Ana Group is a highly diversified group. Can you briefly tell us the history of your company and how did you come to invest into such different sectors as electronics and food processing?
Our group started in 1990 as a small company specialized in confectionery, which still remains our core business, and little by little we started to diversify. We have been very lucky to consolidate our business, because we are going through a real economic crisis. However, we can say that despite the adverse economic situation our business has continued to grow. That means that we have taken the right decisions, and that the diversification has proven to be the right path. With little investments we have managed to grow. We have 4 main lines of activities, and we are leaders in all the sectors were we are present: confectionery and bakery, electronics, telecommunications and tourism. When I say tourism I mean we have an international hotel, we have a cable service in a ski resort and great hotels in the mountains, in Poiana Brasov, a very famous resort and tourist destination in the mountains. I even have my own football team, the PRO Rapid. We want to consolidate our business. We are big, but we have never cheated, and we want to be even bigger.
You have just told us you are the leader in every sector you are involved in. Could you be a bit more specific?
Yes. Take for instance our micro-engines division. Ana Group bought in 1996 a local company that produced electrical motors. We bought it for US$ 23 million, and today it is worth US$ 45 million. Presently Ana Imep, that is the name of the company, exports 90% of its production to Italy, Spain, England, etc.
We also started investing in the hotel industry, and we are the leaders now. All our hotels were very deteriorated and very old, from the 19930īs. We bought them and upgraded them. Now they are 3, 4 star hotels, very modern, with the same international standards that you find in the rest of Europe. We also bought the old Flora Hotel in Bucharest, and we transformed it into the Crowne Plaza Hotel, one of the few 5 star hotels in Romania. We had to do a lot of work, but it was worth it. Now it is the most beautiful hotel. And we are not an international hotel chain, we are local, and we can compete with the big names. Our hotels in Poiana Brasov are located in the best ski resort in Romania. We bought the cable transport to go up to the mountains, and now thanks to these improvements we have brought the ski slopes in Poiana to West European levels.
Take football for instance. When I bought the football club Rapid they had been in second division for 32 years. For the last two years we have won the cup, the super cup and the league!.
Our main business is the confectionery, pastry and bakery. We started with that business and today we are considered the best in that field. We not only produce these confectionery, but we have also set have a number of bakery shops all around for better distribution. I think the reason for our success is the consistent quality of our products, the efforts we have made to keep it up and finally it is the work of a team.
What would you say then is the secret of your success then?
I am from Transylvania, and there we have a very sound mentality. We say: "do everything through work", and this is what we have done. Nobody has given us anything, our success is the fruit of our hard work. Team spirit is also key for our success. Our workers like what they are doing and they are motivated because of our desire to be the leaders in everything we do. For instance, we have shares in Connex, the mobile phone company. They are the leaders in their field. That is our philosophy: hard work and the wish to become leaders.
Do you want to remain local or do you have any need for foreign investment?
We need partners to continue growing
to grow faster. In fact we need strategic financial
investors such as investment funds. We can use their
knowledge, their know-how. One area that is important
for us is to use their marketing strategies. You
know that Romania has been accepted to start negotiations
with the European Union in order to become a member.
We are opening up to the European Union, and we
cannot penetrate this market alone or to remain
outside of its influence. We need to create strategic
alliances in order to be stronger. So yes, we would
welcome foreign investors. |
You are steadily growing. What would you say is the objective for Ana Group for the year 2000?
Our objective for the year is to consolidate our growth. To get firmly established as leaders in all the fields we work in. We also want, as I said earlier, to attract investors to our group. Especially financial investors, and particularly mutual funds. These are the kind of investors we need to help our group to consolidate finance-wise. Ana is a very solid group, we take seriously everything we do. This is what we basically want to do in the business aspect.
But we are not only involved in business. I love my country and we have to do something to make it a better place to live, at the same social level than the rest of the European Community. We have to show solidarity with those that have less than we do. That is why from April 1st 2000 we will create a foundation called PRO-RAPID - the name is like my football team - which is a very ambitious project to help our country. We will develop a program for the education of street children. I have talked to our Prime Minister and he really likes the project. You know it is one of the conditions of the European Union. We will get the children out of the streets. We will educate them, we will teach them how to play, give them an education. The government cannot do this alone, that is why I think it is the duty of Ana Group to help the collectivity, to join forces. There are a lot of children in the streets today, we want them to leave the streets and to lead a happy life without having to beg. We are investing US$ 1 million in this project
Doesn't Ana Group already have a foundation?
Yes, the Ana foundation. We help old people who are in need, hospitals in order to modernize their equipment, we also give donations to children houses (orphanages) etc. We try to share with others our success.
Could you provide us with some figures regarding your Group?
Today we employ 4,000 workers. Our turnover for the whole holding last year (1999) was US$ 80 million. In fact in the past years our turnover has decreased due to the bad state of the Romanian economy. For example in 1996 we reached a turnover of US$ 140 million, and extraordinary profits. In 1997 and in 1998 our turnover decreased, but fortunately in 1999 it went up again. We hope to continue growing in 2000.
You have just mentioned that one of the reasons for the slow growth of Ana group in the past years is the general state of the economy. What do you think of the present economic measures taken by the Prime Minister, Mr. Mugur Isarescu?
I believe that Mr. Isarescu adds a lot of credibility to our government. We need government stability because our democracy is still very young as you know, and these things need time. You cannot become a democracy just like that, it is a whole learning process. In the past we did not have legislative coherence and we had corruption. This is the worst, because then foreign investors do not see consistency in our efforts to become a serious democratic country with an open economy, and they do not come. This favored the development of underground economy, and this is not good for the country or for serious businesses that have to face unfair competition. I also believe that one of the main things that need to be done is to create an atmosphere that will facilitate exports. We export 70-75% of our production of electric material, and it is not easy.
In 1999 the economy was quite closed. We did not open much and we did not attract much foreign investment. Precisely one of our major problems is our international credibility, because of the problems that we have and due to inner political fights too. So I think that Mr. Isarescu is an excellent choice to give credibility to our country. You know he was the governor of the National Bank and he did a good job there, so I think he will do a good job here.
Would you like to give our readers a final message?
Yes, that I would like to be among the FORBES
top companies! But maybe that will have to wait
until the 3rd millenium... |
ANA GROUP