Roglić: Orbico will become larger in Poland than in Croatia next year

– The interest of Polish companies in the Croatian market is enormous. Last year, Poland’s exports to Croatia increased by fifty percent, while exports from Croatia to Poland rose by as much as eighty percent – stated the Polish ambassador to Croatia, Maciej Szymanski, during the opening of the Polish-Croatian Forum held today at the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel in Zagreb.

Katarzyna Kacperczyk, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Affairs of Poland, also pointed to the excellent political relations between the two countries.

– I am proud that we have brought the best and strongest companies to Croatia to present themselves at this forum – said Kacperczyk, adding that she hopes for the swift realization of the Baltic-Adriatic project, which is expected to connect Polish and Croatian ports.

Joško Klisović, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Affairs of the Republic of Croatia, boasted about Croatia’s economic growth in front of the Polish guests.

– We have been in the positive for three quarters now. Domestic consumption has grown by 0.4 percent, exports by a significant 12 percent, and investments in Croatia have increased by 0.8 percent. When we talk about utilizing EU funds, Croatia has a lot to learn from Poland. I can freely say that this country is a model for us in this regard – said Klisović.

The main sectors in which Polish companies achieve their profits are cosmetics, food, the energy sector, innovations, and the financial sector, led by the Polish PKO BP bank, which had assets amounting to 48 billion in 2013 and is also, according to Deloitte’s research, the most powerful financial institution in Central Europe.

The Orbico group of Branko Roglić, which acquired the Polish company Nava, with a revenue of 215 million euros, is one of the mentioned examples of business connectivity between domestic and Polish companies. Thus, its director, Stjepan Roglić, gave a brief presentation on the success of the company.

– Poland is a market of 40 million people, ten times larger than Croatia. They are completely oriented to the West and have not felt the crisis. From next year, we will become larger in Poland than in Croatia – announced Roglić.

The forum was attended by representatives of about fifty Polish companies from the consumer sector, energy, and IT sectors, marking the largest organized visit of Polish companies to the Republic of Croatia to date.