Home / Business and Politics / [PIONEERS OF CAPITALISM] Ivan Bračić: PIP must design at least two new innovative bee products each year

[PIONEERS OF CAPITALISM] Ivan Bračić: PIP must design at least two new innovative bee products each year

Ivan Bračić
Ivan Bračić

Ivan Bračić founded the company PIP in Pisarovina 30 years ago on the foundations of a family tradition of beekeeping since 1930. Today, they are in a period of generational transition. They understand that this is a reality. The model has largely been shaped, and the definition of the organizational and management structure follows. The founder has transferred ownership to his wife Mirjana, the business is led by the oldest of the four sons Domagoj, while he remains in the status of procurator. He is an advisor, but also an tireless innovator.

– New innovative products and technological processes, especially in the segment of apitherapy, are still an insufficiently cultivated field – says Ivan Bračić, to whom we posed several questions as one of the pioneers of Croatian capitalism on the occasion of the company’s 30th anniversary.

Can you highlight a key moment crucial for development?

– That was the construction of the first production facility in 1994 as an annex to the family house. By building and equipping the facility, we created the conditions for the production of higher added value products – dietary supplements program, employment of qualified personnel, and better connections with a couple of faculties at the University of Zagreb.

How do you navigate between two fears – the pandemic and the fear of the ‘Međimurje scenario’ (bee die-off)?

– Bees will not disappear; there are irresponsible individuals. By combining education and stricter supervision in the production and application of pesticides, we will strengthen awareness of the importance of bees. The pandemic has introduced a lot of uncertainty; adaptation with responsibility is probably the formula for survival, and perhaps even success. By combining bee products and medicinal herbs, we can strengthen the human immune system and thereby reduce problems with the coronavirus. Here, socially responsible business and behavior in everyday life are essential.

What are the plans for the next 30 years?

– Every year, design at least two new innovative products, place knowledge and responsibility ahead of all plans, and all of this is carried by the employees. This is our intangible capital that is being enriched.

Tomorrow: Nikola Nikšić analyzes the business condition of the hundred largest companies founded in 1990.

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