,” Zidaru argues.
Social media research can help your business in a number of ways: understanding and improving the online image of your brand; understanding the market for new products; comparing your presence to a competitor’s; and attracting new audiences by understanding trending topics around your category.
Thanks to advanced social listening and audience intelligence tools and platforms, researchers today are able to aggregate data relating to specific events and topics or within a specific audience group from social media, web, forums, news, and blogs. It’s an approach that’s constantly evolving, with researchers developing new methodologies and techniques in order to understand the way audiences use social media channels and
“Finding out what people say on forums is a great way to understand social trends around specific topics. People will either discuss a topic in detail or ask for advice, so if you can understand publicly posted forum topics, you will get an insight into the concerns around various issues and themes, which could support social media research,” specialists from research agency Pulsar write.
Moreover, the research that gets done prior to the start of a campaign is extremely important, as campaign creators get to talk to people who are passionate about something or to subject matter experts—those are people who cannot be fooled. “The level of interaction is really high, so you can’t fake it, either. People comment, start conversations, and you must be there, participating. Otherwise, it will be just another brand interaction that’s selling a message. In a group, a brand becomes a persona that must act as an expert or adviser. I would certainly suggest for people who are tasked with handling groups to be super well-documented, if not truly passionate about the topic,” the Tribal Worldwide Romania representative explained.
Romania has consolidated its position as a world-class technology hub in the past five years, according to the Romanian CEO of Mokka (Revo Technologies), Alexandru Balaci, who sat down with Business Review to talk about the latest fintech trends, the outlook for the Romanian startup scene in 2022, and Mokka’s plans for 2023.
By Mihai Cristea
What’s your outlook for the Romanian startup scene in 2022 in terms of funding opportunities and hot industries for investors?
Romania has consolidated its position as a world-class technology hub in the past five years, and this was acknowledged by the EU when Bucharest was designated to host the European Cybersecurity Competence Centre. This dynamic has a tremendous positive impact on the local startup scene, opening our
market to more investment opportunities, which in turn will contribute to more growth and focused development. For example, Romania is now a top destination for outsourcing banking and fintech software development, and this will help scale startups in this lucrative area.
What are your plans for Mokka in 2023 and what are the areas that will generate growth for you?
Revo Technologies has ambitious development plans in all key markets in Central and Eastern Europe. We are in an optimal position to develop partnerships with leading merchants, e-commerce platforms and dominant payment service providers in this geography as it is our main focus. As for Romania, we intend to continue to expand our business based on our leading position in this market. The plan is to invest in building partnerships with top Romanian and international traders, which operate in Central and Eastern Europe, and to collaborate with top e-commerce payment services providers.
Mokka is the leading Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) service, operating in Poland, Romania, Bulgaria providing online and offline BNPL financing solutions for merchants and consumers.
Mokka has developed innovative and flexible BNPL payment solutions, allowing customers to buy now and pay later in both online and traditional stores. Mokka’s product is unique as it integrates the latest technology to deliver a semless 2-click experience for customers with a range of convenient payment plans from 30 days to 24 months.
Mokka has partnered with over 7500 leading regional merchants across the most popular categories such as fashion, footwear, kids, electronics, jewelry, furniture, travel, and others. Merchants enabling this payment method experience higher conversion rates, increased average shopping cart value and a boost in incremental sales while strengthening consumers’ loyalty. In Romania, the Mokka service is available in stores such as Noriel, Ideall, Lensa, Reserved, Sinsay, Mohito, House, Cropp and many others. As of September 2022, Mokka is trusted by more than 15 million registered consumers in CEE.
As the global head of influence, Rahul Titus is in charge of the strategic direction of Ogilvy’s influence proposition, which covers the full spectrum of influencer collaborations, from big celebrities to micro-influencers. BR sat down with him to learn about his work leading a team of creative experts who are responsible for delivering best-in-class influencer marketing for clients including Walgreens Boots Alliance, Bacardi, Unilever, and TCCC.
By Romanita OpreaYou say that things are changing very quickly. How do you keep up? Do you have a special department that only does research to predict new trends in order to stay ahead of the curve?
Yeah, sure. At Ogilvy we take lots of pride in being market leaders and really being the first
movers in this space. Obviously, we've got over 250 people around the world who do influencer marketing alone. These are dedicated influencer specialists. And the way that we've hired these teams, under great people like Ana [Ana Sisu, head of PR & influence at Ogilvy Romania], was with agile principles
in mind, so they build for agility. They are platform native; they come from this space. And I think one of the biggest mistakes we've seen other people make has been bringing in people who don't come from influencer marketing—and I think that’s when you start falling behind, right?
We are set up for success from the way we structure our people and our teams. That's what makes the biggest difference.
Secondly, I definitely encourage my teams to be brave and bold, and I think that’s the Ogilvy DNA. We want to push boundaries. We want to do more. Ogilvy’s first principle was wanting to be known for actions, not words. Because honestly, I've done it for so long and I'm really sick of seeing people holding a product and saying “buy this”—that’s not influence. It’s so much bigger than that. We make sure to allow people to create campaigns, even to make mistakes. That's okay.
I would rather try something and fail than not try to do anything at all. That's how we make sure that we are set up for success. We obviously also keep a very close eye on trends. Every year, we launch a trends paper, which comes out on November 30, where we talk about the biggest influencer marketing trends in the world.
Last year, we predicted that B2B influence would get really big, and it's definitely been one of our biggest growth areas this year. Also last year, we spoke about purpose-driven influencer marketing becoming a big part of campaigns, going beyond people simply holding products and actually driving purpose.
In October 2022, Hays surveyed 122 respondents operating across the country in various market areas and industries.
The data is supplemented by on-the-ground expertise from recruitment consultants, economic observations from credible sources, and one-to-one discussions with clients fuelling the conclusions.
The immediate impact of 2022 inflation of growing consumer prices and shrinking interest rates – and the potential consequences on people’s standard of living – means organisations must take action to find feasible ways of supporting employ-
ees while maintaining operating margins. The results of the study show that most organisations know this. Precisely 64% are making plans, or have already taken action, to mitigate the effects of growing inflation on earnings through salary/benefit package indexation.
Hays recommendation - Start communicating what you are doing for your employees clearly and openly. If people trust that you are acting, they are less likely to look for a new job. Organisations that plan ahead, stay ahead. Even if you are not well placed to offer significant increases, employees would value transparency.
In the current economic, social and political con-
text, the biggest challenge for organisations is to effectively keep core staff and build teams in conditions of rising operational costs. Even so, they are prioritising the heart of the business – the people. We will see the salary increases made this year continuing through the beginning of 2023. Of the 64% of employers increasing salaries, 46% said they will be starting in January 2023, while 34% already adjusted earnings in 2022.
Hays recommendation - Salary increases are not your only form of recourse. Take into account other benefits, such as home working and subsidising utilities, or engaging your employees better with an improved employee value proposition. A good organisational culture, consistently promoted and followed up on, can be a vital tool in retention.
In September, the monthly inflation rate in Romania reached 15.9%, according to Trading Economics. Just 24% of respondents are increasing salaries by 11%- 15% - barely keeping up with the current inflation rate. With the prevailing 44% looking at increases of 5%-10%, we can conclude that employers
to support employees but remain cautious in a fluctuating market.
Hays recommendation - Be aware of what your competition is offering on the indexation agenda. Ensure you conduct thorough exit interviews with people leaving your business. If you do see a trend of employees leaving for specific competitors, find out what they are doing differently and make adjustments. If you are ahead of the league, don’t be shy to make a clear statement to your people.
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Hays Romania looks at how inflation has a marketwide impact, and where employers can optimise their hiring and retention strategies to remain competitive. The aim is to offer a clear image of how organisations in Romania are tackling inflation growth right now and what is on the horizon for salary and pay rates.Timur Makhmutov, Managing Director Hays Romania
This year, every brand around the world is talking about purpose. So, we like to be the agency that sets the trends.
We don't get all of it right, to be very honest. Even 70 percent right is good, I'm okay with that. And I think that's what we're trying to get to.
You mentioned mistakes. Can you give us some examples?
Mistakes make us better, I think. We have no issues talking about some of the things we've tried and not succeeded with.
Three years ago for example, when I was working on one of our first trends papers, I said that virtual influences were going to be really big and take over the world. Three years later, it hasn’t happened, but that’s okay. But what is happening this year is artificial intelligence influencing. AI-powered influence is now getting big, and we’ve had wonderful projects where we’ve used AI influencers as part of a marketing campaign. That's one of our big trends for next year. Therefore, our prediction of a trend three years ago was maybe a little too early, right? That’s actually great, because it gave our agency three years to get our product right.
So, when we talk about AI, I know for a fact that we as an agency have much more capability, reliability, and strength in this space than anybody else in the marketplace. Mistakes happen, but they lead to better things; mistakes are part of our DNA.
What advice would you give clients for their first time working with influencers?
My advice has always been: take that first jump! Don't be scared to do it and do it well! A lot of clients right now are starting to dip their toes in the water with, say, 50,000 euros a year. I say if you're doing it, do it well, because you’ll see that it will always work out for you. I’ve been doing this for 12 years, as you know, and I've never, ever in my career seen a brand campaign do better than an influencer campaign. If you put an influencer campaign on social media versus a brand campaign, the influencer campaign will
always do better. Always. So why wouldn’t you want to do that? Try it! You never know. It might become the centrepiece of your marketing strategy.
Tell us about the areas where you’re seeing the power of micro-influencing. Why is it sometimes better to take this route instead of working with big influencers?
At Ogilvy, when we talk about influence, we’re talking about a spectrum. So that's everybody from a celebrity down to micro-
then you must work with the micros, because they will do much better.
Do successful brands today have to be present on all major social media platforms or can they just focus on some of them? Please explain.
I don’t think all brands need to be on every single platform, and I make that very clear. I think there is an expectation that you have to be on TikTok, on Twitter, on LinkedIn, and the list goes on. But my answer is: absolutely
influencers, creators, employees, consumers. Everybody has a role to play. For us, influence is not only limited to social media, which is good. Micro-influencers are incredibly powerful. It's a very underutilised part of influencer marketing. But I would never recommend micro-influencers as a replacement for big influencers. They have a very clear role.
Big influencers give us mass reach, mass awareness, and fame. You work with somebody that's got a million followers, people are going to know them much more than the small ones. But what they don't deliver are those high engagement rates. Micro-influencers are very good at driving high engagement rate entry into smaller niches and communities, and they will deliver for you in terms of ROI.
You need to make sure that your KPIs match up with what you're trying to do. Because if you're trying to hit mass reach on a market like Romania, you need to work with the big ones. If you want to break into small communities of mothers based in Bucharest,
not. I have lots of brands that will not get onto a platform until they're absolutely sure what they want to achieve. Choose the platform that your audience uses the most! If you are a B2B brand and your audience is on LinkedIn, don't set up a TikTok page and start doing viral dances. It's not going to work. It doesn't mean that you can’t follow the trend, just do what's right for your audience. But if you're trying to tap into new audiences, those new platforms might be interesting. If some of my brands are on Twitch, it’s not because they are gaming brands; they are on Twitch because they want to target gamers. Some are on TikTok because they want to target Gen Z, because their audience is dominated by millennials and they want to get to a younger segment. So, meet people where they are with your existing audience, and try out new platforms to bring in new audiences. But don't just do it because it's cool. There's no point to that, because by the time you’ll finally get everything right it will be too late, and you will mess up. It’s better to stay focused.
If you are looking for something festive for the season, take a look at our selection of Romanian sparkling wines. Historically, Romania was the fourth country in the world to produce sparkling wines, after France (1544), Ukraine (1799), and Germany (1826). You might be impressed by the bubbly offer.
By Oana Vasiliu
Whether you're stocking up for parties, or just buying a bottle for NYE, these Romanian selections will not disappoint
Award-winning Carastelec Carassia must be on everyone’s list. It is made exclusively by bottle fermentation and maturation, using the Champenoise method. The Carastelec Winery (Salaj county, northern Transylvania) and its sparkling wines contributed to the introduction of Romania as a sparkling wine producing country in the luxurious fourth edition of Christie's World Encyclopedia of Champagne and Sparkling Wine in 2020, and since then, the company has received several other awards.
Best bet: Carassia Classic Brut (from RON 85), a classic assemblage of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Meunier, creating a deep, complex sparkling with a rich and precise mousse with pronounced biscuity notes—a subtle combination of structure, length, and purity.
Podgoria Silvana is located in the Silvanei Hills region (Salaj county), being the northernmost winery in Romania, and its grape varieties include Feteasca Regala, Pinot Noir,
Muscat Ottonel, Feteasca Alba, Chardonnay, and Traminer. Since 1974, real champagne has been produced here using the traditional French Champenoise method, with glass fermentation, which is related to the types of wine that are produced. The most precious feature of the place is the unique microclimate, which ensures a natural fermentation that is carried out over a period of 2-3 years. The wine matures slowly with the help of specially selected yeasts, during which time the positions of the bottles go through a series of inclinations and settlements at different angles. Their sparkling wines start from RON 50.
Prince Stirbey (Dragasani region, Valcea county) offers a couple of sparkling wines: the Stirbey Cramposie Spumant and the Stirbey Spumant Rose ExtraBrut (from RON 95). In the early 20th century, experts from France and Germany discovered that Cramposie grapes were a suitable variety for
producing sparkling wine. Stirbey Cramposie Spumant is also produced in the traditional Champenoise way: the base wine’s first fermentation in tanks is followed by a secondary fermentation in bottles, where the wine us aged on yeast for four years. After the wine has aged properly, it is riddled by hand for two weeks and then disgorged. For the dosage, the wine yard uses only the same sparkling wine, not adding any sugar, resulting in a true “brut nature.”
Bauer J.O.H.A.N.N.A. is an authentic Romanian wine made from a native grape variety, Feteasca Regala, and aged for more than five years in the cellars at Crama Bauer, in the south of Romania, at the Dragasani vineyard (Valcea county). The wine is produced using the authentic méthode traditionelle, whereby after the second fermentation in bottles, the wine spends a staggering 48 months on fine lees (sur lie ageing), and it is produced in limited edition of only 1,500 bottles. This is also a so-called millésime sparkling wine, which means that it is created from a single harvest—that of 2016—and it is dedicated to Johanna Braun, the great aunt of oenologist Oliver Bauer. Prices start at RON 120.
Rhein Extra Imperial Brut is a single-varietal sparkling wine made with Chardonnay grapes (this style is called Blanc de Blancs) and produced in accordance with the classic Champenoise method. With extensive sur lie ageing (ageing on fine lees), this is the winemaker’s flagship cuvée. Rhein Extra (Dealu Mare region, Prahova county) is the oldest Romanian classic sparkling wine, with its first appearance at Pivnitele Rhein in 1892. In 1920, Rhein Extra became the official supplier of the Romanian Royal Family. Bottles are priced from RON 40.
Casa Mița Biciclista (the Mița Biciclista House), a famous historical building in the centre of Bucharest, reopened its doors to the public in November, after 80 years, with two Grand Balls. BR talked to Alberto Grosescu, cofounder of Casa Mița Biciclista and ARCEN, about this new cultural hotspot.
By Oana Vasiliu
until the 2000s, 1416 families lived in the house.
What's the most amazing story you’ve found out about Mița Biciclista?
Casa Miţa Biciclista in Piaţa Amzei was built in 1908 according to plans drawn up architect Nicolae Mihaescu. Its art-nouveau and neobaroque architectural influences are what make it unique. It is said to have been a gift that the famous courtesan after which it is named, whose real name was Maria Mihaescu, received From Prince Ferdinand when she was 23 years old.
The building conveys a strong air of grandeur, sumptuousness, and elegance, to the measure of the famous figure about whom we actually know very little.
It is clear that Maria Mihaescu—Miţa Biciclista—was an avant-garde; she was the first woman to ride a bicycle in Bucharest, she frequently travelled outside the country, and she was adored by princes, kings, writers, doctors, and famous politicians.
After the 40s, amid war and impoverishment, Miţa Biciclista becomes a discreet presence of Bucharest life. She is forced to rent out several rooms, and the house is nationalised in 1950, forcing her to live there with several other families. Miţa died in 1968;
At the end of the 2000s, the house—a historical monument of national value— was bought by a private owner who began restoration in 2013. In 2020, the house was sold to another private owner.
How did your NGO manage to take over the coordination of the space?
After 12 years of experience in cultural, community, and heritage protection projects, ARCEN aims to transform Casa Miţa Biciclista into a creative establishment: a cultural space featuring a brasserie and cinema.
It will be a long process, which will involve several communities and creative groups, partners, artists, architects, and communication professionals, but we believe that its reinvention will result in a recovery of a piece of the city’s history. The new history of the Miţa Biciclista House began this year with the events that marked the opening of the house to the general public.
How would you describe the place to a foreigner?
It’s a representative fragment of Bucharest, where we aim to capitalise on the potential of the city and its heritage as well as set an example of revival through culture.
In our research, we discovered that Maria Mihaescu had been traveling since she was 18 years old and had participated in the Nice Carnival for years, where she even won the competition for the most beautiful allegorical chariots. Her appearance was recorded by newspapers and she was often referred to as Princess Mihaescu.
Another interesting episode revealed by the team that dealt with the restoration of the house is the fact that a German pistol was discovered in the walls of the building. We know absolutely nothing about it, but it certainly sparked our imagination.
What are your plans for this new cultural hotspot? What should we expect to see there in 2023?
We aim to open up the house with a permanent programme and a brasserie, cinema, and cultural space that will host exhibitions, mini-concerts, and conferences—a natural development of ARCEN's activity.
La Miţa Biciclista will thus become a key meeting place in the city, whether it’s for parties, culture or reflection.
The reopening marks the beginning of a new history for the house and a promise we’re making to the city.
Bucharest needs a meeting space in the centre that’s open to cultural and civic initiatives, an alternative space for expression, at the intersection of various energies and urban bubbles.
By Oana Vasiliu
Experiences are so much more fulfilling than objects, so we encourage you to grab your family or a group of friends and go do something together, as there are plenty of Christmas-themed events across town.
The Bucharest Christmas Market is located in Constitution Square and it will stay open until December 26. Some say that Bucharest’s Christmas Market is one of the best in Europe, featuring locally made gifts as well as traditional Romanian beverages and foods. As usual, the symbolic and impressive Christmas tree is present to mark the wonderful Santa’s House attraction. It’s the best place to be for children on a jolly Christmas evening.
The West Side Christmas Market is taking place in Drumul Taberei Park, until December 27. The natural, 8-metre-high Christmas tree, adorned with snowflakes, stars, and LEDs with festive motifs, will be placed in the middle of the fair. The organisers, namely the team behind the UNTOLD festival, aim to turn the space into the largest Christmas theme park in Bucharest. They have prepared special Christmas workshops for
both kids and adults, with lots of magical activities and light shows all around the Christmas Market space.
Mezanin Market at Universul Palace returns with two holiday weekends: December 10-11 and December 17-18. Visitors are welcomed by a relaxed vibe, with passionate people and coffee from Beans & Dots, in the creative district, near Cismigiu Park. Visitors will be able to find jewellery, interior design products, interesting drinks and sauces, children’s and adult clothing, eco-friendly products, books, sweets, and honey in healthy combinations, special accessories, and natural cosmetics from over 50 small entrepreneurs.
Dichisar de Iarna is taking place at Impact Hub Universitate (21 Tudor Arghezi Street) in the next two weekends. It is the most important design and handmade fair in Bucharest, bringing cre-
ations by artists from all over the country. Sala Dalles (18 Nicolae Balcescu Blvd.) is nearby it also hosts a special Christmas fair between December 16-19.
At the National Peasant Museum, this month’s weekends are booked with several Christmas Fairs. BR particularly encourages you to visit the charity Christmas fair "Daruim si Ajungem MARI," which will take place on Saturday, December 10. A team of volunteers and creative friends have prepared lots special things with their hands: tree decorations, gingerbread, craft beer, jewellery, handmade clothes and accessories, scented candles, cosmetics, homemade sweets and goodies, and more. All the funds raised will be donated to the Ajungem MARI NGO, which takes care of orphan children.
The Saint Joseph Cathedral in Bucharest will once again host a Christmas Concert by the Royal
Choir. The event is scheduled for December 13, where the choir will be conducted by Razvan Rados, while Ciprian Mardare, Silviu Alexandru Mihaila, Ileana Sima, and Stefan Ailenei will be featured as guests. Entrance is free of charge.
The Madrigal – Marin Constantin Chamber Choir has already announced its national tour “On the road to Christmas,” also kicking off the celebrations for the Madrigal Choir’s 60th anniversary. In Bucharest, the concert will take place at the National Opera, on December 19-20.
The Bucharest Symphony Orchestra, led by John Axelrod, returns to Sala Palatului on December 30 to deliver the tenth edition of its New Year concert. The event will present the Classical Rock concept in a programme combining classical works with pop and rock music. Artist Florin Ristei will perform at the event, offering a unique musical journey. Tickets are still available.
Magic West Side Christmas Market can be found in Drumul Taberei
