CrisTim: We will focus again on charcuterie

CrisTim Bucuresti, one of the top charcuterie producers in the country, has announced the investment of over 12 million euros this year in boosting its production capacity and a new marketing policy.

“The budget for investment has risen by 30% this year, following an analysis of the charcuterie industry, which focused on consumer demands, the expansion of international retail chains, our brand positioning and the other brands present on the market,” said Cristian Ungureanu, marketing manager with CrisTim.

CrisTim is a family business owned by Cristina and Radu Timis.

According to company data, the market CrisTim operates in is made up of more than 1,000 producers, of which between 10 and 20 are major players (the rest are regional or local companies).

“We realised that the growth opportunities in this industry are very high and we decided to step up our investments,” Ungureanu added.

Investment by CrisTim has also doubled production capacity this year to a daily 120 tonnes, from 50-60 tonnes per day last year.

The company”s new policy also included developing its sales team and opening new distribution centres – in Brasov, Timisoara, Craiova and Bucharest.

The company”s own estimates show that CrisTim has a market share of between 18% and 25%. In the first eight months of this year, CrisTim saw its turnover rise by over 60% on the same period last year, mainly due to salami sales, which rose 72%.

“Eating salami is something of a tradition in Romania, but I believe the situation will change, though not necessarily to the detriment of consumption. There will be changes in the consumption once living standards improve,” predicted Ungureanu.

Although the growth outlook is stronger for the domestic market compared with exports, last year the company began exporting to the Republic of Moldova, through the Metro network, and plans to enter the European Union market after Romania becomes a member.

“Once Romania joins the EU we want CrisTim brands to be known at a regional and European level, in view of which our current moves aim to strengthen our position in the industry and our exports to EU member states,” Ungureanu explained. “At a certain moment, we stopped focusing on the charcuterie segment, investing in agriculture instead. But now we”ve come to the conclusion that we need to focus on our core business: charcuterie.”

dana.ciriperu@zf.ro