Merging: A Move of Desperation or a Thoughtful Business Decision?

When you are small and want to achieve more, putting heads and money together is always a good thing. In Croatia, almost everyone is small, especially those more ambitious who have peeked outside. However, this has not been a favored activity among Croatian entrepreneurs.

In the latest issue of the business weekly Lider, you will find many interesting economic stories:

The current story about the economic fund is written by Gordana Gelenčer. The Constructor consortium has already requested a state guarantee for the construction of a road in Montenegro, but it is not hiring Croatian, but Macedonian and Albanian companies and workers for its cooperatives. State aid to companies is on the way. It just remains to be seen exactly when and under what criteria. In less than ten days, the most important question must be defined: who deserves help and who does not; who should be granted a loan, guarantee, or equity capital, and who should not? How to avoid having companies that can least blame the crisis for their poor results compete for money?

Capital connections have recently been mentioned by Kerum, Tedeschi, Biljecki… By force of circumstance, we will witness a sudden increase in ‘friendships’, even among competing companies, in the coming period. For some, this will be a successful grab for the last straw of salvation, while for the wiser and more prepared, it will be a leap for a new growth period. When you are small and want to achieve more, putting heads and money together is always a good thing. In Croatia, almost everyone is small, especially those more ambitious who have peeked outside. However, this has not been a favored activity among Croatian entrepreneurs. – Well, why would it be? – they respond. When a company records growth of 20 to 30 percent per year, and banks wholeheartedly support it with loans, nothing seems impossible. The sweetness of victory is all the greater if it is achieved by the one who founded and manages the company. However, things are changing, and illusions are being shattered. Merging, from the loosest form of a consortium or alliance to a firm capital connection, is becoming an increasingly sought-after anti-recession tool. Now there is neither growth nor credit. The question is only how much merging is a move of desperation and how much is a rational and thoughtful business move. Read about alliances and the advantages of merging in this week’s topic ‘A Move of Desperation or the Right Recipe for Saving Companies’.
 
About the nightlife of foreign managers in Zagreb writes Željka Laslavić. Foreigners living and working in Zagreb are condemned to a nightlife offer that may not compare to that in Paris, London, or Amsterdam, but is quite sufficient for their needs, given their demanding business engagements. We spoke with high-ranking foreign managers from various industries to take them a little away from their business routine and try to find out how they have fun in Zagreb, where they go out, and how they compare it to other cities. Recommendation: a must-read.

In an interview, Željko Perić, a consultant and owner of the company Caper, reveals to us why political racketeering has destroyed the ethics and morality of the Croatian business scene. The time for designing a fund to save the economy does not favor any new state intervention. Everything state now sounds quite compromising. However, Željko Perić, a consultant and frequent media interlocutor, has no doubts – there must be a fund! Although he has been running his own private consulting company Caper for five years, his experience working in state, semi-state, and private companies such as Ingra, Hidroelektra, Pliva, and Lura has taught him the motto: transparency above all.

The greatest value of the Daruvar Brewery is the Staročeško brand, which is for sale for only 350 thousand kuna. At the end of the month, the brewery from Daruvar will be sold for the fourth time at a public auction in Bjelovar. There are no indications that this will be the last attempt to sell its assets. There are simply no interested parties willing to pay 27 million kuna for debts of 43 million.

Our advisor, mr. sc. Marija Zuber writes about sick leave. Employers who seek reimbursement from state institutions for employee sick leave longer than 42 working days will no longer be able to receive that amount if they have not paid contributions.

In the Business Knowledge section, read about how important ideas are in trade and sales. It should be kept in mind that customers will remember a service that seems crazy at first glance. The retail chain Nordstrom achieved world results when it instructed its employees to iron shirts for customers if needed. How to make your own ideas interesting and memorable to ultimately achieve results is revealed in their book ‘Ideas That Stick’ by Chip and Dan Heath.

Hiroshi Kimura, the conductor of Japan Tobacco’s march into new acquisitions and foreign markets, is the main character of this week’s feature. Despite ventures into food businesses, Japan Tobacco is primarily a tobacco company completely dependent on cigarette sales. The purchases of Gallaher and RJ Reynolds further solidified its presence in the global tobacco market and secured it third place in the world ranking. It continues to expand, and it is likely to find itself in the Croatian market. (G. J.)