Celebrated Croatian entrepreneur Mate Rimac discusses Rimac Automobili's new partnership with Hyundai and Kia Motors, how he plans to give a certain percentage of the company to its employees, revenue, the future, and more.

As Jutarnji list/Gordana Grgas writes on the 14th of May, 2019, after it was announced that the Hyundai and Kia Motors had decided to invest a massive 600 million kuna in capital into Rimac Automobili, Mate Rimac announced in an interview for Jutarnji list that he would give seven percent of the company to his employees, from the cleaners to the directors.

We're bringing you the English translation of that interview here.

Why has Rimac Automobili entered into a partnership with Hyundai?

"We've been in contact with them for a couple of years and have been cooperating with them for a few years. They sent a strong delegation to us and, as soon as they saw the company, as soon as they saw what we were doing, they decided to invest immediately. In October last year they gave us an offer and we entered into negotiations. To have a partnership with such a company is very important for us. When looking at comparisons, they have a revenue of 250 billion euros, which is four times more than the Croatian GDP, and we're also working directly with the administration. Euisun Chung, who was there upon signing the contract, is the executive vice president, the grandson of Hyundai's founder, who's now taking over the firm from his father.

We're quick, small and innovative, we see and create the future and that's very interesting to them, this is hugely important for us because, on the one hand, we've got the Volkswagen Group and Porsche, and then we've got Hyundai and Kia on the other, and we've been so busy with work with these companies that we don't know where we're going!

The best thing is that they're not just buyers of our products but also shareholders, therefore it's in their interest that the company succeeds. They will help us build faster in areas where we may have some weaknesses, for example in industrialisation, in the transition from small-scale to large serial production.

Today, we're dealing with very complex systems for large car manufacturers, power systems, batteries, electronics, etc., we've achieved all that very quickly, but we need strategic partnerships. It's very difficult, especially moving from small to large series. We need money to help the company achieve its goals. We invest a lot, we're constantly expanding our plants, we employ more than 500 people, more than 300 engineers... We're not like the others, we're not wired money from the state but we get our money on the international market, and there's nowhere better to find money than with a company that really understands what you're doing, which is a partner and also a buyer,'' stated Mate Rimac.

What's the ownership structure of Rimac Automobili like now? You said you wouldn't remain the majority owner...

"Now I have .. (looks at his phone) Just a second, I have all of that in a document..."

Do you not know what your share is now? Does that not matter to you?

''Well, that's not important to me. People don't really understand that. I'm killing myself with this job and I'd be the happiest man in the world if there was someone who could run the company better than me, so I could just do what I like doing, the technical part of things. Now I'm the executive and technical director, and now I hold 47.7 percent, the Chinese camel group holds 14 percent, Hyundai has 11 percent, Porsche has 10 percent, Kia has 2.7 percent, and the remaining shares belong to the investors from 2012 and 2013.''

Are the employees among the co-owners?

"No, but we're working on that now, all of the employees will get a share, up until now, the ESOP was not worth it for them because of the tax. They'll probably get seven percent, from the cleaners to the directors, but not everyone will get the same share.''

How much is Rimac Automobili worth now?

"More than 500 million euros."

Why did not you not get to capital through an IPO, on the stock market?

''A lot of technology companies are now doing IPOs and they're actually losing money, they still have no stable and profitable business. Let's say Lyft, Uber or Snapchat... I don't want that. I want to make an IPO when the company's numbers are at that level. The company's potential is huge, and we have now used a piece of it and it's a shame to go out out onto the stock market with this company's situation. In 3-4-5 years, it will be at a completely different level. Besides, we have good access to capital outside of the stock market, we've got that luxury.''

How much was Rimac Automobili's income last year?

''I wouldn't go into income, there are no final reports yet. That's not our focus either, but a long-term trend. Here's an example - the car that we're developing for Hyundai now goes into serial production in 2023 only. Those are the cycles of our projects and to us, as well as to our shareholders, it's really neither here nor there what the financial outcome will be for this year or for next year, we're building a long-term story.''

Are you making a profit or are you still in the minus?

''We were still in the minus last year because we invested a lot. It's important to note that this minus comes from shareholder money, and everyone agrees that it's the company's plan.''

What will you specifically use this 600 million kuna for?

''For many things. This is part of our C investment round, and we'll still have investors in this round for another 70 million euros, but we don't know who that will be for now, but they will probably be financial investors. One of the things we will invest in is building our campus, our development and research centre and our factory, and another company expansion, employing a lot of people and equipping the company. For the transition to serial production, it's necessary to equip our production plants, test our products, develop them right up to the end, certify them... It's a big thing.''

Where will the new campus be? And what will be there?

''We're planning a campus for 2000 people because we want to have a longer-term solution. The headquarters of the company will also be there, as well as the development and research centre, production, testing, there'll be a hotel for guests and employees coming from elsewhere, kindergartens for employees' kids, restaurants, food production, hairdressers, sports facilities... I want it all to be integrated there.''

Where will this be located and when will you embark on construction?

''Near Zagreb. The location hasn't yet been agreed, we're look at a few of them, we're negotiating. Construction should start early next year.''

I guess the campus will be a little special in the aesthetic sense.

''Nine international and several Croatian architectural studies are currently working on suggestions for conceptual solutions for the campus. Among them was Lord Foster (British architect Norman Foster), we had a meeting the other day. He worked on Apple's campus and many other world-famous buildings. Everyone is so excited about this project and offering some great suggestions. They tell me that there's no such thing anywhere else, the combination I want - the campus being open to the public, the care for the employees and the connection with nature.''

The serial production of your C-Two has been announced for next year. Where are you going to do this?

''We got a hall in Veliko Trgovišće (Krapina-Zagorje County). The C-Two prototypes are still being done in Sveta Nedelja, and when we finish them, we'll move the manufacturing of the prototypes to Veliko Trgovišće. We already produce the batteries and the power systems there because we're out of space here. We're now there in five buildings and we were looking for something a bit closer to Sveta Nedelja, but there was just nothing there. Since there is no industry in Croatia, there's not much out there to rent. So now we're in Veliko Trgovišće, and we have centres in Split and in Osijek.''

Why did you open them there, so scattered apart?

''We grew so quickly over the last year. We now have fifteen engineers in Split, and about ten in Osijek, ane they're now our competence centres - in Split, we do our own automotive software development tool operation, and we deal with our high voltage chargers in Osijek.''

The prime minister has never been in your facility?

''No, never. To make it clearer, I don't ask for anything from the government. All I do is to urge the government to do the right thing to bring the car industry to Croatia. I have proved that it's possible.''

Make sure to follow our dedicated business and Made in Croatia pages for more information on Mate Rimac, Rimac Automobili, entrepreneurship, manufacturing, production and business in Croatia and much, much more.

Click here for the original interview/article by Gordana Grgas for Jutarnji list

As the Chinese show greater interest in various Croatian strategic projects, the EU and the EC become more and more uneasy at the thought of such a heavy Chinese business presence in Croatia. As the EC changes its attitude towards some Croatian projects to which it reacted negatively in the past, has the Chinese influence rendered this change of heart senseless?

As Novac/Kresimir Zabec writes on the 13th of April, 2019, Croatia wants to finance the construction of the railway line from Karlovac to Rijeka, covering a length of 170 kilometres with EU funds, because that's more favourable to Croatia than doing it through a concession, stated Croatian Minister of Transport Oleg Butković at the construction site of Pelješac bridge recently.

Ironically much like Chinese whispers, it began to circulate in the media that everything had already been agreed with the Chinese, and that China's CRBC which is already building Pelješac bridge would construct the railway line via a concession model. Economy Minister Darko Horvat has thus announced giving the Chinese company a fifty year concession. However, Butković has very clearly stated that there has been absolutely no direct agreement with the Chinese and that everything will go through a tender, as usual.

''If we decide on a concession tender, then Chinese companies can also apply. If the line is built using EU funds, Chinese companies will be able to bid to be the contractors for the project,'' said Butković.

EU funding for the project is much more favourable for Croatia because it doesn't affect the growth of public debt. Should the case result in giving a concession to a Chinese company, they would build and finance it, but with government guarantees amounting to 1.7 billion euros, which is something the state can ill afford. According to current projections, the entire line should be completed by 2030.

Of the 270 kilometre of railway line from Botovo on the Croatian-Hungarian border, to Rijeka on the shores of the Northern Adriatic, the section from Karlovac to Rijeka is currently not covered at all by any form of EU co-financing.

A few years ago, the European Commission told the Croatian Government quite clearly that they would not finance that part of the line from Karlovac to Rijeka because it was too expensive and it just doesn't pay off. After that, the Croatian Government turned to the Chinese who were constantly showing interest in constructing that section. Now that the negotiations between China and Croatia have entered a much deeper and more serious phase, signals from Brussels, more specifically the European Commission, have been arriving which indicate that they are, despite all, still interested in the project.

Although that railway line is not officially part of the trans-European transport network, senior officials of the European Commission's Directorate General for Transport have openly told reporters that the Commission is ready to co-finance this project, and that it is a very important part of the European budget planning in the period commencing in 2021. Quite a turnaround, no?

In addition, this railway line is part of the line from Rijeka to the Hungarian border, which the European Commission has invested around 400 million euros into the modernisation and construction of, and that obviously doesn't quite sit well with the idea of the entrance of the Chinese into this project. According to statements, the ultimate goal of the overall project is to build a new bridge to the island of Krk and to build a new port on the island for container transport, which is an idea that the Chinese are also very interested in.

What stage are the works in?

Rijeka - Zagreb

The railway line from Rijeka tp Zagreb to the Hungarian border is part of the international Mediterranean Corridor connecting southern Europe with Central and Eastern Europe. The modernisation of this line would be of great importance to the Port of Rijeka. The modernisation and the construction of these lines are all in different stages of execution.

Botovo - Koprivnica - Križevci

In 2016, the European Commission approved 240 million euro for Croatia to build this section, but the contractor for the job hasn't yet been selected. A tender is in progress, but it has been stopped once again due to an appeal lodged by an Italian company.

Križevci - Dugo Selo

This is the only section of the track where works are ongoing. The European Union has invested about 180 million euros in this project, but works began a year and a half late because of contractor issues.

Hrvatski Leskovac - Karlovac

The design of this part of the line was co-financed by the EU in the amount of about 6 million euros. It is expected that tenders will be announced to modernise the existing works and build another track. The value of the works is estimated at 315 million euros and is planned to be funded through EU funds.

Karlovac - Oštarije

An entirely new two-track railway would be constructed on this part of the track, and the value of the works would be estimated at about 400 million euros. Project documentation has been produced, which has been paid for by the EU in the amount of 9 million euros.

Oštarije - Škrljevo

This, which is considered to be the most challenging part of the line, hasn't yet been fully defined, and technical documentation is being prepared by the EU, for which it has paid nearly 6 million euros. The value of the works on this section is estimated at as much as one billion euros.

Škrljevo - Rijeka - Jurdani

Project documentation was produced by the EU at a cost of 8.5 million euros. The value of the works is estimated at 270 million euros in total.

Make sure to follow our dedicated business and politics pages for more on Chinese-Croatian relations, doing business in Croatia, the investment climate in Croatia, Croatian companies, products and services, government policies and much more.

Click here for the original article by Kresimir Zabec for Novac/Jutarnji

AMPnet is the best Croatian startup, and it's going to the big final in Krakow, Poland.

As VLM/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 1st of April, 2019, AMPnet's platform focuses on energy cooperatives, an alternative model of sales for electrical energy and the financing of renewable energy sources. Mislav Javor from AMPnet pointed out that the product is now finished, and how their very first clients are knocking at their door.

With the winning project, AMPnet IO d.o.o. was proclaimed as the best Croatian startup this year between nine finalists at the national final of the PowerUp! competition held within the framework of the LEAP Summit, and organised by Invento Capital Partners in Zagreb.

The winning Croatian team will be presented at the Grand Final in Krakow, Poland on May the 21st, where they will compete for large cash prizes of 50,000, 10,000 and 5,000 euros, while the best project will be offered an additional investment of 150,000 euros as well as participation in the prestigious accelerator EIT InnoEnergy Highway, which helps in the transformation of startups, from their early stages of development right up to becoming a successful business venture.

Energy in a new way!

''We're very pleased with this competition organised by Innoenergy together with Invento Capital Partners. We believe that all of the teams have very high quality products, but we're happy that even with such a strong competition, the jury decided on us. We have been developing this product for two years and this victory is one of the moments that confirms that we're on the right track,'' said Javor.

''The PowerUp! competition by Innoenergy's winner, AMPnet, is a team that has a scalable product. Until now, they've shown that they have certain shifts in the market, they have contacts with potential buyers and have managed to attract investors. So, they only need an additional boost to reach the stage from which they can expand across Europe, and hopefully ultimately to the United States,'' said jury member Stevica Kuharski (Fil Rouge Capital).

''I'm truly delighted with the number of quality projects. This was one of the competitions where members of the jury had a difficult job choosing a project that would represent Croatia at the Grand Final in Krakow. What we can do, as a local partner of Innoenergy in Croatia, is to insist that many more of these projects are funded by Innoenergy, regardless of them having not been chosen today. The AMPnet project itself, and the team behind the project, demonstrated the highest degree of readiness, project development and market entrance possibilities,'' said Dalibor Marijanović, founder and partner of Invento Capital Partners, the local HUB in charge of supporting the aforementioned competition in Croatia.

Make sure to follow our dedicated business and Made in Croatia pages for much more.

Click here for the original article by VLM for Poslovni Dnevnik

Two years ago, Ivica Todorić signed Lex Agrokor, handing over the control of his gigantic company to the control of the state in an attempt to save it from collapsing. Since then, the largest restructuring in this part of Europe has taken place, a tumultuous phase we are now coming to the end of.

As Agrokor and all of its tremendous woes finally enter the realms of Croatia's business history, Fortenova begins its operations on a clean(er) slate.

As Jadranka Dozan/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 1st of April, 2019, as of today, which was already publicly announced by the former Agrokor as the date of the beginning of the settlement, Fortenova Group, the company's brand new name, begins its work. Yesterday, all Konzums were closed for the day, and a new chapter has now begun.

From the technical-operational aspect, the most visible test of the success of the enormous amount of preparatory actions for this "business migration" will be shown today in Konzum. From a normative aspect, all of the necessary enforcement documents were completed late last week. Fabris Peruško, the company's government appointed extraordinary commissioner and the temporary creditor's council agreed their final texts on Thursday. On Friday, just one day later, the Commercial Court in Zagreb issued a statement, and Judge Nevenka Siladi Rstić then issued a decision and approved the aforementioned documents.

Two days before, the conclusion was published explicitly specified the role(s) of the temporary creditor's council and the extraordinary commissioner in the further IU procedure, which could take a further three years. There was obviously a disagreement when it came to the terms of the need for harmonisation of the final acts between Fabris Peruško and the temporary creditor's council, so the session of the creditor's council lasted for two days.

Until the end of the procedure, the creditor's council now has the right and the duty (along with the court) to monitor how business is being done, supervise the execution of the settlement, and Peruško's work, including overseeing payment statements, checking account turnovers, and approving decisions in the settlement's further implementation.

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Click here for the original article by Jadranka Dozan for Poslovni Dnevnik

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 23rd of March, 2019, Business Matchmaker, organised by the eSTUDENT student association and the Office for consulting and career development at Zagreb's Faculty of Economics, will be held on the 26th of March this year at Zagreb's Faculty of Economics (Trg JF Kennedy 6), beginning at 9:00. The completion of the official part is expected to be at 15:00.

This innovative project allows students to personally present themselves in a short four minute selection interview to a group of desired companies. Interviews will be held in the halls of the faculty, and the continuation of the meeting and greeting, to which all participants are invited, will be in "Kefi" after 15:00 that same day.

Business Matchmaker is an event which resembles the speed dating principle and is intended for EFZG students to represent themselves to their potential employers. After the interview, employers and students will evaluate each other and the best students can then expect another round of interviews, where they will be able to learn more and find out more about employment opportunities in their desired companies.

In this interesting and useful way, students on the lookout for an employment position are able to properly develop their self-presentation skills and get to know how the labour market works firsthand. This year's Business Matchmaker will see the participation of as many as 21 companies divided into five different groups.

Lucija Matašin shared her personal experience of last year's Business Matchmaker and what it did for her career-wise:

"By participating in Business Matchmaker, I got a student job, which is honestly everything but ''student'' style. Along with that [I got] a great reference for my CV and a lot of motivation and courage to make it easier to deal with stress in similar situations in the future. I met the people from the company, which I might once meet again, because the world is really small and who knows where I'll be tomorrow, and maybe I'll bump into some of these people again on my way. This eSTUDENT initiative and the Office for consulting and career development really provide EFZG students with something they don't get through their classes.''

The companies participating in the project are 24sata, Addiko Bank, Atlantic Grupa (Group), ATOS, British American Tobacco, Croatia Osiguranje (Insurance), Deloitte, DIV Group, EC, INA, Kaufland, King ICT, KPMG, L'Oreal Adria, mStart, Philip Morris Zagreb, Samsung, SofaScore, Syskit, Talentarium and Zagrebačka banka.

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A takeover for Istrian Supermarkets (IS) by the popular retail giant Studenac is in the works as potential new investments and the strengthening of the company loom.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 14th of March, 2019, Studenac, one of the leading retail chains in the Republic of Croatia, has officially submitted a request for the takeover of the Poreč-based retail company Istrian Supermarkets (IS) to the Croatian Competition Agency (AZTN). Upon receiving approval from AZTN and properly meeting all the terms and conditions agreed between the involved parties, Studenac will acquire 100 percent of Istrian Supermarket's shares based on the recently signed contract between the two companies.

This transaction will certainly pave the way and provide fertile ground for yet more investments and the transfer of knowledge and experience for both Istrian Supermarkets and Studenac, and will significantly increase the volume of business, further enabling the market leader to build its already strong retail portfolio along the Adriatic coast.

Michal Senczuk, the head of Studenac's management body, stated:

"Studenac is continuing to improve its offers to domestic customers through the takeover of a company that is [already] well positioned and highly valued by its customers in Istria. Istrian Supermarkets (IS) is a successful organisation with excellent resources and we believe that this synergistic effect will lead us all to new opportunities which will contribute to the satisfaction of our customers as well as our employees.''

Vedran Banovac, Istrian Supermarkets' main director added:

"We're extremely happy to have a chance to be a significant part of the consolidation process of the Croatian retail market, and for Istrian Supermarkets, this transaction represents a strategic opportunity to increase our market share in the dynamic growth within the region. We're looking forward to the integration of our team with Studenac and the joint work we'll undertake, through which we'll continue to strengthen our business.''

Make sure to follow our dedicated business page for much more.

One successful Zagreb company has been exploring outside of the Croatian market and has found a plethora of opportunities and interest on foreign markets.

As Lucija Spiljak/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 14th of March, 2019, thanks to its long tradition, identity, high quality, attractive design and practical accessories, the Zagreb-based company Mediaform has been positioning in Croatia for over twenty whole years as a market leader in the field of the production of top of the range diaries made from some of the highest quality materials.

The company was founded back in 1997 by Nedeljko Šukurma, who is currently working with numerous other companies and designers. They have been selling their company's products for years through retail stores such as Narodne novine, Školske knjige (School books), and others. However, Šukurma didn't want to just stop and stay on the Croatian market alone, but he, with a dose of success and an excellent idea, decided to dip his toes into foreign markets.

"Over the past few years, we've been trying to break into the European market in the segment of office and school materials with notebooks called Keyboard in two groups. The first group are premium notebooks - such as Moleskine, Lanybook and the like, while the other group are school notebooks. The Keyboard notebooks were successfully sold in the bookstores of the former Algoritam company, but even after its closure, customers were still asking after Mediaform's notebooks,'' explained Šukurma.

This was just another incentive for Šukurma and his Zagreb company to try out their products overseas where his company came across very positive reactions and a lot of praise.

"To be able to position yourself successfully on the global market in a segment that has long been covered by world-renowned brands, you need to do something innovative, something interesting and specific. With our new collection of Keyboard notebooks, we have been able to attract a great level of interest from foreign distributors and bookstores. On the front page, the notebooks are simple and minimalistic, but the design is impressive. The letters on the embossed, styled keyboard on the notebook's covers form an inspirational message - Handwriting beats a keyboard, which promotes handwriting as one of the timeless ways through which people can express their personalities,'' stated the founder of this successful Zagreb-based company which is clearly going from strength to strength.

Therefore, in addition to the business side of things, this Zagreb company's notebooks also feature an aesthetic function that will attract anyone who is used to using laptops and the like. For two consecutive years, Zagreb's Mediaform has been expanding its product group at the world-renowned and specialised Paperworld fair in Frankfurt, Germany. At the end of last year, they first exhibited their products at the Insights-X fair in Nuremberg for the German market and at the Big Buyer fair in Bologna for the Italian market.

"At the last Paperworld fair in Frankfurt, the organisers officially drew attention to our Keyboard notebooks. At this fair, there's also a separate space that acts as an exhibition gallery called Trends. When it comes to [exhibiting there] the fair organiser selects the most innovative and creative articles that should have particular emphasis drawn to them, with the focus being placed on excellence. Our Keyboard notebook found itself among this group of the world's top manufacturers,'' said Mediaform's owner.

Make sure to follow our dedicated business and Made in Croatia pages for more on Croatian products, services and inventions. If it's just Zagreb you're interested in, give Total Zagreb a follow.

Click here for the original article by Lucija Spiljak for Poslovni Dnevnik

All major producers such as Vindija, PIK Vrbovec and MI Pivac are expected to be licensed.

"It's interesting to people, the technology and the entrepreneurial story behind it, and the human one, and our location, everyone wants to hear that story," stated Croatia's supercar genius Mate Rimac.

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