From the start of the COVID-19 outbreak, Italian companies didn't stop and everybody has been combating it, mostly successfully.
“Chambers were born as “physical “meeting places when both globalization and safety have turned them into “virtual spaces”. An italian man , Chamber is a lean organization, according to networking and information exchange, hence, when the Serbian government declared the state of emergency, it was simple to change to remote work. An italian man , Chamber can also be a part of a method of around 80 chambers that Italy has worldwide. They share practices and solutions, particularly in Europe. During yesteryear months, they were very active in supporting their visitors in facing the emergency,” the President of the Italian-Serbian Chamber of Commerce (CCIS) and CEO of DDOR, Giorgio Marchegiani says in an interview in which he also discusses business activities of the Italian-Serbian Chamber of Commerce.
Mr. Marchegiani, economic relations between Italy and Serbia possess a long-standing structure. What's the situation before, during and post COVID-19?
I recently did a quantitative analysis to obtain a full picture of the Italian economic presence in Serbia and it is impressive – the key figures are 600+ companies with active and significant activity and more than 35,000 employees plus another 15.000 in strictly connected local suppliers. From the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak, these companies didn't stop, but everybody has been fighting it, mostly successfully. These numbers represent the picture of a strong partnership. There are also some non- numerical strengths, which makes this partnership a special one. I'll talk about them later.
Italian companies haven't stopped visiting Serbia. What sort of information mill arriving in Serbia currently and just how is that this post-COVID flow likely to evolve?
The presence of Italian companies is very dynamic and it is the result of Two decades of investment flow, ranging across all industries. Over time, we've observed a change in the kind of investments, moving from labour intensive ones to more capital intensive and from manufacturing to services. This mirrors the country's evolution but also implies that Serbia is really a partner economy, in which small service companies are also investing, as part of an ecosystem led by large companies. This year is peculiar because travelling is difficult, but the long term trend won't change – more companies will come, and also the focus will remain on SMEs and wider diffusion of Italian style. We are also entering a brand new development phase in the country, where the “Made in Italy” label becomes an aspirational element; in fashion, food and furniture. All of this will generate development of the bilateral trade over the next decades.
Which would be the favourite Serbian regions for that Italian companies to take a position and why?
From our analysis, we saw a widespread presence (of Italian companies), ranging from Subotica to Vranje and from Loznica to Kladovo. Historically speaking, some clusters are chosen more often like Vojvodina and its Backa and Srem counties. Then there is the area of Kragujevac and Jagodina, in addition to Sabac and southern Serbia, near Vranje. Of course, we should mention Belgrade. The choices partly rely on the timing from the investment, on certain local incentives or around the proximity to “anchor” companies, like in the case of Fiat. I'm able to state that the motorway network continues to be expanding lately, particularly using the construction of the Milos Veliki motorway and also the completion of the direction to Bulgaria and North Macedonia. More developments are expected in Vojvodina and further down south, in Cacak. Within the next 3-4 years, more locations will become very attractive to manufacturers because of the improved logistics, including the link to the Adriatic.
Which sectors would you expect to see a larger expansion in Serbia?
I believe that Serbia is attractive for a number of companies. Considering the dwelling of Italian companies, I'd expect SMEs which are manufacturers, service companies (including IT and distributors) and agri-food companies in the future in large numbers. By the way, I also expect a sustained flow of Serbian companies using the services of Italy. Serbia has some very interesting SMEs, for example, in the packaging industry not to mention, the IT.
Why is Italy considered a special partner to Serbia?
Culture plays an important role in our country's values. I love to say that a key part of the “Sistema Italia in Serbia” is the exchange of culture. This also includes a non-economic exchange like music, dance, fine arts, exhibitions-. And, of course, food. This can be a unique group of activities which expands their bond between Italy and Serbia from only production and investment to include lifestyle. Making it very special in the process.
