After describing the business scene in Čakovec, it is time to look at the rest of Međimurje County. We decided to start the inventory of the area squeezed between the Drava, Mura, and Slovenia – from the highest peak, from which there is surely the best view. However, nothing from Mohokos and its 344.4 meters above sea level provides a view of Međimurje. This point in the village of Pleškovec, in the municipality of Sveti Juraj na Bregu, is immersed in the surrounding hills dotted with vineyards where grapes are grown for the highest quality Međimurje wines. There is no large industry there, but there are small interesting projects. We will write about some of them in the continuation of the series.
Generational transition or the sale of 'family silver' is a current and perhaps the most important issue for a number of large entrepreneurs in that area. Bernarda Cecelja, owner of the companies Bernarda and Bernarda nova, does not plan to retire yet, even though she is 70 years old. As she told Lider, work is all she knows; perhaps due to so much dedicated work, her family has suffered a bit, she adds, but she leaves her only son a well-organized company that has potential for development in other segments of the economy, such as tourism.
Unlike her, Stjepan Hrešć sold his business with beds and mattresses to the Swedish Hilding Anders, which changed the company name but retained the Hespo brand. Last year, a record revenue of 359 million kuna was achieved, although the company has never operated in the black. In just the last ten years, it has accumulated losses of nearly 200 million kuna.
Hrešć is also credited for the arrival of the American multinational Leggett & Platt in Prelog. The Americans were interested in the innovative way of producing wire cores for mattresses, so they contacted Hespo and its sister company Heplast and purchased the production facility for wire cores for mattresses (from Hespo) and the research and development department and the machine production facility (from Heplast). Later, Leggett & Platt established a subsidiary L&P Technologies in Prelog. The first American investment in Croatian industry developed into the largest single company in Međimurje (only the Čakovečki mlinovi group is larger).
Another industrial flagship from Prelog, Šestan-Busch, only felt the consequences of the pandemic last year. Revenues fell by 17 percent, but this year shows positive trends. That there will be work suggests that, according to the 50 percent co-owner and director Alojzije Šestan, personal protective equipment, CBRN (chemical-biological-radiological-nuclear protection) materials, and everything that contributes to collective security are filling warehouses across the EU. Therefore, they plan to strengthen the program aimed at civil protection.
The other largest companies are also located in the eastern part of the county, in Prelog (Heplast pipe), Donji Kraljevac (Tehnix, Toni, and Novi Feromont), and Kotoriba (Muraplast). Among the fastest-growing is the leading producer of polyethylene films, bags, and packaging, Muraplast from Kotoriba, which grew by 44 percent last year, and in ten years of steady development, tripled its revenue to 526 million kuna.
