Business Review No. 5, February 21 - 27

Entrepreneur: Lavinia Pop, co-owner of Pin Plus Pin, a company that imports and distributes materials for the advertising industry, talks about her beginnings with the family business, and the challenges of adjusting to the post-crisis market conditions »page 8

ROMANIA’S PREMIERE BUSINESS WEEKLY

FEBRUARY 21 - 27, 2011 / VOLUME 16, NUMBER 5

COUNTRY FOCUS SWISS INVESTMENT AFTER A GRIM 2010 SWISS FIRMS IN ROMANIA ARE HOPING FOR A BETTER YEAR. BUT POLICY AND POLITICS RELATED INVESTMENT BARRIERS PERSIST »PAGE 11

They might lack the resources of the big global players who have muscled their way onto the local IT products market, but Romanian companies boast something that they say gives them a competitive edge: local knowledge »page 16-17 NEWS

INTERVIEW

SME financing

Subway expansion

BCR and Raiffeisen get EUR 315 million for SMEs under a guarantee agreement with the European Investment Fund » pages 5

The operator of the Bucharest subway, Metrorex, has network expansion plans worth EUR 8 billion over the coming years » page 9

PLUS How do Romanians pass their free time?

GfK has the answers » page 14-15 B’estfest music festival returns to a new location » page 21

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

4 NEWS

NEWS in brief PROPERTY & CONSTRUCTION Construction works at ParkLake Plaza to start in July Caelum Development will start construction works at the ParkLake Plaza project in July, the firm has announced. The project is now valued at EUR 250 million, following a redesign in 2010.

Caelum Development entered the local market in 2006 when it acquired 8.2 hectares of land close to Titan Park in Bucharest’s district three.

The project will be built in two stages and will include a total rentable space of 79,000 sqm for recreational commercial activities. ParkLake Plaza is expected to reach a primary catchment area of 450,000 inhabitants.

The center is currently 35 percent pre-leased by a Cora hypermarket, a 16hall Cinema City complex, a Flanco store, a Douglas outlet and a Pure Fitness center. Another 30 percent of the space is being negotiated. Caelum has obtained the construction permits for the first phase, which consists of 67,000 sqm of rentable space.

City Mall bids to start at EUR 33 million The starting price in the auction for the sale of City Mall, which is currently in bankruptcy proceedings, will be set at EUR 33 million, announced Casa de Insolventa Transilvania, the commercial liquidator of the center. The first auction is scheduled for the end of March, and depending on demand and offers, more sessions will be organized by June.

“Although the company entered the simplified bankruptcy procedure at the request of the shareholders, together with the creditors we decided to maintain the current ‘going concern’ activity to try and preserve the value of a working business. This type of asset will be sold as a live business, which is a first for this type of sale in Romania,” said Radu Lotrean, managing partner at Casa de Insolventa Transilvania. The management of City Mall was recently taken over by Coldwell Banker Affiliates.

Final Distribution invests EUR 500,000 in new production line Construction materials importer and distributor Final Distribution has opened a new production line of gutters and downspouts in Prahova county, after a EUR 500,000 investment. Marketed under the Novatik brand, the rain system manufactured in Baicoi will ensure a volume of 3.5 million downspouts and 1 million gutters per year. The gutters and downspouts market in Romania is estimated to be worth EUR 20 million, of which local production represents less then 30 percent. In 2010, turnover was EUR 4 million, the same level as in 2009.

For 2011, the company estimates an increase in turnover of about 20 percent, due to the development of its product portfolio. The firm estimates sales of

over EUR 1 million from the segment of Novatik gutters and downspouts production this year. Final Distribution imports construction material brands Gerard, Delta and Keylite.

Den Braven Romania reports 28 percent turnover increase for 2010 The local subsidiary of Dutch polyurethane foams and adhesives producer Den Braven has reported a EUR 39.5 million turnover for 2010, 28 percent up on the previous year. The company’s exports reached EUR 19.6 percent, up by 62.7 percent compared to 2009.

The firm says that growth was possible as it had invested in production prior to the beginning of the economic crisis. “Had the Romanian authorities stimulated production-related investments in the past few years, now we would have more Romanian companies with positive results, even in a time of crisis,” said Adrian State, general director of Den Braven Romania. Sales of polyurethane foams, the company’s main product, rose by 65 percent on external markets and by 11 percent in Romania.

LEGAL Rovinari energy complex selected legal consultant for EUR 1 bln investment Bostina & Asociatii law firm has been declared winner of the open auction held by Rovinari energy complex.

The firm will provide consultancy services for the establishment of a mixed company meant to create a new 500 MW energy group at Termocentrala Rovinari. According to company information, the total investment reaches EUR 1 billion and will be co-financed by Rovinari and other investors.

Leaua & Asociatii reports revenues of EUR 5.3 mln for last year Leaua & Asociatii, the law firm, registered revenues of EUR 5.3 million last year, a 90 percent growth on 2009’s results.

Consultancy was the star segment last year, bringing a 200 percent hike in revenues and volume compared with the previous year, according to Alexandru Stanciu, partner at Leaua & Asociatii.

He added: “In the aviation sector alone we provided advice on seven projects with a total value of more than USD 42 million.” The firm entered the legal fiscal consultancy segment by introducing a new key team member, Gheorghe Matei, former GM of the legal department in the Finance Ministry. Currently, Leaua & Asociatii employs 21 lawyers.

IT & TELECOM Star Storage posts EUR 20 mln turnover in 2010 Star Storage posted a turnover in excess of EUR 20 million in 2010, a 50 percent growth compared to the previous year, due mainly to investments in its portfo-

lio of outsourced data center and printing services and solutions. This year, the company is aiming to up its turnover by 25 percent and develop its team of specialists. All divisions reported major growth but the most significant was that of infrastructure, data center outsourcing and output management outsourcing. The last two divisions also benefitted from the highest investments, which amounted to EUR 2 million in 2010.

The private sector contributed 70 percent of the turnover and the public sector the remaining 30 percent.

Orange, Cosmote and Romtelecom could develop their networks together Telecom operators Orange Romania, Cosmote Romania and Romtelecom might develop their mobile communication networks together in order to reduce costs and boost internet sales, according to the international press, quoted by Ziarul Financiar.

The shareholders of the three companies, Deutsche Telekom (Cosmote and Romtelecom) and France Telecom (Orange Romania) have had discussions to expand their collaboration.

The subsidiaries of Deutsche Telekom and France Telecom in Great Britain merged last year into an entity called Everything Everywhere, in order to reduce the costs of developing their networks. The areas where the two telecom giants could join their expertise are developing mobile communication networks, improving Wi-Fi services provided to clients through roaming and standardizing equipment.

BANKING BRD sees 36 percent fall in 2010 net profit BRD-Groupe Societe Generale’s net profit dropped by 36 percent to RON 501 million last year, while net income rose to RON 3.68 billion, a 2 percent increase compared with 2009’s results, the lender has announced.

“The effects of the economic crisis have left a mark on the banking sector too, and especially on BRD’s results, as the loans volume decreased last year, the actives degraded while the provisions increased,” said Guy Poupet, presidentgeneral manager of BRD. The bank finished last year with over 2.3 million retail clients and 141,000 corporate ones. It granted loans worth RON 34.5 billion, and attracted deposits of RON 29.82 billion. It has 937 branches and employs 9,192 people.

WEEK in numbers

1.5 percent economic growth is forecast for this year, according to data from the National Institute for Statistics

0.6 RON per title was the value of the Property Fund shares on the Bucharest Stock Exchange

34 percent of top 100 Romanian companies by turnover are reporting on sustainability, according to a survey by KPMG, Futerra Sustainability Communications, and Sustainability

202 firms entered insolvency proceedings last month, ten times fewer than in January 2010, according to data from the National Trade Registry OMV Petrom. The state controls a stake of 20.6 percent in the oil and gas company. According to the Economy Ministry’s announcement, the winner will be announced in March and will have a few months to prepare its bid, which is scheduled to take place this year.

This is the largest stock offering in the history of the Bucharest Stock Exchange, the package being currently evaluated at EUR 480 million, at the share price recorded last week of RON 0.367.

Petrom has a market capitalization of EUR 4.87 billion. Austrian oil group OMV holds 51 percent of the company, while the Property Fund controls a 20.1 percent share package.

CONSULTANCY State to select firm to manage SPO for Petrom stake The Economy Ministry has given the green light to the process for the selection of the international intermediary that will carry out the secondary public offering (SPO) for its 9.84 percent stake in

In BR 4, in the News in Brief section, MP Mihaela Stoica was described as a PwC employee.

Mrs. Stoica has no connection whatsoever with PwC Romania; she is, however, the initiator of the project through which PwC Romania will analyze the administrative and expense structure of the Chamber of Deputies.

NEWS 5

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

BANKING

PHARMA

BCR and Raiffeisen to lend EUR 315 million for SMEs

Pfizer buys Cluj plant, could start local production

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he European Investment Fund (EIF) has signed two guarantee agreements with Banca Comerciala Romana and Raiffeisen Bank under the Joint European Resources for Micro to Medium Enterprises (JEREMIE) initiative, allowing the two banks to provide up to EUR 315 million of new loans to Romanian small and medium enterprises.

Raiffeisen Bank will receive EUR 100 million from the financing, while BCR will have EUR 212.5 million at its disposal.

Following the two agreements, BCR and Raiffeisen Bank will offer financing at preferential conditions to SMEs across Romania looking to invest or expand their business.

For two years, Romanian SMEs will be to access JEREMIE finance with maturities of up to six years.

Steven van Groningen, CEO of Raiffeisen Bank, said that credits through this initiative could be charged at 4 percent lower than those currently available in the national currency. Loans will be available both in RON and EUR, and the bank expects to approve around 1,000 through this program.

“There will be cases when we will not demand collateral at all, but also cases when we will ask for it, as the bank and

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Steven van Groningen, CEO of Raiffeisen Bank, (far left) and Dominic Bruynseels, CEO of BCR (far right) the client have to share the risk,” said van Groningen.

According to Dominic Bruynseels, CEO of BCR, 20 percent of the bank’s funds from the program will be used to finance micro-enterprises, another 20 percent for new start-ups, and the remaining 60 percent for longer term business development projects.

JEREMIE is a joint initiative launched by the European Commission (Directorate General Regional Policy) and the European Investment Bank Group to improve access to finance for SMEs in the EU within the Structural Funds framework for the period 2007 - 2013. ∫ Dana Verdes

fizer, the world’s biggest pharmaceutical company, could start production in Romania, after purchasing the consumer healthcare business of Danish company Ferrosan, which owns a food supplements production unit in Cluj.

The deal will mark the beginning of Pfizer’s production operations on the local market, as until now the American giant has imported all the drugs it sells in Romania.

According to Pfizer representatives, the deal, which is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approval in certain jurisdictions, will be finalized in the second half of the year.

The value of the transaction has not been made public.

Paul Sturman, president of Pfizer Consumer Healthcare, said: “The transaction will mark an important step towards expanding Ferrosan’s brands through Pfizer’s global footprint.

As an immediate result of this acquisition, we will gain greater distribution and scale for Pfizer’s well-known brands such as Centrum and Caltrate in Ferrosan’s regions.” In 2010, Pfizer’s turnover reached approximately EUR 50 billion worldwide. ∫ Simona Bazavan

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

6 NEWS CONSTRUCTION

TELECOM

Markus Wirth steps down as Holcim CEO, talks future plans

Orange and Vodafone to challenge EUR 63 million Competition Council fine

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obile operators Orange and Vodafone have received fines of a total EUR 63 million for “abuse of dominant position,” the Competition Council has announced.

“The decision was made February 14 in a Competition Council meeting. Orange was fined over EUR 34 million, and Vodafone over EUR 28 million, which is a little more than 3 percent of the operators’ 2010 turnovers,” said Bogdan Chiritoiu, president of the competition body, quoted by Mediafax. He added that the two firms are entitled to contest the fine in court.

Orange and Vodafone representatives both said they were surprised by the verdict, denied wrongdoing and said they would appeal the fine.

The investigation that resulted in the sanction started in 2006, following a complaint by Netmaster Communications, and looked at the alleged abuse of

Courtesy of Holcim

Markus Wirth, departing CEO of Holcim Romania

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was, he said, the fact that several layoffs needed to be made while he was CEO at Holcim.

Currently, the cement company has 1,100 employees and does not expect major layoffs this year.

In the future, Wirth intends to work as an independent consultant in Switzerland, “perhaps starting this year,” he said.

Daniel Bach, who will replace Wirth as CEO of Holcim Romania, “has relevant international experience,” said the incumbent.

The 47-year-old was previously vicepresident of Holcim’s subsidiary in the Philippines, and believes that Romania has an important position in the Holcim group. Bach will arrive in the country at the start of March and will work alongside his predecessor to prepare for his new position.

When asked why a Romanian was not appointed Holcim CEO, Wirth answered that there was no suitable candidate for the moment.

However, the name of Romanian Horia Adrian, who is general director at Alpha Cement, the Russian subsidiary of Holcim Group, came up during discussions at the press conference.

Markus Wirth became CEO of Holcim Romania in 2004. The firm’s main competitors on the local cement market are Carpatcement and Lafarge. ∫ Corina Dumitrescu

MUSIC

Trilulilu signs license agreement with Universal Music and Roton

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rilulilu and Universal Music have signed a license agreement, the firms have announced. The deal, between a file sharing site and the music giant, is being billed as a premiere on the Romanian market, with Trilulilu becoming the first Romanian site with content provided by users to hold broadcasting rights to the content of Universal Music, the largest record label in the world, and Roton, one of the largest local music producers.

The license agreement is based on sharing advertising income and authorizes Trilulilu to stream any Universal Music song, even if it is uploaded

by Trilulilu users. However, the songs will be available for listening only to Romanians.

“Universal Music content is the most popular with Trilulilu listeners, generating a few million plays on a monthly basis. For example, in 2010, Lady Gaga ranked top among Trilulilu listeners. In order to support this interest, we are preparing to launch official Universal Music and Roton channels, where the latest songs released by Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Inna and Deepcentral will be available for listening,” said Sergiu Biris, Trilulilu general manager.

“The great satisfaction that we, Universal and Trilulilu, will have will consist

Courtesy of Trilulilu

arkus Wirth is stepping down from his position as CEO of Holcim Romania at the end of March, when he will be replaced by Daniel Bach. Wirth will remain president of the administration council at the cement firm and will continue as a board member of the Foreign Investors’ Council and head of the infrastructure taskforce in FIC. Wirth said that Holcim’s turnover and other relevant figures for 2010 will be made public in March, once they have been audited. Giving a more general outlook on the market, he predicted that Romania will register minor economic growth this year.

However, in order to reach pre-crisis levels, Wirth believes that the state needs to invest in infrastructure. He added that the real estate and construction market will reach pre-crisis levels in four or five years from now.

Looking back on his Romanian experience, Wirth said that he was mostly impressed with the people: “I have met people here who are extremely committed to their work,” he added.

Through a campaign that Holcim is currently promoting, “Be the change that you would like to see” (“Fii schimbarea pe care vrei sa o vezi”), Wirth hopes to encourage people to start with little changes in order to achieve the major improvement that everyone is hoping for.

His biggest regret during his mandate

dominant position by Orange, Vodafone and Romtelecom in relation to the service for calls (mobile or landline) made to their own networks.

Netmaster alleged that some of its clients’ international calls had been blocked by Orange, Vodafone and Romtelecom.

“Orange and Vodafone charged Netmaster an interconnection tariff of USD 0.15-0.18 per minute, compared to a maximum set by the regulatory authority of USD 0.10 per minute,” Chiritoiu said. According to 2006 data, the telecom operators blocked the calls following suspicions of fraud from alternative operators. These companies were suspected of changing the identity of calls to the Orange, Vodafone, and Romtelecom networks. The investigation in the Romtelecom case is nearing an end, and a decision there is expected soon. ∫ Staff

Sergiu Biris, Trilulilu general manager in seeing how in a relatively short while, more and more music sites will move onto the ‘good side’ of the market. Money can be made from music legally as well, and Trilulilu is one such example,” added Ioana Fesnic, general manager of Universal Music Romania.

Romanian independent music label Roton, with whom Trilulilu has also signed a license agreement, holds five brands: Roton (contemporary music), dance arena (dance), NRG!A (pop ), RUL (Roton Urban Label – hip hop) and TEZAUR (Romanian folklore).

Biris Goran, the law firm, advised website Trilulilu on the signing of the licensing contract with Universal Music. ∫ Corina Dumitrescu

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

NEWS 7

ONLINE

ONLINE

eMAG posts EUR 102 mln turnover for 2010, aims for EUR 150 mln

Romanians ‘have trouble controlling personal data’

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Courtesy of eMAG

nline IT&C store eMAG posted a turnover of EUR 102 million in 2010, a 60 percent growth compared to the previous year. The company aims to reach a turnover of EUR 150 million in 2011.

“In 2011, we will concentrate on adding new ranges of products and on developing organically all the categories in our portfolio. Online retail will reach 20 percent of the total retail market in Romania on the segments where we are active and we will contribute dynamically to reaching this target,” said Iulian Stanciu, general manager of eMAG. The electro-IT online commerce market grew last year by approximately 60 percent to EUR 145 million. eMAG says it has a 70 percent share.

“Over 20 percent of active internet users in Romania visit the eMag website monthly, and our traffic reached 1.7 million unique visitors in Q4 2010,” said Radu Apostolescu, the site’s marketing manager. eMAG was launched in 2001. Along with Asesoft Distribution and Flanco, it

Iulian Stanciu, general manager of eMAG is part of the group of companies controlled by businessman Iulian Stanciu.

The firm has seven showrooms, in Bucharest, Iasi, Ploiesti, Cluj, Timisoara, Constanta and Craiova.

“We are planning ample projects that will soon add new services and categories of products, as part of a new model of business, for the first time in Romania,” said Apostolescu. ∫ Otilia Haraga

PROPERTY

Cora operator puts EUR 100 mln into first mall on local market

Courtesy of Cora

Romania Hypermarche, which operates Cora hypermarkets, is moving into malls

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omania Hypermarche, the company operating the Cora hypermarket chain, has announced a EUR 100 million investment in its first mall on the local market, in Constanta, under the name of Corall. Two similar commercial centers are planned in Brasov and Bacau over the next two years, said company representatives.

Corall will have a total constructed area of 150,000 sqm. It will be anchored by an 8,500-sqm Cora hypermarket and

will feature another 150 stores as well as an entertainment area. Work on the site has already begun and construction should be completed in the second half of 2012. Although the company runs commercial centers in other European countries this is the first one of its kind in Romania. “Building this project proves once again the trust we have in the development of modern Romanian retail,” said Philippe Lejeune, general director of Cora Romania. Asked about the timing of

the new project, Lejeune said that until now land prices were too expansive.

Romanian Hypermarche owns several plots of land around the country, amounting to about 40 ha and a EUR 150 million investment. In Brasov the company has acquired the Hidromecanica factory and in Iasi a former textile factory. Romanian Hypermarche plans to build another two malls on these sites, with works estimated to start in 2012. “In Brasov and Bacau we are waiting for construction permits,” said Lejeune.

In 2011, the company will also open two more Cora hypermarkets in Arad and Drobeta Turnu Severin. For 2010 Cora Romania reported a 3 percent turnover increase but saw its profitability decrease by a single digit, according to its general director.

Lejeune added that this year he expects sales to pick up in the second half of the year and profitability to stabilize.

The retailer also plans to further invest in launching new own-brand products. “We currently have 400 private label products but the target is to reach 1,000 by yearend.”

CB Richard Ellis, the company managing the leasing process, expects to prelease more than 50 percent of Corall by the end of 2011. Romanian Hypermarche has been present in Romania with the Cora brand since 2003. The company is part of the French Louis Delhaize Group. ∫ Simona Bazavan

Romanians have difficulty controlling their data security online

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wo out of three Romanians have trouble controlling the circulation of their personal data, according to the Consumer Behavior Study (CBS) carried out by Nokia Siemens Networks in 18 countries. The poll reveals a growing sensitivity to the way personal data is handled by third parties in comparison to the previous year.

The results of the research show that suppliers of fixed internet and fixed and mobile telephony are the companies that consumers trust the most when it comes to the way their personal data is handled.

On a scale of 1 to 10, these firms received 6.4-6.8 points for the degree of trust they are accorded. Online communities and governments come lower down the scale, with 4.5- 5 points.

“The high level of trust that people put in telecommunication companies is an essential opportunity for these firms to offer their clients more targeted and relevant services, thus contributing to the development of their business. Thanks to technologies for personal data protection, consumers will be able to surf the internet more safely, administer their own data and enjoy greater control over their financial transactions,” says Dragos Chivu, country director at Nokia Siemens Networks Romania.

Most Romanians (88 percent) think that data protection is very important but almost two thirds (65 percent) are willing to provide personal data for certain value-added services, compared to only 46 percent of Europeans.

Local people are more concerned with having to share credit card data, with 86 percent of them considering data processing and storage very risky, but this figure is still lower than the European average of 92 percent. ∫ Otilia Haraga

Zenith Media receives network recognition Zenith Media Romania has been selected the winner of the yearly ZenithOptimedia Global ROI Excellence Awards 2010. The competition is part of the global conference ZenithOptimedia’s CEOs 2011. All agencies in the Zenith Optimedia’s network took part. Romania won with the “Coffee World” project for Nescafe. The campaign had 5.1 million unique visitors on the lumeacafelei.eva.ro platform.

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

8 TALENT

Pinning her hopes on the family firm Lavinia Pop joined the family business, Pin Plus Pin, at a young age and has been devoting her know-how to it ever since.

She talks Business Review through the company’s journey from sign-maker’s to importer and distributor and reflects on her own contribution and management style.

COMPANY PROFILE Pin Plus Pin 2009 turnover: RON 7 million 2010 turnover (estimation): RON 7.5 million Number of employees: 24 Locations: Bucharest, Baia Mare Portfolio: sign materials for the advertising industry

∫ ANCA IONESCU

Courtesy of Pin Plus Pin

Lavinia Pop, sales manager and co-owner of Pin Plus Pin, has spent her entire career working for the family business, which is based in Baia Mare.

The main company in their portfolio is Pin Plus Pin, which specializes in the import and distribution of materials and equipment for the advertising industry.

“I started as a teenager helping my parents with different back office tasks.

But my first ‘official’ position was as a sales representative in our Bucharest office,” remembers the businesswoman.

After graduating from university abroad in 2003, she returned home and one month later was put in charge of the same office. And Pop has been running the office and warehouse in the capital ever since.

Her family’s business story started 25 years ago, back in 1985, when her father set up a sign-making shop. In time, because some of the required materials were not available on the Romanian market, Pop’s father started to use different ones brought in from Hungary.

And because other sign-makers wanted these materials, Pin Plus Pin became an import and distribution company rather than a manufacturing one.

“My mother quit her job in a pharmacy and joined my dad in building the company. In 1994 we became the first authorized distributor in Romania for Oracal self-adhesive films, from Germany. They became and remain the top-selling selfadhesive films in Romania,” says Pop. The company’s range of products has expanded over the years to include further materials for the advertising industry.

And things didn’t stop here: Pin Plus Pin started to import large format printers, cutter plotters and laser engravers back in 1999 in order to enrich the company’s portfolio.

The idea to go into business came as a result of her father’s professional background. He was a graphic designer and after working in several positions as an

Top of the Pops: Lavinia Pop’s MBA studies have helped her get a handle on the family business

employee, he decided he could express his ideas better if he were his own boss, and got his license to practice the art of decorative painting. As for the main difficulties the company has faced, Pop says it started to feel the current financial crisis in June 2008.

“The first effect was the cash flow problems of our customers. Sales were still going up, but it was getting harder and harder to get our money back. Even today, this remains the biggest challenge of this financial crisis for us,” says the

young entrepreneur. But there are also other obstacles for Pin Plus Pin, such as the switching of customers from premium products to lower quality or lowend products in order to meet the price levels that the end-user or consumer is willing to pay.

“For me, as a manager, the biggest challenges were to find ways to improve productivity in our company while still keeping our employees motivated,” says Pop. Like many other young entrepreneurs she graduated from an MBA pro-

gram – the Romanian-Canadian one – which has proved a great help in running her family’s business.

“First of all, I learned that in every economy there are highs and lows, and it’s all part of the natural economic cycle.

Plus, there are different approaches to get you through each stage. It’s just a matter of adapting your business decisions to each step of the cycle,” says Pop. In addition, the MBA afforded her access to successful businesspeople with 20 or 30 years of experience in different com-

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

panies all over the world. And the case studies that formed part of the MBA program touched on measures such as cutting costs, reducing the number of employees and increasing productivity.

“When I was forced to make some tough decisions in these areas, I knew where to find relevant information,” says Pop. Last but not least, she was able to benefit from the knowledge of managers with international experience in different fields.

Asked to nominate the most difficult moment since she joined the family firm, Pop says it was at the beginning of 2009 when the company had to rethink its way of doing business, in order to adjust to the new market conditions. ”If I were to start my own business, I would focus on negotiating excellent terms for the contracts with my suppliers.

I would take the tough decisions at the right time,” she says.

Competition in this particular field is fierce, says Pop. But she thinks that a very good price-quality ratio for their materials and equipment, their personal relationship with their customers and their ability to answer many of the questions related to different challenges they face in their projects are what differentiate Pin Plus Pin from the crowd.

As for the future, Pop says her company has bold plans for this year but that she is the kind of entrepreneur who prefers to put them into action first and then talk about them afterwards.

editorial@business-review.ro

TALENT 9 WHO’S NEWS

Business Review welcomes information for Who’s News from readers.

Submissions may be edited for length and clarity. Get in touch at simona.bazavan@business-review.ro

Franz Rattenstetter has been appointed general manager of the Crowne Plaza Bucharest by Ana Hotels. He previously held the same position between 2001 and 2007.

Prior to his return to Bucharest, Rattenstetter managed the Movenpick Resort in Petra, Jordan. Over the years he has amassed extensive experience in the hospitality industry. Rattenstetter began his career with Intercontinental Hotels Group back in 1989 as director of sales and marketing at the Intercontinental Hotel in Frankfurt and moved on to the Middle East as the resident manager at the Intercontinental Amman, Jordan and the Al Bustan Palace Intercontinental Hotel in Muscat, Oman. He was the opening GM of the Mzaar Intercontinental Resort in Lebanon and spent over nine years in the Middle East. He has also worked in countries including England, Italy, Germany and Switzerland. Rattenstetter graduated from the Hotel Management School in Tegernsee, Germany, and Leysin, in Switzerland.

Radu Boitan director of King Sturge in Bucharest, has been appointed chairman of the

Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) in Romania, together with a new local board that includes members of other property consultancy companies and professionals in the industry.

RICS is the world's leading professional body for qualifications and standards in land, property and construction and related environmental issues.

Rozaura Stanescu is the new general director of BRD Fond de Pensii following approval from the Private Pension System Supervisory Commission (CSSPP). She is taking over from Sebastian Lecoq. Stanescu has previously worked as delegated executive director of BRD’s strategy and marketing department.

George Calinescu is the new financial director of RBS Romania. He previously worked in the bank’s financial department where he has held various positions over the

past six years. Calinescu holds an ACCA certification and began his professional career in 1999 working for one of the Big Four companies.

Mircea Spinei has been promoted to banking transactions director by RBS Romania.

He started working for the bank more than ten years ago in a junior position.

Spinei is currently attending an Executive MBA program.

Dorina Dumitrescu has been promoted to legal director of RBS Romania. She joined the bank in March 2010 as legal consultant.

She previously worked for the bank, then ABN AMRO Romania, between 1996 and 2001, also as legal director. Since 2010 she has worked for various companies in the field and has also opened her own law firm.

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

10 INTERVIEW

Metrorex: next stop network expansion With an action plan requiring EUR 8 billion of investment over the coming years, the first results of the subway network expansion should arrive in 2015. Gheorghe Udriste, the Metrorex GM, told BR the first new subway line, Raul Doamnei-Eroilor, is expected to be fully operational in about four years, as works will start this spring. we changed the starting point. While the initial terminus was Piata Victoriei, we think that another solution would be to start it from 1 Mai station, which would reduce the project costs by EUR 200 million to approximately EUR 850 million. The terms of this loan, through the Japan International Cooperation Agency are 1.5 percent interest per year, a repayment period of 25 years and grace period of 7 years. The cost per one kilometer of functional metro track amounts to EUR 50-60 million.

Are you searching for other financing sources and are you concerned that political changes could block these projects?

Photo: Dana Verdes

∫ DANA VERDES What is the status of the works on line 5, Drumul Taberei-Pantelimon?

Currently, we have the resources to finance works on the section Raul Doamnei-Eroilor – the first phase of line 5, Drumul Taberei-Pantelimon, which will be 6 kilometers long and have 10 stations.

We have already organized the bid for the construction works but it was stopped because of complaints from some companies that participated in the auction. For this first part of line 5 the wining companies in the auction are Astaldi-FCCDelta-AB Construct. Of this line a small segment will go to the Bancusi neighborhood where we will build a depot. For this part of the line Max BOEGL Romania was declared the winner. Aktor is the company that challenged the bid. The Raul Doamnei-Eroilor section of line 5 will probably be ready in about four years.

Construction will begin this spring.

What other investment plans are there?

For metro line 6, which will connect the subway network with Otopeni Airport, the procedures have been started to select the technical consultant. We already have a shortlist of interested firms. We estimate that the tender for

the execution works will start towards the middle of next year. This line will be 16 kilometers long with 19 stations.

Another important project that we have proposed is a new metro line on the route Bragadiru-Rahova-Piata Unirii-Obor-Colentina-Voluntari through a public-private partnership.

The line will be 21 kilometers long with 31 stations.

What are Metrorex’s financing sources for these investments?

Since last year, the Finance Ministry and Transport Ministry have arranged a loan of EUR 395 million through the European Investment Bank (EIB). Under the agreement with the EIB, the Romanian state has to come up with another EUR 395 million for the first phase of metro line 5, Raul DoamneiEroilor. The terms of the credit are 3.5 percent interest per year, with a repayment period of 15 years and a grace period of 7 years.

Also, we have a credit of 41 billion yen (approximately EUR 320 million) to partly finance the works on line 6, which links Piata Victoriei to Otopeni Airport. The government also pledged to find funding sources to co-finance this project. To further reduce the cost,

I'm afraid that a political change in the governing process could affect Metrorex’s development projects. Regarding financing, I can say that the Transport Ministry has initiated a new memorandum project for the approval of an additional credit line from the EIB to finance part of the construction of line 5 from Universitate to Pantelimon, worth approximately EUR 465 million.

The state would have to come up with the same sum. We think that the commitment will be initiated this year. Also, we have proposed and approved a total budget of RON 233 million for this year. A third of this sum comes from the budget and the remaining RON 160 million from foreign loans and the local component.

We also have money to purchase 37 new trains, 16 of which will be used to replace some old stock. The acquisition should take place in June this year.

The remaining 21 trains will be procured for the use of line 5.

How did Metrorex finish last year?

Metrorex’s activity improved over last year as the number of passengers grew by about 8 million people compared to 2009’s results. Metrorex handles about 600,000 passengers per weekday and has a capacity of around one billion passengers. We cannot talk in terms of profit. Currently, our activity is about 60 percent subsidized by the state budget, while the rest is covered by ticket sales and other activities such as renting commercial or advertising space on the subway. Under the government’s agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) we will have to reduce the subsidies, meaning an increase in ticket prices. Currently, we are analyzing such an increase.

Let’s not forget about the unpaid debts of Metrorex. The company has debts of RON 200 million to Alstom for

CV Gheorghe Udriste 2009 Metrorex GM 2001-2009 executive director of the Bucharest Municipality’s transport, roads and traffic department 1997-2001 Metrorex GM maintenance expenses accrued from 2008 to 2010. Here we are faced with a problem as the maintenance contract stipulates that these operating expenses be paid through government ordinance from the state budget. But the payments were not made over these three years and now they have to be covered from Metrorex’s revenues and state subsidies. Currently, we are in the process of renegotiating the contract with Alstom which should be done by late March.

What is the status of the investment projects started last year?

Metrorex had available a total budget of RON 400 million last year which was 99 percent spent. About 30 percent of this budget (RON 77 million) came from budgetary allocations, and the rest from the state and from a loan taken out from the EIB. The money was used to finance further construction work at line 4 stations 1 Mai and Parc Bazilescu – which will continue this year – upgrading the existing energy facilities in the subway.

Also, last year's budget funded facility projects, meaning the installation of escalators – a project which has been completed – and installation of elevators that will continue this year. And we contracted the technical and legal consultancy services for metro line 5, Drumul Taberei-Universitate.

The collective work contract expires next month. Do you anticipate problems from the Metrorex union?

We are in the process of negotiating a new collective work contract for March 2011March 2012. Unfortunately, this year's budget does not include salary increases. Moreover, so far we have had 3,000 applications for new jobs at Metrorex. dana.verdes@business-review.ro

INVESTMENT PLANS New lines M4 – Gara de Nord – Gara Progresu EUR 950 million M5 – Drumul Taberei – Pantelimon EUR 1.7 billion M6 – 1 Mai – Otopeni EUR 850 million M7 – Bragadiru – Voluntari EUR 1.9 billion Network extensions Pacii – Linia de Centura Vest EUR 250 million Laminorului – Mogosoaia EUR 290 million Pipera – Tunari EUR 650 million Pantelimon – Cernica EUR 250 million Ghencea – Domnesti EUR 400 million Source: Metrorex

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

SWISS 11

STOCKEXCHANGE

Swiss investors hope for clockwork year after bleak 2010 From the cement industry to pharmaceuticals and FMCG, Swiss investors have been a strong presence in Romania in recent years. In 2010, the lingering recession and gloomy economic context brought a significant downturn in the overall volume of foreign direct investments to Romania. Swiss companies were no exception, but after a grim 2010, they are now cautiously hoping for better prospects.

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

12 SWISS

Courtesy of Holcim Romania

Cementing its reputation: Holcim is the biggest Swiss investor active locally

∫ SIMONA BAZAVAN

We are focused on successfully meeting the future opportunities that will eventually rise on the local market, which in our opinion has high development potential,” Wirth concluded.

Elsewhere, the Swiss power and automation technology group ABB announced earlier this year that it had won a USD 24 million order to build a new substation to receive and transform power from a 700 megawatt (MW) wind farm and integrate it into the country’s transmission grid.

“The orders were received in the fourth quarter of 2010 from Transelectrica, the national transmission utility, and a consortium of four European companies,” said ABB representatives. As part of the turnkey contract, ABB is responsible for the design, engineering, supply and commissioning. The substation will be located in the Tulcea region on the banks of the river Danube.

The consortium financing the project is led by Verbund, of Austria, the parent company of Alpha Wind and CAS Regenerabile, two of the consortium partners.

“With regard to the perceived barriers to investment in Romania, all the top-5 factors are policy or politics related. There is clearly a negative spillover effect from politics and the lack of sound policies to Romania’s attractiveness as an investment destination.”

Swiss Investment Report Other partners include Beta Wind of Romania and Land Power Inergia from Italy. In 2009, ABB registered a turnover of EUR 47 million in Romania.

In 2010, two major M&A deals took place involving local Swiss-owned companies.

Sorin Minea, a Romanian entrepreneur active on the meat market, took over

bility as the five biggest setbacks of doing business here.

“With regard to the perceived barriers to investment in Romania, all the top-5 factors are policy or politics related. There is clearly a negative spill-over effect from politics and the lack of sound policies to Romania’s attractiveness as an investment destination,” reads the report. Since 2009, the economic scenario remains much the same.

“According to the embassy’s perception, the situation has not changed a lot since the report of 2010. Lack of legal security, corruption and a certain political instability are still affecting the attractiveness of Romania for foreign investment,” Marc Bruchez, chef de mission adjoint with the Swiss Embassy to Bucharest, told Business Review.

Moving from investments to the bilateral trade between the two countries, exports from Romania to Switzerland between January and September 2010 amounted to EUR 187.6 million and imports to EUR 335 million. “This is not a significant change in comparison with 2009, although we note a very slight increase of exports from Switzerland,” added Bruchez.

Up, up and away: airline Carpatair is expanding to new destinations

Courtesy of Carpatair

Fueled by the protracted internal recession and mistrust in the government’s economic recovery measures, 2010 saw a sharp decline in FDI to Romania. Last year, non-residents’ direct investment fell to EUR 2,596 million, about 25 percent less than the EUR 3,488 million attracted in 2009, official data from the National Bank of Romania (BNR) show.

Overall Swiss investment to Romania stood at about EUR 1.1 billion at the end of 2009, with no data being available for 2010 so far, according to the Swiss Embassy to Bucharest.

For Swiss investors doing business here, the local economy’s most important assets are its wage levels and overall labor costs, followed by the potential of the domestic market and the social and cultural environment, according to the Swiss Investment Report compiled by the embassy last year.

As for the empty half of the glass, Swiss companies active in Romania cite the bureaucracy, lack of governmental budgetary discipline, the government’s economic policies, transport infrastructure and the country’s lack of political sta-

Major Swiss investors on the local market include Holcim, Nestle, Novartis, Ringier, Roche, Swisspor, Rieker, the companies of investor Jean Valvis, Angst, Carpatair, Franke, Heidi Chocolates, Helvetica Profarm, Inter-Spitzen and Sefar.

Holcim alone is considered to have generated approximately half of the overall investments, says the embassy.

The company is cited by the Swiss Embassy as the single most important Swiss investor to Romania. Holcim Romania is part of Holcim Group, one of the main international players in the field of cement, ready-mixed concrete, aggregates and constructions-related services.

The firm’s total value of investments in Romania since 1997 is estimated to exceed EUR 650 million, according to company representatives. Its biggest investment project to date is in Campulung, where Holcim invested EUR 170 million between 2005 and 2010 in upgrading the production of the cement plant. “In 2010, we invested more than EUR 20 million to establish and maintain production capacities in all the company’s premises, modernization works, automation and reducing energy consumption,” Markus Wirth, CEO of Holcim Romania, told Business Review. In the first nine months of 2010, the local cement market continued to shrink, decreasing by an estimated 19 percent in sales volume.

“From the second half we managed to come close to the volumes achieved in the same period of 2009. The decline in the first semester was caused by unfavorable weather and difficult market conditions, but from the end of spring the average sales improved,” Wirth added.

This year is likely to follow a similar pattern.

“2011 will be another difficult year for the construction market and the cement industry, as we don’t have a short-term view of the investments to be made by the state in infrastructure,” the CEO added.

The company says that in the recent recession period its business strategy was aimed at both customer-orientated programs and, internally, at cost management and employees.

“We’re planning future investments.

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

14 SWISS

Courtesy of Dreamstime

Pill pals: Roche and Novartis are the two Swiss pharma firms in Romania

previous year, with Romania making up only 2.7 percent of the company’s worldwide sales. In fact, Ringier Romania was the group’s worst performing division, registering the highest losses and being mostly responsible for the 20.5 percent drop in the Central Europe region, CEO Christian Unger told media representatives.

In 2009 the Swiss firm implemented a restructuring strategy, imposing a stringent cost-cutting program. As a consequence, the free newspaper Compact and magazine Diva were closed and the Evenimentul Zilei and Capital newspapers were sold to Romanian businessman Bobby Paunescu the following February.

The two newspapers were taken over by the newly established company, Editura Evenimentul & Capital, with Paunescu as major shareholder, but continue to use Ringier’s publishing structure.

Ringier Romania currently publishes the tabloid Libertatea and other magazines such as Unica, Lumea Femeilor, Bolero and TvMania.

On the pharmaceutical industry two Swiss players, Roche and Novartis, are active locally.

In the first nine months of 2010, Roche posted sales of RON 873.8 million, putting it second on the local market, while Novartis had sales of RON 583.9 million and ranked fourth, according to data from Cegedim.

Elsewhere, another Swiss brand present locally is Franke. Franke Romania, subsidiary of Kitchen Systems Group, part of the Swiss corporation Franke Artemis, started operations in Romania back in 1998, offering comprehensive systems for domestic kitchens.

The company currently has 36 employees and last year posted an EUR 11 million turnover. “In 2010 the profit rate was slightly above the figure in 2009.

For 2011, we estimate an 8 percent growth in turnover due to the strategy to expand the distribution network at national level,” Octavian Radulescu, product and

Courtesy Heidi Chocolat

60 percent of the stake held in Angst by his Swiss partner, Urs Angst. Minea, who initially held a 15 percent stake, thus became the majority shareholder of a company with over EUR 50 million in turnover and a 22-store chain.

The value of the transaction was not revealed but the Romanian businessman said the company’s assets were put at around EUR 20-22 million last year, whilst the value of investments made by the Angst family in the meat producer amounts to around EUR 10 million.

Another transaction involving a Swiss business in Romania was the acquisition of oil manufacturer Expur Urziceni, controlled by Swiss Alimenta, by the French company Sofiproteol. The acquisition was completed via Sofiproteol’s subsidiary Saipol.

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development granted EUR 80 million to Expur in November to achieve its development plans by introducing new products onto the market. EUR 60 million of this sum will be used for purchasing seeds. In 2009, Expur posted a turnover of EUR 86 million.

Media companies were among those who felt the stresses and strains of the economic recession the hardest in the past two years. After poor results in 2009, Ringier Romania, the local division of the Swiss media company Ringier AG, announced that it had no intention of selling its business in Romania but planned to increase the importance of its online business.

The company posted a turnover of RON 124.3 million for 2009, 27.6 percent less than in 2008, and a loss of RON 57.6 million. The loss was caused mainly by a 70 percent drop in the advertising market and competitive pressure from other media players such as Adevarul Holding.

Ringier AG registered a turnover of approximately EUR 900 million (CHF 1.3 billion) last year, 15.6 percent less than the

marketing manager at Franke Romania, she said, adding that investments in airline infrastructure would increase the told Business Review. overall investment attractiveness of the This year the company plans to focus local economy. on investing in expansion. “The instaCarpatair currently operates through bility of the economic environment and 10 domestic and 18 foreign airports. It the downfall of the real estate sector reruns over 360 flights per week to 30 dessulted in a cautious investment strategy tinations in 6 countries. in previous years. Given the more optimistic prognosis for 2011, Franke’s strategy includes opening new showrooms at FMCG players count their national level,” Radulescu added. blessings Founded in 1999, airline Carpatair Another Swiss investor active locally is has a Romanian-Swiss shareholding businessman Jean Valvis, who has begun structure. Some 51 percent is owned by projects in the wine trade (Domeniile Nicolae Petrov, who is also the company’s Samburesti), bottled mineral water (Aqua president and general director, and by the Carpatica) and the bio energy industry Air Service tour operator.

(Dorna Agri).

The remaining 49 percent is held Aqua Carpatica was launched last by a group of ten Swiss investors, busiyear and Valvis says he is targeting a 10 nessmen, lawyers and an investment percent market share of the local bottled bank.For 2010, Carpatair reported a EUR mineral water market by 2012. About 74 million turnover for 2010, a 4 percent EUR 1.2 million has been spent promoty-o-y increase. The airline also reported ing the brand. Aqua Carpatica is not the a 13 percent increase in the number of first investment project of this kind for passengers transported on regular flights the businessman. He sold the Dorna in 2010 and a 6.5 percent increase in its dairy business to French group Lactalis in occupancy rate against 2009.

2008 and Dorna Apemin mineral water The growth was generated by the exproducer to Coca Cola back in 2002. pansion strategy begun by the company Last year, the chocolate market fell by in 2009 and continued throughout 2010, about 24 percent according to Erwin said Paula Ardelean, vice-president of Vondenhoff, general manager of Heidi marketing and sales at the airline. Two Chocolat. The chocolate manufacturer – new operational bases were also intropart of Swiss Laderach Group – manduced last year in Craiova and Bacau, aged to boost its turnover by 15 percent, which joined the two in Timisoara and reaching a RON 55 million turnover for Bucharest. Six new destinations were 2010. The growth was mainly driven by also introduced last year, which increased investments in new chocolate assortthe airline’s total number of flights by ments and exports, says Vondenhoff.

14 percent.

“Exports went up by 160 percent last year And the expansion will continue in which helped to boost turnover as the do2011 both internally and externally, Ardemestic market fell drastically,” said the lean says. As of this February Carpatair GM. This year the company hopes that explans to introduce new direct flights ports will make up 40 percent of its total from Iasi to Rome. In addition to this, the turnover. firm’s strategy also includes developing Romanian-made Heidi premium travel related services. Starting 2011, chocolate is exported to 32 countries.

Carpatair has included package holidays “The US, Poland, Australia, Chile, China in its portfolio. Currently the company ofand Canada are among our top export fers ten customized city-break packages markets and Germany remains our main to European destinations. destination,” said Vondenhoff. As for The Romanian aviation market has 2011, no major changes are expected to potential for further development, thinks take place on the market. “We will keep Ardelean, but a lot depends on the auour position and perhaps even post a thorities’ involvement. slight increase against 2010,” he added.

“In addition to sound airlines there is a need for airline infrastructure that ofsimona.bazavan@business-review.ro fers proper conditions to run operations,”

Choc tactics: Heidi Chocolat is putting its energies into its export markets

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

16 LINKS

Romanian IT&C brands wrestle international giants Romanian IT&C brands have to fight on a market that is dominated by the presence of international giants. Surely, in competing against the likes of HP, Acer, Asus, Toshiba, Dell and Lenovo, a very clear strategy is needed to survive and prosper? Up to a point, the strategy is the same for local and global firms: production takes place in Asia, as in the case of many international producers. However, Romanian players claim to have a unique advantage: the ability to understand the local market and adjust to its specific needs.

∫ OTILIA HARAGA

Picture this: Serioux has expanded its product portfolio

Serioux sees its ability to adapt to the uniqueness of the local market as a major plus

Courtesy of Asesoft Distribution

Serioux, the brand developed by Asesoft Distribution, already includes quite a large range of products. It was launched five years ago in Romania and reached a sales volume of more than 1.5 million products.

The brand’s production happens in Asia, especially China, Taiwan and Hong Kong. The products are then developed in Romania, starting from the way the range is conceived according to the specifics of the place and continuing with the documentation, product design, packaging, user manuals, localizing menus as well as software in Romanian.

Support is also provided in the local language.

The brand covers a wide range of products, from GPS navigators, portable media players, desktops and controller gaming devices to headphones, chargers and accumulators.

Specific products include the first Romanian e-book reader DigiBook E10, the GPS Serioux NaviMate, digital photo frames and portable media players (MP3/MP4).

“We were convinced from the start that the development and sale of products under our own brand name would be a winning move. The main reason for this is the opportunity to build a range of products tailored to the needs of the local market from the point of view of specifications, price, positioning and mix of products,” Razvan Ziemba, general manager of Asesoft Distribution, tells Business Review.

But what’s the chief benefit of being a smaller, local player? “The main advantage of Serioux products is that we can adjust immediately to the requirements and feedback from the market, unlike global brands,” says Ziemba.

Serioux already tops the market of office computers. Of the total 172,000 units sold last year in Romania, 48,400 were under its name, according to data from IDC. The brand ranks in the B+ range, so price is another competitive advantage.

“We have managed to be more competitive as far as price is concerned against various important brands that are positioned similarly,” says Ziemba.

He adds that the main argument in the brand’s favor is that the development and distribution of products is done in the country. “We will always have a much greater focus than a Romanian distributor who is selling a Polish private label, for

instance. The differences in price compared to similar products by the competition can be as high as 30 percent,” says Ziemba.

Last year, sales of Serioux products amounted to USD 10 million. This year Asesoft Distribution expects a 40 percent growth in sales under the Serioux brand to EUR 14 million, which is twice the growth that the company estimates for the Asesoft Distribution business as a whole.

Last year Serioux expanded its portfolio with new products such as a new line of mice, keyboards, web cameras, the video camera HDDV-PV720 with high-definition recording, the SDS-ESCRH docking station as well as a full range of memory cards and USB sticks. Recently, it launched new GPS models which use navigation software Sygic.

Asesoft Distribution already has a clear strategy in place to boost the development of its brand. “We plan to introduce new categories of products in the portfolio from the second half of the year. Among these new products will be laptops, netbooks and tablets, HD media players as well as accessories for Playstation, XBOX and Wii consoles,” says Ziemba.

Another important step for Serioux this year will be international distribution, which will begin with markets such as Hungary and Bulgaria. Moreover, Asesoft Distribution is in advanced discussions with other distributors in Central and Eastern Europe, as well as in other countries.

“For Asesoft Distribution, the development of its own range of products has meant both investing significant sums of money in marketing its own products and optimizing costs (and, implicitly, shelf prices) by eliminating intermediaries and optimizing logistics. We also saw an opportunity to approach external markets with the Serioux brand,” says the general manager.

Another company that is betting on customization is E-Boda, for much the same reasons. “It is very simple: no international brand will be able to mould to the needs of the clients of the local market. Here we come into play and this is our role: to get to know the customers and offer a product that is tailored to their needs and not an international standard product,” Adrian Murgu, representative of the technical-development department of SC Rosal Import Export SRL, tells Business Review.

E-Boda is seriously targeting the market of Romanian IT&C brands, planning

Where now: the company is planning to take its products onto foreign markets

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

launches in August-September. It will launch a PC tablet, an e-Book with TFT, an e-book with E-ink and a portable mini-projector.

The price will not necessarily be cheaper than those of its competitors, but in line with the specifics of the product.

The company will probably offer extended battery capacity, support in Romanian, extended technical support at no cost, irrespective of the situation.

“Most likely the annual production in 2011 will not surpass 2,000 items. However, we believe sales will explode in mid2012 for these gadgets,” says Murgu. The products will be made in Asia. “Today, we cannot say that the labor force is cheaper in other countries, including those on the Asian continent, than in Romania, but we can say that it is more qualified,” says Murgu.

This year, the company is not pinning its hopes on profit. “Our goal this year will be only to take our place on this market without the intention to ‘overturn’ the charts,” says Murgu.

Another company that relies very much on the uniqueness of the local market and customization is Maguay, a local supplier of complete IT solutions, which has launched its new range of portables, MyWay, this month. MyWay replaces Maguay’s previous brand of portables, eXpertBook. It is meant to have a friendlier and more expressive identity.

The brand was conceived with the help of branding agency Grapefruit and stakes a claim to three competitive advantages: configurability, latest generation technology and the best and fastest service for laptops in Romania.

“It’s an act of courage through which Maguay will test the openness of the

LINKS 17 Romanian public to what is unique, but it will also make a bold statement about the Maguay name as a brand that is highly configurable, relevant and which trusts itself and its own origins,” says Edward Pughin, operational manager of Maguay.

Starting from the premise that configurability is the factor which makes the difference in the case of the MyWay brand, the company has also personalized the frame of its products.

“We linked this idea to the concept of what makes a quality Romanian product.

The convergence of these concepts led us to the idea of launching limited series of MyWay netbooks, customized with images of authentic Romanian values from the past to the present moment. And this has involved cultural values,” says Stefan Liute, strategy manager of Grapefruit branding agency.

The MyWay brand was born at the same time as the launch of a limited edition of netbooks with customized covers. In partnership with the Romanian Peasant’s Museum, MyWay developed two types of design for its netbooks, a sculpted wooden weaving distaff and a decorative model from a dowry chest in Transylvania.

“Historically, many Romanian products left the aesthetic aspect as a secondary consideration, but our brands breaks from this ‘tradition’ and is in tune with good practices that can be observed now everywhere in the world,” says Pughin.

“We were attracted by the idea of combining tradition and technology, the old and the new, in an unprecedented technological and cultural venture in Romania.” otilia.haraga@business-review.ro

Maguay is drawing on local imagery to blend traditions with technology

Courtesy of Maguay

A dowry chest provided inspiration for this Maguay product

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

18 BALANCE

STOCKEXCHANGE

On your bike: but Romanians tend to prefer more static activities to exercising, the GfK survey found

When in Romania, relax like the Romanians Deep pockets are not required if you want to spend your leisure time like a typical Romanian. Recent studies show that the top local activities of choice are staying home and watching TV. Physical activity is not a popular pastime, but if necessary, a trip to the mall and some window shopping should tick the box for minimum exercise. Business Review sees what else local people get up to on their days off and gets the experts’ (a sociologist, researcher and tourism consultant) take on the local leisure scene. ∫ CORINA DUMITRESCU According to a study carried out by research company GfK in 2010, which looked into the leisure and travel habits of citizens of 16 European countries, a staggering 70 percent of Romanians spend their holidays at home. A similar proportion of the neighbors from south of the Danube – 71 percent – do the same.

But it’s a difference picture over in Western Europe. Here, wanderlust is widespread: 87 percent of Swedes spend their free time traveling, just ahead of the

Dutch, 85 percent of whom are travel aficionados, followed by the Belgians, of whom 77 percent enjoy venturing beyond their borders.

Why are Romanians such homebodies? Dan Petre, who holds a PhD in Sociology and is a specialist in communication sciences, as well as managing partner and director of the qualitative studies department of D&D Research, believes that it all comes down to “mentalities and socio-economic conditions. On the background of traditional mentalities (even somewhat pastoral), a lower level of income compared to other nations is a

factor along with a reduced range of entertainment opportunities. At the moment, television (with an average of seven hours’ viewing per day), going to the mall (in larger cities), spending time with friends and family and going to a barbecue come top of Romanians’ lists when it comes to leisure.” Some 8 percent enjoy shopping, both in Romania and when they go abroad. This is music to retailers’ ears: one of the biggest malls in Bucharest reported traffic of over 55,000 visitors on weekdays and over 85,000 at weekends last summer.

Younger generations are bigger trav-

elers than their predecessors, and not only in Romanian – Germany is the only country in Europe where the old and the young embrace travel with equal zest. In Romania, an overwhelming 87 percent of the elderly spend their time at home.

However, while young people are fond of packing their bags and hitting the road, “social networking sites (and other web 2.0 activities) as well as internet surfing are their top leisure choice,” says Petre, who is also a professor at SNSPA (the National School of Political and Administrative Studies). He adds: “The picture in Romania is influenced by the rel-

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

ative paucity of opportunities for spending free time offered to Romanians by society (the state, as well as private operators).” He cites the example of the local seaside where, besides “sunbathing, strolling and going to clubs, the entertainment opportunities are very homogenous and limited compared to the demand. This is especially true for the young, who want to explore different options.”

The Romanians who do travel often prefer domestic jaunts, says Traian Badulescu, tourism consultant and general manager at Travel Advisor Media. Top choices are the seaside (especially Mamaia, Neptun-Olimp, which has enjoyed a resurgence in demand, as well as Costinesti and Vama Veche), spa holidays (Baile Felix, Calimanesti-Caciulata, Vatra Dornei, Covasna, Balvanyos, Saturn, Eforie Nord), mountain sojourns (Valea Prahovei, Poiana Brasov, Predeal) and rural tourism, a popular choice which tends to be arranged independently rather than through travel agencies (Bran Moieciu, Bucovina, Maramures, Marginimea Sibiului).

When traveling abroad, Romanians head for, in this order, Bulgaria, Greece, Austria, Turkey, Spain, Italy, France, Croatia and Egypt, says Badulescu. They budget an average of EUR 300 per domestic tourism package and EUR 500 for a foreign holiday. In 2010, an estimated 1 million tourists traveled abroad while 4 million chose to explore their own country (with figures based on the number of sold package holidays). The average European, the GfK study found, spent around EUR 1,000 on his or her vacation in 2010.

“At the moment, television (with an average of seven hours’ viewing per day), going to the mall (in larger cities), spending time with friends and family and going to a barbecue come top of Romanians’ lists when it comes to leisure,” Dan Petre, managing partner and director of the qualitative studies department of D&D Research Even when they travel, Romanians mostly seek relaxation, adds Badulescu: “Some people go on activity holidays (especially in the winter, to Romania, Austria, Bulgaria, etc), or enjoy adventure tourism, but the figure is low.”

Bars and clubs are other local leisuretime hotspots, added the GfK report.

Around 24 percent Romanians go out drinking, similar to the party-fond Portuguese (22 percent) and the Germans.

Free time? What free time?

Some urban legends suggest there is an emerging class of workaholics among younger Romanian employees. If this is so, does it mean that leisure takes second place to career advancement? Oana Mir-

BALANCE 19 ila, qualitative research director at GfK Romania, says, “It is true that after 2000, workaholics began appearing here, too, especially people who work for multinationals or in some industries where overtime is common. But I wouldn’t say that this is typical. We Romanians value our free time and don’t really neglect our recreational activities, the ones that we enjoy. Even though we do not always have the necessary resources for a vacation (money or time), each of us has a small ‘refuge,’ a place we enjoy escaping to: visiting friends or family in the countryside or getting back to nature (the park, forest, etc).”

“We Romanians value our free time and don’t really neglect our recreational activities, the ones that we enjoy,” Oana Mirila, qualitative research director at GfK Romania.

On the subject of workaholism, Petre cites studies carried out by the Testcentral company.

“This trend is not as significant as we would like to believe. In the case of Romanians, workaholism is more of an urban myth than a reality. Studies show that Romanians’ tendency is to extend their free time into their work time rather than sacrifice it. And the explosion of web 2.0 use (Facebook and Yahoo Messenger) during work hours exacerbates this situation.”

Looking at how local leisure activities have evolved over time, Mirila comments: “The major change came after 2000, when more and more Romanians began considering holidays abroad, a less common choice in the last two years, on account of the crisis. We are the type who looks for ‘stable’ options – we have to book in advance, have reservations everywhere, etc. We are not used to turning up on spec at the location or choosing options like rural tourism or random hosts, etc. In other words, we need certainty, we need to eliminate risk on our vacations. Moreover, we don’t go for unconventional holidays, either as activities or as destinations – we choose well established locations. And most of the time, we opt for comfort – laying on the beach or going in the water rather than ‘active rest’ such as sports or any kind of physical activity.”

Petre believes that the crisis has brought “important changes in how we spend our free time. Before the crisis, there was a strong tendency to adopt Western activities and mentalities (holidays abroad, dining out, visiting malls – generally there was greater mobility).

The crisis hit that trend strongly and put us back many years, to cheaper freetime activities, more traditional, more family and friends oriented and locally based. The only segment of consumers that seems to be strongly connected to the West are the young, and this is the result of their almost organic connection to the internet.” corina.dumitrescu@business-review.ro

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

20 CITY RESTAURANT REVIEW

FILM REVIEW

IT IS FRENCH, BUT…

Courtesy of Cantine de Nicolai

French throwback: the menu at La Cantine harks back to the 1960s...

Le Cantine de Nicolai, Str Povernei 15, tel 0725 210608 MICHAEL BARCLAY

mab.media@dnt.ro

Courtesy of Cantine de Nicolai

I know every French chef in this city, so when my friends recommended Le Cantine as a French restaurant, I realized that they did not have a French chef at the helm. By a simple process of deduction it was evident that they must have a Romanian chef! At this point you may well wish to share my skepticism, as my experience dictates that the best effort most Romanian chefs accomplish is to burn a pan of water!

So naturally I was curious to see how a Romanian chef would handle French cuisine. OK, let’s go and see. The restaurant is well located between Romana and Victoria, so you have no excuse for not finding it.

The décor is safe and conservative, and I ask you to bear this comment in mind as it reflects the menu, which is equally safe and conservative. There is a glimpse of Gallic humor in the décor as it includes a grotesque, wall mounted montage of Andy Warhol’s pictures of Marilyn M. Oh yuk! It is so corny, kitschy and bad taste that paradoxically it accidentally turns full circle and becomes good taste in a light hearted and humorous manner.

But we are here to eat, so let’s get down to it and pig out with me.

It is not cheap. Prices for each dish start at RON 50 and go upwards rapidly, and as for the cost of the wine, don’t even ask! This makes me angry because this is the price you would pay in a good, midrange, sophisticated restaurant in London or Paris. But we are in filthy, polluted, over-priced Bucharest and the House is deluding itself if it thinks it is on an equal and level price footing with European restaurants.

So here is the menu. They have the ubiquitous French Onion Soup, which was absolutely perfect, or as an alternative they had a lesser breed of Cauliflower Soup. In keeping with a French theme, they offered Duck Foie Gras which we passed on because it is so ordinary and

available at every hotel Sunday Brunch.

Blondie and I were equally uninspired by their Duck Magret (duck breast) with bean salad which we passed on, and we economized by not ordering their Lobster Salad with Truffle Vinaigrette.

But a pattern was emerging of classical, mundane French dishes that time has overtaken. We were about to discover that the Romanian chef really could cook everything on the menu to an exceptionally good level. But therein lies the problem, because the menu is so very boring. It is like something out of the 1960s. Let me prove my point.

For mains there was a choice of: Osso Bucco, or Sesame crusted Tuna, or Prawn Mozzarella, or Steak Tartar, or Beef with Foie Gras, or Sirloin Steak with Bernaise Sauce, or… oh come on, people! None of this is culinary rocket science. It is simply outdated and boring. But on a positive note, whatever the chef produced, it was perfect. All of my misgivings about a Romanian producing French food went out of the window when we had our mains. They were great.

I ordered St Jacques (scallops) with puree potato and shaved fresh black truffle. The scallops were grilled for a few seconds so they arrived moist, correctly under-cooked and generous with five of the beauties. Blondie, being the unimaginative creature she is, saw me ordering

seafood, so she followed my lead and ordered a Saddle of Cod. It was soft, flakey, moist and generally perfect. I went to the kitchen to ask the chef how he prepared it, and he confirmed my suspicion that he boiled the cod rather than adhere to the Romanian principle of frying everything with a face on it, whether it be meat or fish. Bravo chef!

Gluttonous as ever, Blondie ordered a second main of Chicken in its own juice. Well, there was no juice whatsoever, but she had a perfect, moist, tender half chicken, which I suspect was roasted and later deep-fried. She loved it, but it needed a sauce so I told her to order a side of rather good Roquefort sauce of which we both approved.

I had a simple Roast Beef, which is a dish that has confused the French nation ever since they were taken over and conquered by the British at the battle of Agincourt in the year 1415. For hundreds of years the French have lovingly referred to the Brits as ‘Les Rosbifs’. You have to patronizingly forgive our poor French neighbors, because whatever pretensions they have regarding cuisine, they fundamentally cannot grasp the technicalities of producing a perfect roast. Neither could Le Cantine, which makes them authentically French. Sorry my dear French friends, to eat roast beef, you have to cross the ENGLISH channel and go to England.

So off to desserts, which are as safe and as boring as the rest of the menu. You have predictably Crème Brulee, Tiramisu, Crepes Suzette, and Mille Feuilles. Yes, all of them were perfect. But where is the excitement in the menu? It does not exist!

Neither does the beauty you expect in the art of ‘plating up’ .This is a term used by professional chefs to literally create a work of art when they bring your dish to your table. There was none of it, and the food (good as it was) was placed on the plate without any design or showbiz sexed up beautification.

OK, so if you find this old-fashioned, 1960s menu appealing, go there and you will find it to be superb. As for me, I have far more demanding expectations which reflect leading edge, modern French cuisine. But what they give you is good, really good.

... while the design embraces a more modern aesthetic

The Kids are All Right

The Oscar outlook is all right too

Directed by: Lisa Cholodenko Staring: Annette Bening, Julianne Moore, Mark Ruffalo, Mia Wasikowska, Josh Hutcherson On at: Cinema City Cotroceni, Cinema City Sun Plaza, Hollywood Multiplex, Movieplex Cinema

∫ DEBBIE STOWE Which is more than can be said about the adults in this subtle and grown-up modern family tale. Nic and Jules are a middleclass lesbian couple living in LA with their two teenage kids, both the products of the same sperm donor. Laidback Jules (Julianne Moore) has trouble settling to a career, and uptight Nic (Annette Bening) is prone to the odd red wine-fuelled rant, but they are basically happy – until the relaxed Californian family dynamic is shaken up by the arrival into their lives of Paul the sperm donor (Mark Ruffalo), whom the curious kids have traced.

The early encounters are awkward but genial. Paul is unfazed by the unconventional nature of the family he has sired – a motorbike-riding organic restaurateur, he is not the small-minded type.

But as he starts to play a bigger part in the family’s lives, he unwittingly exposes the tensions beneath the surface: Nic’s controlfreakery, Jules’ feelings of being judged by her partner, 18-year-old Joni’s (Mia Wasikowska) tricky transition to adulthood and 15-year-old son Laser’s (Josh Hutcherson) – they’re Californian, remember – lack of direction.

In the hands of a different filmmaker, the plot could have lent itself to stereotyping, slapstick or melodrama. But Lisa Cholodenko, who has first-hand experience of the set-up portrayed, has created a sensitive, charming film, with moments of humor, romance and pathos. All five main characters are beautifully drawn, real people with real people’s qualities, flaws and vulnerabilities (anybody who still thinks that gay people are freaks, or “different” from the rest of us, should see this film). As well as the script and direction, this is thanks to five pitch-perfect performances from the leads. Praise, awards and nominations have been heaped – quite deservedly – on this warm, witty movie. The Kids are All Right bulges with humanity and its many facets: love, family, aging, jealousy, insecurity, uncertainty, curiosity. And the themes are as relevant to a heterosexual couple living in a communist block in Bucharest as they are to LA lesbians.

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

CITY 21

EVENTS

EVENTS

Schonbrunn Orchestra B’estfest music festival opens Vienna Ball returns with new home

The sixth annual Vienna Ball, organized

by JW Marriott, will take place at the Parliament Palace in Bucharest on February 26. The event is in aid of United Way Romania and Concordia foundations. The ball will be opened by Schonbrunn Palace Orchestra, conducted by Guido Mancusi.

It will culminate in a parade of the 80 debutants, as well as a performance by the children of the Ballet School of the Romanian State Opera. The event will also feature the students of the Pas in Doi dance school, Elisabeth Bauer and Sebastian Huppmann’s operetta moments and Horia Brenciu and his orchestra.

The fun goes on until dawn.

“As in previous years, we expect around 1,000 guests at the ball, partners, sponsors and participants,” said Igael Porecki, general director of JW Marriott.

The Viennese Waltz, Nights in Bucharest, was specially composed by Mancusi for the occasion of the third Vienna Ball in Bucharest. It premiered in 2008 at the Parliament Palace.

The ball takes place with support of the city of Vienna, under the high patronage of its mayor and governor, Dr. Michael Haupl. ∫ Corina Dumitrescu

Courtesy of Emagic

Courtesy of JW Marriott

The Sixth Vienna Ball will host its traditional parade of debutants

Skunk Anansie are among the first confirmed artists at B’estfest B’estfest will return this year with a new, green location, in north Bucharest. Skunk Anansie and Pendulum are the first confirmed artists for the festival’s fourth run, which will take place on July 1, 2 and 3. The new location, B’estfest Camp, is located in the Pipera-Tunari area, on a 10-hectare surface. In line with tradition, the festival will have a main stage and secondary arenas and the audience can enjoy unconventional exhibitions, creativity workshops, relaxation space, games and handcraft fairs, as well as terraces, bars and restaurants. The main stage will function until after midnight and several entertainment areas will operate until morning.

Emagic CEO, Laura Coroianu, explained why the location change was felt necessary: “Since 2007, close friends and faithful audience members have asked us to move B‘estfest from a con-

crete location, because a festival means more than a series of concerts, it is an expression of unconstrained freedom.”

Britrockers Skunk Anansie formed in 1994, and later made it into the Guinness Book of British Hit Singles & Albums, with 141 weeks spent in the specialized music charts. They will perform on July 1. Australian band Pendulum mix live shows with electronic and visual effects.

The will join Linkin Park on their US tour and will play at B’estfest on July 3.

The festival, organized by Emagic, took a year off in 2010. In the past, it has featured artists like Nelly Furtado, Alanis Morissette, Pink, Kasabian, The Killers, Reamonn, Santana, Stereophonics, Franz Ferdinand, Alice Cooper, Marilyn Manson, Morcheeba, Moby, Motorhead and Faithless. Tickets will soon be available for purchase. ∫ Corina Dumitrescu

MUSIC

CONCERTS

Romanian song My Beautiful One gets most listeners in 2010

Al Di Meola brings experimental FESTIVALS fusion jazz to Spring is in the air as ‘Martisor’ fair Bucharest Legendary jazz performer Al Di Meola will comes to Romanian Peasant Museum perform in Bucharest on April 21 at Sala Palatului with his band, New World Sinfonia, in a concert organized by Events.

The son of Nepalese and Italian immigrants, Al Di Meola was born in New Jersey and grew up listening to Elvis Presley, Ventures and The Beatles, learning to play guitar and dance salsa.

Today, Di Meola is one of the biggest names in experimental jazz. He will share the stage during his Bucharest concert with Fausto Beccalossi (accordion), Peo Afonsi (acoustic guitar), Peter Kaszas and Gumbi Ortiz (both percussion) and Victor Miranda (bass).

From February 25, tickets will be on sale in the Eventim chain, at www.eventim.ro, or in the Germanos, Vodafone and Orange stores and the Humanitas and Carturesti book shops) for RON 88 to 218.

Before that date they will be sold at a 20 percent discount. Tickets may also be purchased in two installments. ∫ Corina Dumitrescu

Courtesy of Muzeul Taranului Roman

My Beautiful One, by Deepcentral featuring Xonia, was the most listened to song of 2010 in Romania, with over 3.6 million non-unique listeners and 5,015 plays, according to data from Mediaforest.

Second was Narcotic Sound featuring Christian D Matteo with Mamasita, which amassed 3,194,930 listeners and 4,786 plays.

In a close third was DJ Sava featuring Raluka’s I Like the Trumpet, with 3,111,537 listeners and 4,811 plays.

The chart is calculated using a song’s number of broadcasts and the number of listeners to the radio station playing it.

My Beautiful One was released in April and is a Universal Music Romania production.

This month, Deepcentral and Xonia released another song together, Hold On. Initially launched on the Internet, it is currently enjoying a lot of local airtime. ∫ Corina Dumitrescu

No good-luck charm like a “martisor” The approach of March 1 heralds ‘martisor’ fairs across Romania. One such is taking place at the Romanian Peasant Museum (Muzeul Taranului Roman), between February 25 and March 1, from 10.00-18.00. Three hundred craftsmen, painters and students will welcome spring with their creations. Traditional Bukovina and Bistrita amulets will join emo, surrealist, catchy and trendy trin-

kets, along with traditional gastronomic goodies such as ginger bread, fruit jam and zacusca, Alexandria and Baia Mare cookies, Malancrav apple juice, honey and more.

Martisor tradition sees men give women an amulet or good-luck charm on March 1 in Romania. The gift must be tied with a red and white string to bring health and good luck. The custom moved from the countryside to urban areas at the turn of the century. Early adopters were wealthy gentlemen as the red and white strings were attached to small objects made of gold and silver. Gold and silver pendants remain some of the most popular Martisor gifts. Entrance to the Romanian Peasant Museum Fair costs RON 4 (RON 2 for students and pensioners).

The museum is located on Soseaua Kiseleff 3, near Piata Victoriei subway station. ∫ Corina Dumitrescu

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

22 IN TOUCH

QUOTE of the week Out of the crisis...

Romanian tourism is out of the crisis, said the minister for regional development and tourism, Elena Udrea, citing figures from the National Institute for Statistics.

“In the last data from the institute, the GDP contribution for 2010 for tour operators grew by 14.9 percent in the first trimester, 8.2 percent in the second, 21 percent in the third and then 37.2 percent,” said Udrea in a press conference. “I hope this growth will consolidate and continue, and to be able to speak about the re-launch of this segment,” she went on, adding that the hotel and restaurant segment also registered growth in each semester of last year.

ROMANIA IN THE INTERNATIONAL PRESS Romania’s entrenched corruption is back in the news again. According to an AFP article quoted by www.eubusiness.com, “Romania's hopes of joining Europe's visa-free Schengen zone are under threat f r o m politicians' obstinance in the face of endemic corruption, especially in their own ranks, experts said.”

The piece quotes the experts as saying, “Despite EU warnings, politicians on both sides of the aisle have defiantly backed colleagues accused of graft, holding a rally in support of one accused of misusing European funds and blocking the arrest of another charged with blackmail. With the European Union due to publish a key report on Romania's progress, the country's politicians couldn't be sending worse signals.”

Romania's president, Traian Basescu, gets a more positive mention, as he “has also repeatedly warned lawmakers of more EU criticism if they fail to lift the immunity of their colleagues charged with graft.”

Although “some key reforms to shorten the length of trials and streamline procedures are certain to be praised in the upcoming EU report, experts said Ro-

manian lawmakers are likely to come under fire, (…) corruption is deeply rooted in the country's political class, experts said, and none of Romania's political parties are exempt,” continues the article.

Vintila Mihailescu, an anthropologist at the National School for Political and Administrative Sciences, is quoted by the author on the subject of graft in local politics: “Corruption has always been a cross-party phenomenon in Romania. It in-

volves intertwined political and economic networks,” he said. “Politicians are trapped in a domino game: if one falls, all of them could fall. To avoid this, they completely forget about public or national interest,” he added.

And the author is also prepared to name names: “Despite the upcoming EU report, lawmakers last week refused to lift the parliamentary immunity of ruling Liberal Democrat Party (PDL) MP Dan Pasat, whom prosecutors have charged with blackmail. (…) And in January the main opposition Social-Democrat (PSD) party organised a public rally in support of one its leaders, Constantin Nicolescu, accused of graft and fraud with European funds.”

WHAT WE ARE WORKING ON Dana Verdes Senior Journalist

is reviewing financing sources available to investors interested in renewable projects and the existing compliance framework. One of the current investment hotspots, renewable energy has seen project announcements but many are still looking for financing. dana.verdes@business-review.ro

Simona Bazavan Journalist

is reporting on Bucharest’s hotel segment to see how the hospitality industry fared last year. By 2008 the number of hotel rooms in the city had almost doubled, but with many projects being put on hold last year the sector has slowed. simona.bazavan@business-review.ro

Corina Dumitrescu Journalist

is writing on the wedding business.

She will look at the details behind organizing a oncein-a-lifetime event to tell to the grandchildren about, with the aid of wedding organizers and other specialists. corina.dumitrescu@business-review.ro

EVENTS, BUSINESS & POLITICAL AGENDA February 21 The Royal Norwegian Embassy in Bucharest and Innovation Norway organize a press conference on the Norway Grants program at the embassy’s headquarters. By invitation only.

February 21 ∫EVENT Business Review organizes the second edition of the Swiss Business Forum event at Capital Plaza Hotel. For more information about registration and future Business Review events, please visit www.business-review.ro/events.

10:30 CIG Romania organizes an event for the launch of a new insurance product at Athenee Palace Hilton Bucharest. By invitation only.

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

February 24 11:00 Lacerta Winery organizes an event for the official launch of its wines on the local market at Radisson Blu Hotel. By invitation only.

March 22 ∫EVENT Business Review organizes the sixth edition of the Annual Investment Awards at Athenee Palace Hilton Hotel.

For more information on the event and how to nominate a company for one of the awards’ categories, as well as future Business Review events, please visit www.business-review.ro/events.

March 17 ∫EVENT Business Review organizes the third edition of the Greek Business Forum

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ISSN No. 1453 - 729X

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

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

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