Jacek Rutkowski, chairman of Amica, a producer of electrical home appliances, leader of the Polish market, says the Romanian market is dominated by tough competition, but is full of opportunities.
“There”s tight competition on the Romanian home appliances market, which is currently dominated by international groups. Amica entered Romania in 2004 (with a representative office i.e.), at a time when sales had started to witness a descending trend, after the boom of 2002-2003 triggered by the upsurge of lending aimed at the population,” states Jacek Rutkowski.
However, Rutkowski states Romania is an interesting market for Amica, with a view to EU integration, and this is why it is going to open a subsidiary so as to better coordinate distribution of home appliances.
“There are some similarities between Romania and Poland, a country where we”ve managed to win the leading position on the segment of home appliances production: Romania is a big country that will soon join the European Union, and this will bolster consumers” purchasing power”.
“I believe Romanians will invest more money in their houses, to modernise their kitchens and equip them with new technologies, once their incomes go up.”
But ahead of 2007, Rutkowski expects sales to advance considerably toward the end of this year.
“In the last two quarters of this year, we will see a significant increase in sales, triggered by a psychological factor: Romanians will believe EU integration will lead to higher prices and will rush to buy not only electrical home appliances, but also other categories of durable goods. This has already happened in Poland, in Hungary, the Czech Republic and is sure to happen in Romania, too,” adds Rutkowski.
Over the following period, in line with its strategy, the producer will focus on niche products, such as built-in home appliances, and on the promotion of models based on new technologies, such as electrical cooking stoves, which are almost inexistent in households. Approximately 95-98% of Romanians” cookers run on gas, according to research done by Amica, and this accounts for a considerable growth potential.
Rutkowski considers Romanian consumers” behaviour will change, once their incomes increase. “In Germany, Poland, as well as in other countries in the region, there”s a tendency for demand to grow on the segment of built-in models. At present, almost 50% of our sales in these countries are generated by built-in products.”
Amica has upbeat estimates for the sales it is going to register on the Romanian market, pointing to an increase by 10-15% from last year, to 25,000 units. Amica last year posted in Romania turnover worth 2 million euros. For this year, Rutkowski anticipates turnover growth by 25%.
Amica in Romania
* Entered Romania in 2004, with a representative office
* Is set to open a subsidiary in Romania, to better coordinate distribution
* Expects sales to witness considerable growth toward the end of this year
* Forecasts turnover growth by 25% this year
* Brings in Romania over 100 models of home appliances through 5 importers
* Last year carried out exports worth 170m euros or 60% in total turnover.