Businessman Radu Timis, chairman and shareholder of CrisTim, the leader of the domestic cold cuts market, has said he does not intend to sell the company, which he and his wife created in 1995, but would prefer to strike a deal with a strategic partner that could help to develop the business at a faster rate.
"I have never wanted to sell the business, but rather find another company experienced in this industry that would buy a minority stake and with which we could develop synergies in terms of infrastructure, logistics and sales. After several talks, we were unable to find the synergies we wanted," stated Radu Timis, the company's chairman.
CrisTim representatives have conducted partnerships talks with Campofrio, a Spanish producer, Reinert, the latest entry onto the cold cuts market, and Danish Crown, the main supplier of raw materials to the domestic leader of the meat products industry.
"There have been talks with other companies and there will be more talks in one and two years from now. Any company that is a market leader in a country is courted by foreign companies in order to form partnerships or to sell," explained Timis.
He added that, in the meantime, other financing streams were found to continue to develop the business.
"As far as processing and logistics go, we have ways to access funding from banks. We do not have a large debt compared with our turnover and there are not any problems in dealing with the bank," added CrisTim's shareholder.
CrisTim posted a consolidated turnover worth 118 million euros last year and an operating margin of 11 percent, down from 14 percent in 2005, as a result of higher investments in production. According to the estimates made by the representatives of the company (worth approximately 140 million euros last year) CrisTim could derive a consolidated turnover worth 130 million euros this year.
The producer's results for the first eight months are in line with the company's initial estimates, with CrisTim posting a 10 percent increase in sales at the end of August against the same time last year. According company representatives, CrisTim will achieve a 12-13 percent increase in sales compared with 2006 on the cold cuts segment.
The domestic market of meat products, which is estimated to be worth approximately one billion euros, is set to increase by 10 percent this year, compared with 2006 due to the development of the retail network and to an increase in the production capacities of the main cold cuts producers on the market.
At present, the majority of companies in the domestic industry of meat products are family businesses. The biggest players include CrisTim, Aldis, Caroli, Angst and Elit. The only multinational company operating on this segment is Tabco-Campofrio.
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