Selena Group, a global manufacturer and distributor of construction chemicals, celebrates its 20th anniversary in Romania. This is an important milestone, as the establishment of Selena Romania began the company’s steady expansion into foreign markets. Today, the Group has 35 companies in 17 countries around the world.
“Selena Romania was our first firm outside Poland. That’s where we first gained foothold for our international operations. At that time in Poland, we had 30% of the market of mounting foams and sealants for construction, and over 40% of the mounting adhesives market. Any company that is a non-regulated monopolist finds it hard to cross that limit. I had a few options: sell the business, start investing in something else, or go international with Selena. I chose the last option. First, I traveled to each country by myself, probing the market. Romania was first on the list, as it was a good fit culturally, with a fairly good outlook for a return on the investment. Today, after 20 years, we are still developing our Romanian operation, and are planning to make inroads into other markets,” said Krzysztof Domarecki, CEO of Selena Group.
Selena entered the Romanian market in 2000, i.e. at the same time when it launched its Tytan 65, the first-ever high-performance mounting foam, which revolutionized the Window & Door segment. And it was that product, now part of Selena’s flagship Tytan Professional brand, that became the cornerstone of success of the Romanian trading company, whose performance was improving year over year.
In 2012, Selena Romania strengthened its market position by taking over a production plant of Euro MGA, one of the oldest local brands, a manufacturer of dry mortars and powder adhesives. With a clear focus, vision and ambition for growth, Selena improved the production technology at the acquired plant and, with the support of its own R&D, launched the Euro MGA Professional brand in 2018.
“Over the years, we worked hard to earn the reputation of a reliable and ambitious partner, by marketing and promoting innovative products and systems that shortened the time of construction works, as well as by building new markets in a responsible way. A key feature of our organization is our commitment to providing high-quality solutions, not only in terms of products, but also in terms of customer service, a strategy that has won us trust of our partners over the years. Selena Romania’s business is not just about sales through an extensive network of distributors and trade partners or large retail chains – it is also about professional advice and extensive communication. With our sales representatives and technical advisors located in key cities, we are present all over Romania, also directly on construction sites. We work closely with industry professionals, engaging with them through a series of webinars or face-to-face meetings at our training center, where we can demonstrate the strengths of our products. Our aim is to get together with them to achieve a higher efficiency in construction on such a dynamic market as Romania,“ said Wojciech Lada, General Manager of Selena Romania.
By consistently pursuing its 2019–2022 strategy, Selena Romania not only emerged unscathed from the globally challenging year 2020, but even managed to strengthen its market position. In 2020, sales increased by over 20% year-on-year, and with rational cost management and the right product mix, the company’s earnings also improved considerably. Today, the company has more than 800 active partners and distributors.
Selena Romania also epitomizes the ideas enshrined in the strategy of the whole Selena Group: sustainable development – initiating and promoting “green” solutions in construction, broadly understood work culture and a management model in which each employee is empowered to contribute to the development of the organization.
The Romanian company’s team now consists of 75 people, many of whom have been with the firm for more than 15 years. Selena also takes part in activities aimed at strengthening Polish-Romanian economic cooperation, including through membership in the Polish Romanian Bilateral Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PRBCC).
“The relations between Romania and Poland are particularly solid and based on excellent cooperation supported by the bilateral Strategic Partnership, established in 2009 and renewed in 2015 by heads of state. Romania is one of the most important investment destinations for Polish firms, as it offers favorable and stimulating environment for business growth. According to the data of the Romanian commercial register, at the end of December 2020, there were 1,260 companies with Polish capital registered in Romania, and this number is steadily growing. The Polish-Romanian Bilateral Chamber of Commerce and Industry came to life in 2016 in Warsaw, in the presence of the Romanian and Polish foreign ministers. Selena is one of the Chamber’s founders and a significant Polish investor in Romania. Its success in the Romanian market has undoubtedly contributed to the strengthening of economic cooperation between our countries,” said Anita Imbre, Managing Director of the PRBCC.
Romania is a country friendly to Poles. It has a huge potential, luring foreign investors with low taxes: 10% PIT and 16% CIT, and VAT reduced to 19% 2017. Further to this, it is the seventh most populous country in the EU, a market of 19 million potential consumers, whose purchasing power has grown significantly in recent years. Based on the 2019 data, Romania was for the first time classified as a high-income country by the World Bank. Before the pandemic, the Romanian economy grew by over 4.5% year on year compared to the 1.9% growth in the EU.
According to the latest data, in the second half of 2020, the Romanian economy shrank by 4.7%, mainly due to the coronavirus-related restrictions. But the construction industry in Romania coped well with the crisis. Construction projects increased by 15% in Q3 YoY, and the renovation and current repairs market grew by 55% and 34%, respectively. In addition, the Romanian industry market is increasingly opening up to new, improved products and technologies, including those provided by Selena Group, which boosts performance and efficiency.