Made in Croatia

The ongoing coronavirus pandemic has thrown a major spanner in the works economically in every possible sense, but one Varazdin company hasn't let it get in the way of their production, and they're doing better than anyone could have possibly imagined given the dire circumstances. As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 19th of July, 2020, approximately 1,500 solar panels are produced on a daily basis at the plant at the entrance to the Northern Croatian town of Varazdin. Coronavirus has not harmed this Varazdin company's business, and the demand for their products is greater than they can manage to keep…

July 19, 2020 - Harvesting lavender on top of Hvar, what can be more magical than that? A visit to the aromatic fields of Jadran Lazic.  It has been one of my favourite summer activities for the last 7 summers, and I have not missed a single harvest.  They used to start with a 4 am wakeup call and an early descent to the top of Croatia's premier island and straight to work before the heat became too fierce. These days, harvest lavender in the fields of Jadran Lazic takes place in the late afternoon.    Back in 2013, I…

Croatian olive oil is among the very best in the world, and as Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 11th of July, 2020, for the second year in a row, the Ol Istria Olive Oil Selection won a gold medal in the quality category at the prestigious world olive oil competition London International Olive Oil Competitions, and in the same category Ol Istria Picholine oil won silver. Thus, the Croatian olive oil from Agrolaguna returned from international competitions once again with awards that prove its continuous top quality and recognition on the world's olive oil scene. Namely, London's IOOC is one…

As Filip Pavic/Novac writes on the 6th of July, 2020, apart from the fact that Croats turned to Croatian products from the markets during the crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic, they also turned to domestic financial applications. Thus, in the last ten days, Aircash, the first Croatian digital wallet, has unexpectedly taken to the throne of the most popular applications for paying and sending money in Croatia on both platforms, Apple's App Store and Google Play. This was confirmed by Hrvoje Ćosić, the co-founder and director of Aircash, stating that at the beginning of June they broke the magic…

The ongoing coronavirus pandemic has done very little to instil a sense of optimism in anyone, particularly in the enfeebled Croatian tourism sector which has been among the hardest hit economic activities in the country. One Croatian startup, however, wants to save the summer season and return a sense of optimism to those working in the Croatian tourism industry. Meet Divan.hr. As Novac writes on the 3rd of July, 2020, Maroje Sabljić and Matina Tenžera, the duo behind Croatian startup's Divan.hr service, has been highlighting the best the City of Zagreb has to offer on its website and on its…

Since Croatia made it mandatory to wear masks when using public transport, masks of all kinds have once again become a much sought-after commodity. One Zagreb company, Delt Papir, wants to be the one to cover all of Croatia's mask related needs. As Darko Bicak/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 26th of June, 2020, assessing the situation on the market in the midst of the coronavirus crisis, the management board of Delt Papir invested 1.5 million kuna in a new plant for the production of certified three-layer surgical masks. The coronavirus pandemic seems to have entered its second phase, and after…

June the 23rd, 2020 - In as much as the world is fed up with coronavirus, in a case like this one here, we cannot but feel grateful: we met this man quite a few years back and it took a global pandemic for us to find out his real name! Zagreb is a well reputed stage of arts, all sorts, music included. To the connoisseurs, it is an attractive destination also for its clubs with jazz, blues, jam sessions - in case you're the type who is into that kind of thing. Back then, the legendary BP Club in the heart of Zagreb…

June 22, 2020 - The new Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community passes 100,000 visits in its first month - thank you! It is just over a month since I visited the main Bregana border crossing between Croatia and Slovenia with PR guru, Kresimir Macan. It was certainly an educational trip, which showed the realities on the ground.  On the way back to Zagreb, I asked Macan why Croatia did not have a Viber group for the latest travel information, as it did for corona updates. The corona Viber updates have been an invaluable service in keeping about half a…

June 23, 2020 - Welcome to Balkan Blackmail, and why one of Hvar's best advertisements to the Scandinavian market will be closed this summer, perhaps forever. Bravo, Majstori! It is one of the great hidden gems of Hvar that few people on the island even know about.  And yet, in certain sports around the world, it is internationally famous.  Meet Lost Villa, idyllically located in an isolated waterfront plot in a bay south of Gdinj on eastern Hvar.  In the words of Swedish owner, Per: We have a fitness villa and bring mostly Swedish crossfit and weightlifters to work…

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Bernard Ivezic writes on the 18th of June, 2020, Mate Rimac recently opened a new factory in Zagorje, more precisely in Veliko Trgovišće, which is intended exclusively for the serial production of his electric vehicles. The new factory should enable Rimac Automobili to start delivering finished C_Two vehicles to customers as early as next year. Noting that during this year, Rimac Automobili plans to publish the final design and name of the vehicle, given that the C_Two is still being treated as a prototype, and not the final, homologated vehicle, or a finished product. Initially, the first deliveries to…