Counting Trucks with Goods for Export: Entrepreneurs Showed That Export Is Not Dead

Lider’s action ‘Counting Trucks with Goods for Export’, in which entrepreneurs themselves report their examples, has shown that despite the gloomy reality or precisely because of it, we Croats have a horse to race. Not only that, but the action shows, and we hope it will confirm even more, that we have good exporters from many sectors.

Furthermore, we also talk about family companies like Vuplast-plastika from Čakovec, which has been engaged in the production of plastic products for 30 years, and during the corona crisis, they designed and patented a new product intended to protect individuals who come into contact with contaminated textiles. This is about soluble bags for washing contaminated clothing, the quality and value of which have been recognized by European countries such as Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Iceland. A distribution agreement for the bags for washing contaminated clothing has recently been signed with these countries until 2023.

Who says our shipbuilding is dead! These smaller companies seem to be more resilient than expected, like the Tehnomont Shipyard in Pula. The total value of their projects for this year’s export exceeds ten million euros. From the east of the country, the company Žito, one of the largest pig producers in Croatia, but also one of the largest exporters, exports 21 trucks weekly, or just under 3,000 pigs, with the main export markets being Hungary, Serbia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. In addition to them, they also export to Montenegro, Slovakia, Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Poland, Lithuania, Sweden, Ireland, Austria, and Germany, and are actively working on opening new markets.

The company MODEPACK is a specialized packaging manufacturer that exports to 25 global markets, generating over 80 percent of its revenue from these exports. The company specializes in high-quality packaging for the logistical transport of goods, focusing on eCommerce and courier packaging, as well as security packaging for cash and valuables. The annual revenue growth is 30 percent, and they collaborate with rapidly growing industries such as online retail and security.

A company with a similar name and activity, but different products is Model Pakiranja, which has been a member of the Model Group based in Switzerland since 2001. They offer an innovative wide range of corrugated cardboard packaging that they market in domestic and regional markets, such as Slovenia, Hungary, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Austria. Exports account for more than 40 percent of their realization, which in numbers means 75 million kuna annually for 75 thousand pallets of finished goods, or 2,500 trucks per year. Their customers are mainly large food companies for which they produce transport packaging.

The company HEMCO is one of the companies that 'mercilessly' fills trucks for export! On their Facebook page, they recently wrote: ‘Currently, trucks are being loaded with 3,200 items of Hemco clothing for our partners in Hungary and Slovakia’. We hope, as we write this, that HEMCO is filling new trucks. Just like the Ancona group, which at the beginning of the month started delivering another excellent project across the Great Marsh. They ordered 12 containers of pull-out sofas for the Hyatt Place – Perimeter Center project from Atlanta. Encouraging for the furniture industry, which is always among the first to suffer in a crisis.

We invite entrepreneurs to continue reaching out to us and sending photos of their trucks and trailers filled for export. Until now, we have counted tourists entering Croatia (to avoid misunderstanding, every tourist is worth their weight in gold), and Lider begins to count trucks leaving our borders with goods for sale. Contact us at [email protected]. We are waiting for you!