April 12, 2022 - The Adris Group is completing the necessary documentation for the Hotel Marjan renovation, after which work on the facility itself will begin!

The new tourist season is approaching, and Hotel Marjan is no different than the last fifteen years - or defunct since 2006 when entrepreneur Željko Kerum bought it. After the bankruptcy proceedings, it was purchased in 2017 by the Adris group from Rovinj, which plans to demolish it.

According to previous announcements, the hotel will be reduced by about 6.5 thousand square meters, which will try to get closer to the original form from the 1960s. In addition, they will try to neutralize the consequences of the never-completed renovation fifteen years ago, when the designer was Jerko Rošin, reports Slobodna Dalmacija.

As part of that, two extensive hotel annexes will be removed, and it was once speculated that they would be converted into apartments. Reportedly, there will no longer be a glass facade that has deviated from the surrounding view. The new facade should follow the original ideas during the original design of the West Coast, which includes the color of the stone. A sizeable inner courtyard or atrium should also be formed.

Hotel Marjan, the former pride of Split tourism, was bought sixteen years ago for 170 million kuna, three times more than the initially requested price. After the grand renovation was promised, a contract was signed with the Hilton chain. But, as is well known, this investment was the catalyst for, conditionally speaking, the collapse of the Kerum dynasty business empire.

At the end of 2017, Adria Resorts bought receivables from the Austrian Heta Asset Resolution Group over the Marjan Hotel. They had previously done the same with claims over hotel annexes and claims from 72 former hotel workers. At the end of 2019, Marjan was bought at an electronic auction for 3/4 of the estimated value, i.e., HRK 324 million. 

Slobodna Dalmacija spoke to Adris Group about the latest plans for the hotel and the dynamics of the works that will put it into operation. They said that this is a demanding project that will contribute to the further tourist affirmation of Split and confirm Adris as the leading Croatian company in luxury tourism. As for the reconstruction itself, their wish is to thoroughly renovate Hotel Marjan and join it to the group of Adris luxury hotels (Grand Park Hotel Rovinj, Monte Mulini, Lone, Hilton in Dubrovnik). 

They also confirmed that, in cooperation with the city of Split and the relevant institutions, they are completing the necessary documentation for the renovation of Hotel Marjan, after which work on the facility itself will begin. The project details (architectural solution, capacities, content), designed by renowned 3LHD architect Piero Lissoni, will be promptly revealed to the general public.

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28 February, 2022 - Adris Group generated a net profit of HRK 403 million in 2021, up from 44.6 million in 2020, with revenues growing by 20% to HRK 5.73 billion, the tourism and insurance group reported on Monday.

Sales revenue increased by 23% from 2020 to HRK 5.3 billion, while earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) reached HRK 1.02 billion, down 5% from the pre-pandemic 2019.

Adris said that all companies operating within the group had undertaken business transformation programmes, including digitalisation, to increase their operational excellence and gain a competitive edge.

Strategically, the present crisis has confirmed that Adris has a well-balanced portfolio. The HRK 400 million of its investment in 2021 and preparations for a number of new projects show that the continuity of development has been maintained even in times of high business uncertainty, the group said.

The group's tourism segment posted a sales revenue of HRK 1.36 billion, accounting for 78% of the revenue generated in the record-breaking 2019.

Croatia's leading insurer Croatia Osiguranje earned a consolidated net profit of HRK 363 million, an increase of 11%. Its total gross written premium increased by 5% to HRK 2.8 billion, while consolidated gross written premium, including regional branch offices, amounted to HRK 3.4 billion, increasing by 6% from 2020.

Cromaris, specialised in production and processing of high quality Mediterranean fish, saw a 14% rise in EBIDTA which reached HRK 67 million, and its net profit skyrocketed 40% to HRK 13 million.

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October the 31st, 2021 - The well known Adris Group is set to invest a large sum into the renovation of several Zagreb hotels, as well as into the famous Hotel Marjan down in the City of Split.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Ana Blaskovic writes, the Adris Group's net profit reached a massive 605 million kuna in the first nine months of this year, compared to a considerably lower figure of 141 million kuna last year, and total revenues rose to 4.51 billion kuna (marking a significant increase of 23 percent), they announced from Adris.

At the same time, the income from the sale of goods and services increased by a quarter, reaching a staggering 4.18 billion kuna. Consolidated profit before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) also stands at 1.065 billion kuna, three percent below the pre-crisis levels of 2019. The ongoing coronavirus pandemic continues to leave its traces on the results of the tourism business, Maistra, although a recovery was recorded in the main part of this year's main tourist season which is promising.

The company recorded 1.2 billion kuna in revenue from sales of goods and services, 79 percent of the figure recorded from back in 2019. EBITDA stood at 602 million kuna, reaching 85 percent of what was realised before the global pandemic struck, as well as net profit 360 million kuna in total. The Istrian part of the tourism business accounted for 86 percent of sales realised back in 2019, Zagreb hotels reached 36 percent of the same, and those down in Dubrovnik reached 44 percent of 2019's results.

Adris has also recently announced 200 million kuna in investments this year, with the continuation of preparations for the renovation projects of Zagreb hotels and the Marjan Hotel down on the coast in Split.

Croatia osiguranje's net profit amounted to 320 million kuna, 9 percent more on an annual basis, with 2.27 billion kuna of total gross premiums written in Croatia (a marked increase of 5 percent).

Cromaris' EBITDA profit also jumped up by more than a quarter, reaching 52 million kuna, while the net result was 12.3 million kuna.

For more, check out our dedicated business section.

ZAGREB, 14 Sept, 2021 - The main Zagreb Stock Exchange (ZSE) indices went up on Tuesday, the Crobex by 0.15% to 1,971 points and the Crobex10 by 0.16% to 1,204 points, with regular turnover reaching HRK 8.6 million.

The most traded stock was the Podravka food company, turning over a little more than HRK 3 million. It closed at HRK 596 per share, down 0.33%.

The ordinary share of the Adris tourism and insurance group turned over HRK 2.7 million, closing at HRK 470 (+2.17%), while its preferred share turned over HRK 1.09 million, closing at HRK 417 (+0.48%).

Thirty-six stocks traded today, with 14 gaining in price, 11 losing, and 11 staying the same.

(€1 = HRK 7.483597)

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July 12, 2021 - Works on Marjan hotel could begin by Rovinj's Adris Group already this September! 

By applying for a building permit on May 3 this year, which was completed on July 5 or became administratively filed, a new important step was made to prepare for the reconstruction of the Marjan Hotel, reports Slobodna Dalmacija.

These data were published in the information system of the Ministry of Physical Planning. Slobodna Dalmacija received confirmation from the owner of the unfinished building on the West Coast, Rovinj's Adris Group, who stated that "in cooperation with the City and relevant institutions, they have completed the necessary documentation for the reconstruction of Marjan, after which the works on the facility itself will begin." 

A few months ago, amendments to the location permit to reconstruct a building for catering and tourism purposes, i.e., a tourist facility with 285 accommodation units and a 5-star category, were obtained.

Boris Marelja, the head of the city's Administrative Department for Spatial Planning, Development, and Environmental Protection, said that an e-conference had been launched that will last 15 days, with the participation of public bodies, including HEP, Vodovod i kanalizacija and MUP to make any remarks before confirming the main project. After that part of the proceedings, the neighbors and other parties will have the right to inspect the file, also with a deadline of 15 days.

The speed with which the permit will be issued and become final depends on the possible objections. Of course, Marelja did not want to go into forecasts, and a rough calculation points to 45 days if there are no major objections. According to the information available, there should not be any, primarily because the documentation is well prepared, and it is not surprising if it is known that the Adris Group is a serious and reputable investor in the hotel and tourism industry.

According to the mentioned calculation of 45 days, the first works could follow in September this year. However, it should be reminded that this will not be construction, but the removal of "unwanted" or "superfluous" parts of the building.

Of course, Marjan will not be completely demolished as it was announced in the media, but according to the plans of former owner Željko Kerum and Jerko Rošin, there should be apartments. There is no doubt that the glass will be removed from the facade.

According to the announcement in September last year, the new hotel tower should have a height equal to the previous one after the planned project, but with one floor less as they will raise the individual floors. Raising the floors is logical and necessary to set up installations for various facilities, which did not exist when the hotel was built.

Zagreb-based architectural studio '3LHD' and renowned Italian architect and designer Piero Lissoni are working on the demanding project. In a Jutarnji List statement last year, Sasa Begovic briefly commented on the Marjan project: "We are doing a creative reinterpretation of the hotel built by Perković. We are also planning a smaller number of rooms and terraces with a view."

The designer of the first A deluxe hotel in Split, with 220 rooms, was, in fact, done by architect Lovro Perković. Built in 1963, Marjan soon became the pearl of Split tourism and one of the city's symbols.

In 1979, before the Mediterranean Games in Dalmatia, it was extended, and 10 years later, in 1989, it had its last reconstruction. Soon after the start of the Homeland War, displaced persons and refugees moved in. From 1998 until the beginning of the new reconstruction, it operated with only 30 percent of its capacity.

In 2005, Kerum bought it in a tender for 170 million kuna, three times more than the requested 57 million kuna. A period of big plans and optimism followed when, after four years, a 20-year franchise agreement was signed with Hilton.

However, the owner of the facility was soon elected mayor, and the work of building and renovating the hotel was suspended so that in 2015 everything would end with the bankruptcy of the "Adriatic" company. The bankruptcy lasted for several years, and in November 2019, Marjan was sold to an Istrian company for 324 million kuna.

The Adris group refrained from commenting and replied:

"This is a significant project for Split, but also the further development of the tourist part of our company. Namely, this is a demanding project that will contribute to Split's further tourist affirmation and confirm "Adris" as the leading Croatian company in luxury tourism. Furthermore, as the public knows, and your paper has written about on several occasions, we want to thoroughly renovate the Marjan Hotel and join it to the group of luxury hotels ("Grand Park Hotel Rovinj," "Monte Mulini", "Lone", "Hilton Imperial" in Dubrovnik."

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ZAGREB, 14 April, 2021 - The Zagreb Stock Exchange (ZSE) indices weakened slightly on Wednesday amid modest trading, the Crobex by 0.04% to 1,886 points, and the Crobex10 by 0.08% to 1,181 points.

Of the sectoral indices, the construction index saw the biggest decrease, of 1.56%, while the industry index increased the most, by 0.28%.

Today's regular turnover was HRK 6.5 million, HRK 3.2 million more than on Tuesday.

The highest turnover, of HRK 1.68 million, was generated by the preferred stock of the Adris insurance and tourism group. Its price went up by 0.49% to HRK 410 per share.

The only other stock to pass the turnover mark of one million kuna was Zagrebačka Banka, turning over HRK 1.22 million. Its price remained unchanged at HRK 56 per share.

A total of 43 stocks traded today, with 14 of them recording share price increases, 15 registering price decreases and 14 remaining stable in price.

(€1 = HRK 7.571658)

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ZAGREB, 17 March, 2021 - Representatives of the PPDIV agriculture union on Wednesday met with Rovinj Mayor Marko Paliaga, saying afterwards that the story of the future of the Rovinj Tobacco Factory (TDR) "ended well and British American Tobacco (BAT) stays in Croatia."

Paliaga thanked the unionists for fighting for TDR workers, the City of Rovinj said in a press release.

The Kanfanar-based TDR is owned by British American Tobacco.

The unionists thanked the mayor for the cooperation and support in negotiations with BAT on keeping the plant in Kanfanar, following announcements last year that it might be shut down.

The workers need not fear for their future any longer because TDR is staying in Kanfanar, the press release said.

PPDIV president Denis Paradiš said TDR's staying in Croatia was important for Rovinj, Istria County as well as for the Slavonia region and tobacco growers. "It's important for all of Croatia."

BAT took over TDR from Adris Group in September 2015 for €505 million. Under the contract, BAT was to keep production in Kanfanar for at least five years.

Last year media reported that BAT was considering to leave Croatia due to deteriorated business conditions. In December, Prime Minister Andrej Plenković said the government's negotiations with BAT were going well and that he would do everything for BAT to keep production in Istria.

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September 17, 2020 - Hotel Marjan in Split, which has been out of function since Zeljko Kerum took over in 2006 and was bought by Rovinj's Adris Group at the end of last year, will be completely demolished.

T.portal writes that the investors have hired 3LHD studio from Zagreb and the famous Italian architect and designer Pier Lissoni to lead the new hotel project, and they are currently in the process of obtaining a location permit.

After its reconstruction, the former Split tourist pearl and one of the recognizable city symbols will be equally as tall as the building today, but with one floor less due to the desired higher floor height. According to unofficial announcements, in this renovation, the hotel will be reduced by about 6.5 thousand square meters and for the most part, aim to be closer to the original form from the 1960s, i.e., an attempt will be made to neutralize the consequences of the never completed renovation fifteen years ago, when the investor was Zeljko Kerum and designer Jerko Rosin.

Among other things, two large hotel annexes, which are called apartments, will be removed, and there will no longer be the eyesore that is the double glass facade. A large inner courtyard, or atrium, will be formed, and the facade itself will follow the ideas during the original design of the West Coast, which includes even the color of the stone.

Adris Group said only briefly that in cooperation with the City of Split and the relevant institutions, they are preparing the necessary documentation for the renovation of Hotel Marjan. After the renovation is completed, it will be in the group of their luxury hotels (Grand Park Hotel Rovinj, Lone, Hilton and others). Still, they did not want to reveal the planned amount of investment and completion deadlines.

As it was unofficially found out, the original plan was to complete the documentation by the end of this year and start work next year, in which most of the planned two billion kuna of the company's investment in the tourism sector would be spent. As the decision was made at the group level to postpone it for a year due to the corona crisis, it is realistic that Adris Group will take its first major step into the Dalmatian market in 2022.

"The fact is that the coronavirus pandemic affected the course of our investments, but we will be able to talk about the deadlines and details of the project itself, which 3LHD and the famous Piero Lissoni are working on, when the project is completed," the Adris Group confirmed.

Leading Split conservator Rade Buzancic said that talks had been held with investors and designers and that his service was so far satisfied with what they had seen and heard.

"These are top experts who have set themselves the task of making a serious redesign, but almost reminiscent of the original project. They want to get closer to the original of the Marjan hotel and focus on quality instead of quantity, and that is a novelty in behavior in our area," Buzancic said.

Hotel Marjan itself is not individually protected as a cultural asset. Still, it has become part of the recognizable image of the city, especially from the sea, and an actor of a kind of subtle dialogue with Diocletian's Palace - both in area and height. According to the project of Lovro Perkovic, the former industrial zone with quarries and cement plants on the West Coast has been 'sanitized', and as Buzancic explains, in a successful modern style.

"The recent intervention was not particularly successful, and the construction of the double façade even increased the size of the tower and lost the cantilever, which gave the impression that the tower was floating in the air. Investors are very cooperative and are willing to restore most of the delicate image lost in the reconstruction fifteen years ago, and even balconies with bars. The project is currently going in the right direction," confirms the leading Split conservator.

Hotel Marjan, the former pride of Split tourism, was bought by Zeljko Kerum fifteen years ago for 170 million kuna, paying three times more than the requested starting price. He promised and announced a renovation, even signing a contract with the Hilton chain, but it turned out that this investment ran his entire business empire to the ground. The purchase was guaranteed by his retail chain Kerum d.o.o., which the banks blocked, and he announced lawsuits against them.

At the end of 2017, Adria Resorts from the Adris Group bought receivables secured by mortgages over Hotel Marjan from the Austrian Heta Asset Resolution Group. They previously did the same with receivables from hotel annexes and claims of 72 former hotel employees. Therefore, at the end of last year, Marjan was bought for three-quarters of the estimated value, HRK 324 million, by an electronic auction.

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As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 6th of April, 2020, in addition to the donation of three million kuna by the Adris Foundation for the procurement of respirators for hospitals in Rijeka and Pula, the Adris Group's administration has decided to donate two million kuna for the restoration of cultural monuments damaged in the recent earthquake in Zagreb.

In order to overcome the gravity of the situation caused by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the Adris Group's management, with the consent of its supervisory board, has made a number of decisions that will affect the operations of their affiliates, primarily their liquidity and profitability, and the long-term sustainability of the company in these unprecedented new circumstances.

Regardless of the current circumstances here in Croatia and across the world as the coronavirus pandemic continues to hold the economy in its firm grip, the Adris Group's management board decided that there would be no layoffs within that company. The Afris Group will realise already contracted and ongoing investments, and they will continue to prepare for planned projects.

Aware of the circumstances and the unknown situation we're all in when it comes to the potential duration of the coronavirus crisis - and despite the exceptionally good business results it achieved in 2019,  the company's management have agreed to cut their salaries by 30 percent over the next three + three months.

It has been recalled that, according to unaudited consolidated reports for the fourth quarter of 2019, the Adris Group generated a total revenue of 6.1 billion kuna in 2019, marking an increase of five percent. Revenue from the sale of goods and services amounted to a massive 5.4 billion kuna and is seven percent higher than it was back in 2018. Revenues from foreign markets increased by five percent to 1.59 billion kuna. Net profit amounted to 506 million kuna, marking an increase of 13.4 percent. Net profit after minority interests amounted to an impressive 402 million kuna and is 31 percent higher than it was last year.

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February 1, 2020 - The construction of the Stancija Grande Golf Complex near Vrsar, with an investment led by Maistra, has been in the public eye for a long time, especially for the residents of Vrsar. 

Namely, Glas Istre reports that a golf complex with a 27-hole golf course should be built on an area of one hundred hectares, in the area determined by the Spatial Plans of the County of Istria and the Municipality of Vrsar, based on the prepared Environmental Impact Study and Urban Planning Plan (UPU).

The same documents envisage landscaping along the golf course with four reservoirs that would be filled with collected and purified stormwater, sanitary, technological and drainage waters and from underground sources. The construction part of the complex includes a five-star hotel with a capacity of 200 beds with accompanying facilities, which should be high quality with a diverse offer, and an integral part of the complex. The existing residential building at Stancija Grande would be transformed into a golf clubhouse, with a golf academy, the Murtić Gallery and a service complex with a nursery.

The golf course would be a Championship Golf Course, signed by world-renowned golf player and golf course designer José María Olazába. It would not belong to the classic "tourist" courses found in most golf destinations in southern Europe. The landscape, course, hotel, clubhouse and related facilities are designed to allow the most demanding professional golf competitions organized by the European PGA Tour, which would place Stancija Grande in the top 100 courses in the world.

The Stancija Grande Golf Complex will be connected to the southern main access road by extending the existing road from four to eight meters, while the construction of the western access road is the responsibility of the Municipality of Vrsar. The service road to the complex will be built by widening the field road from three to six meters. For connection to the public water supply network of the Istrian water supply system, a water tank and a supply pipeline up to 800 meters long will be constructed, as well as a supply pipeline to the golf complex 500 meters long. HEP will conduct cabling to the golf complex.

The existing quarry at Stancija Grande, which is now practically in the function of a wild landfill, will be arranged and integrated as part of the golf course. 

With the construction of this golf complex, Vrsar would be classified as a golf destination of European and world rank. The broader goal of this project is to diversify the tourist offer, improve the tourist destination and improve the quality of the tourist service in Vrsar, which is known so far, mostly as a quality camping destination. This would also extend the tourist season, and this project aims to implement a new tourist offer in the existing offer, which is geared towards carefully selected groups of higher spending guests.

When asked about the status of the project, public relations associate Vanja Mohorović said that in the next three-year period, out of the planned HRK 4 billion, the Adris group plans as much as HRK 3 billion for tourism, of which HRK 450 million is planned for investments in Vrsar. Three hundred fifty million will be earmarked for the Eden Hotel and Camp Amarin this year, and the renovation of the Panorama and Westin hotels in Zagreb will begin at the end of the year. This year's investments in Vrsar will include the Koversada Naturist Camp and Porto Sole Camp.

"As for inquiries for the Stancija Grande Golf Complex, there are no new facts, and the project will be notified to the public when all its details have been defined," Maistra concluded.

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