Background information of NE
Name & surname: Bahri Tuna Doğdu
Country: Turkey
Sector of activity: Food and Beverages
Name of business: Que Pan Crepe&Croissant
Background information of HE
Name & surname: Kostja Klabjan
Country: Slovenia
Sector of activity: Food and Beverages
Experience in running a business: 5 years
Name of business: Energ+
Period of Relationship: 16/04/2019 – 16/08/2019
Duration of Relationship: 4 months
How did Kostja Klabjan gain valuable insights into how to access foreign markets with his products?
Learning professional techniques for coffee making and tea brewing, with the idea to transfer new tastes on the domestic food & beverages market was at the basis of Bahri’s (NE) travel to Slovenia. During the exchange, he learned much more than that. Kostja (HE), a talented Slovenian entrepreneur who is active in the food & beverages industry, was in the right place to become Bahri’s tutor.
The Slovenian HE offered guidance to the Turkish NE with regards to the specifics of the coffee and tea industry, and introduced him to the complexity of the market. Their collaboration generated valuable market research, exchange of ideas, attending meetings with professionals in Slovenia. Ultimately, they managed to obtain new market insights that will be useful for both of them in their entrepreneurial efforts in the coming years.
HE and NE collaborated on performing the activities on a daily basis. First, HE assigned NE the task to develop a basic market analysis so to be able to get a grasp on the market dynamics in the food & beverages industry and its specifics. Afterwards, HE offered a practical training for promoting coffee and tea products to customers.
To help NE obtaining additional business insights, HE decided to bring him to meetings with suppliers, distributors and Slovenian customers. While attending the meetings, the young Turkish entrepreneur was encouraged to make new contacts and develop valuable business relations. At the same time, he was responsible for updating social media contents on behalf of HE and think about strategies to reach new customers.
In the final stage of the exchange programme, NE made a detailed research of the principal shops, suppliers and distributors that are active on the European markets. He will use this information to expand his own business activity in Turkey.
Benefits achieved by NE are straightforward: in a relatively short period, he learned how to run a business in the food & beverages industry from the first stages (learning the art of coffee making and tea brewing, making the first contacts, deciding upon the product to be offered on the market) to the final stage (achieving success on the market thanks to customers’ satisfaction and their loyalty). He was able to improve his communication and creativity skills. In addition, he obtained a sound knowledge about the latest trends in the food & beverages industry in Slovenia as well as in the neighbouring regions. This will be beneficial for him while developing his own business activity in Turkey.
On the other hand, HE was able to come up with new ideas on how to approach the Turkish market and other foreign markets by adequately promoting his products. He acquired information about new marketing strategies from NE, particularly in digital marketing and with new social media marketing options.
Concluding Remarks
Kostja Klabjan: “I did my best to transfer my know-how to Bahri. Thanks to his entrepreneurial attitude, we did a good job and effectively collaborated on a daily basis: we shared knowledge on market analysis, helped each other securing visibility to our entrepreneurial ideas, and worked together to find solutions to potential problems. Bahri’s achievements were excellent and thanks to him I obtained some valuable insights on how to access foreign markets with my products. Together we plan to come up with new business ideas and try to apply them to the coffee and tea markets.”
Bahri Tuna Doğdu: “It was an exciting experience. I started with only a few insights about the coffee and tea industry, yet in 3 months I was able to get a good grasp on this business and with respect to the Slovenian food & beverages market. What I really appreciated was Kostja’s ability to guide me through both the micro and macro aspects of the business. On the one hand I’ve learned how to make a good cup of premium coffee, how to appreciate the peculiarities of such coffee, and promote them accordingly. On the other hand, I managed to understand the importance of good contacts and networking in a business segment, which is ultimately a very complex and competitive one.”