ROUND TABLE

Demanding Success

As Turkey’s economy grows and its industrial base widens, international and domestic companies are increasingly seeing the country as a lucrative domestic market, as well as a strong home base.

GAVSİ ÖZARPAK

REGIONAL SIGNIFICANCE

The powder coating industry is significant in Turkey as well as in Europe. Turkey’s powder coating sector is ranked third in Europe because we have a strong household appliance industry, automotive industry, and metal industry, and there’s a shift from Europe to Turkey in a lot of these areas, be it in metal fixtures, metal furniture, or automotive parts.

DIFFERENTIATION

At Jotun we have an international identity with different R&D centers around the world, and so we’re very good in innovation. Jotun is also known for its consistent high levels of quality. This is especially important in powder painting, which is more difficult and complicated than liquid paint, and so quality issues are very important.

PLANS FOR THE FUTURE

We’re positive and optimistic about Turkey’s economic growth and stability. That will keep getting better and stronger, provided we stay clear of any global or regional crises. And we have to grow because we have to keep providing jobs for a young population.

HAKAN İŞÇEN

BRAND TURKEY

With our brand we decided to aim for Azerbaijan first. In those markets we saw that a Turkish brand name was more trusted than a Chinese brand name. This allowed us to sell our products to markets where Chinese products were seen as untrustworthy.

STRONG LOCAL PRODUCERS

The top five companies in the sector have around 80% of the total market; 30% are domestic products and 70% imported products. Turkey is one of the few countries producing UPS systems in Europe, as the local producers are strong here. We position our self as third in these top five companies.

POTENTIAL

Turkey has great potential, as you know. While foreign companies are entering the Turkish market and forming partnerships, we cannot withdraw from our domestic commitments. We are increasing our sales to SMEs in Turkey.

HAKAN GERDAN

CREATING ADVANTAGES

As the domestic market grew so did we, and year-by-year our sales gradually increased. We were a family-owned company until 2003, when Schott decided to buy in. So now we are Schott-Orim. We have the biggest capacity in Schott Global, holding 40% of the Turkish market and 25% of the European market.

THE RATIO

Previously the ratio stood at 75% for exports and 25% for domestic consumption. Now 60% of our product is for export and 40% is for domestic consumption. Turkish customers are doing very well because Western European producers are moving their production either to Poland or Turkey, making Turkey a more important country for business.

GROWING DEMAND

All the big players are trying to come to the country. For example, Whirlpool partnered with Vestel, and others keep investing in Turkey. Arçelik is a big Turkish player, and the sector is strong from that perspective too. Every year there are 500,000 marriages with a demand for new houses, and that means the domestic market is growing.