[Business Scene] Varaždin County Between Lohn Jobs and High Technology

Once, journalism schools taught that the best way to start a text is 'in the middle.' So, is there a better place to start a report than – the center of the world? That is why we began our overview of the business scene in Varaždin County in Ludbreg.

The legend – which the people of Ludbreg are trying to monetize – says that it was precisely at this spot that the earthly circles were conceived, and on their edges were located great metropolises, on different sides of the world, but at the same distance from the measuring point… This was confirmed by art historian and restorer from Switzerland, Dr. Erasmus Weddigen, who became interested in local legends during his stay and work at the Restoration Center in Ludbreg. 

Considering that we have presented the Varaždin business scene in previous installments of the series, it can be said that Ludbreg, along with the business zone in Trnovec and Novi Marof, is the backbone of the rest of the business in Varaždin County.

Today, the largest factory in Ludbreg is Bomark Pak. The only Croatian producer of stretch (stretch) films is domestically owned and is among the largest in Europe. Director and co-owner Stiven Toš announces a new investment cycle that will encompass investments in expanding production capacities, new technologies, green energy, and expanding the scope of socially responsible business over the next three years:

– We are currently building three solar power plants for our own consumption. We plan to install a total of 15 megawatts. We are also investing in new production capacities that will allow us to produce the highest quality using recycled material. The investment cycle will last several years, and just this year we will increase production capacity by more than 20 percent. In the coming years, we plan an even greater increase in capacity, which will make us the largest producer of stretch film in the EU. This year, we are also investing in increasing the production capacity of paper tubes – explains the director of the company that achieved growth in revenue, EBITDA, and profit last year.

Right across from Bomark Pak is a large construction site. Another major industrial player, ACG Europe (formerly Lukaps), is expanding its capacities. The current ones are not sufficient, even though the Ludbreg company, which is under Indian ownership, already produces 20 – 22 billion capsules for the pharmaceutical and nutritional industry annually, which means that every adult on the planet receives six capsules from ACG. Demand is increasing, so the expansion of the facility in Ludbreg will help ensure continuous and timely delivery of quality capsules, explain ACG, which currently employs 280 people, and when the expansion is completed, it will open another 60 jobs this year. In the neighboring complex, there is another company in expansion, Ducati Komponenti, which we will write about in more detail on Friday.   

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Goran Litvan and Nikolina Oršulić: Liderova reporterska ekipa u Ludbregu na – centru svijeta

foto Lider Media

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Foreign owners lead the way, especially in the category of lohn jobs in the textile and leather sector. Calzedonia’s companies in Croatia (mostly in Varaždin County) generate 1.7 billion kuna in revenue and employ almost 3,000 people, mostly women. The largest among them, Ytres, exports almost all of its production but is also a significant importer. However, from more than 700 million kuna in revenue, Croatia retains a foreign trade surplus of about 200 million kuna. True, this is low value-added production, but at least Calzedonia operates in the black, having made more than 132 million kuna in profit in 2020.

Boxmark Leather also engages in processing, operating with a similar lohn math. However, it is surprising that this company has been operating at a loss since 2014. In seven years, up to 2020, it accumulated 818 million kuna in losses. The reason for this could likely be found in transfer pricing. In any case, manufacturers of leather covers, primarily for cars, were hit hard by the pandemic crisis in the automotive industry, so at the end of last year, the company was forced to close its facility in Slavonski Brod, and none of the 148 employees accepted the offer to move to the facility in Trnovec or Zlatar Bistrica.

And to avoid ending on a pessimistic note, we return to the center of the world, where darkness has already fallen, and not far from the concentric circles shines the famous first solar tree in Croatia, which was 'grew' in co-production with the Ludbreg company Ducati Komponenti and Varaždin’s Solvis, and near the 'center of the world' powers a smart bench where smart phones and electric bicycles can be charged. This, however, hints at a more desirable high-tech future than the forced lohn present. 

► You can read the complete report on the business scene in Varaždin County in the new digital and printed edition of Lider

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