Bosnia and Herzegovina UPI Star Sarajevo took over the Conviction Part of the business Žito doo Ljubljana, which includes famous brands Gorenjka, Forest, Herba, Mistica and Bali.
Today, the purchase agreement between Grain and UPI is signed in Ljubljana, which takes over the entire confectionery – employees, brands of forest factories in Karst and Gorenjka in Radovljica – with the desire to continue to develop and strengthen it.
UPI Star Sarajevo to the conclusion of the transaction will be established by UPI Star SEE Ljubljana, which will be the ultimate owner. The purchase price is 8.6m euros, increased for the state of stocks and net money on the day of the conclusion, which is expected at the end of the year, after fulfilling all the conditions.
UPI Star Sarajevo is owned by the Rusmir Hrvić family, entrepreneurs from BiH and co-owners and the main executive director of one of the leading business groups in BiH, AS Holding.
Rusmir Hrvić has gained a business experience in the construction and expansion of food brands, which will be crucial in the strategic supervision of the further development of the forest and Gorenjs, which will continue to lead the business to expand the business to regional and foreign markets.
“This is a long-term partnership based on respecting tradition, renewal and growth is the further development of brands, technological modernization and the preservation of the recognizable quality that Slovenian consumers know the prices,” Rusmir Hrvić said.
Martina Dalić, the President of the Management Board of Podravka dd, was shared by Ljubljana “Žito” that this decision is part of the strategic determination of Žita doo Ljubljana as a core business, but also that the confectionery part of the business is preserved and continued to develop.
-Gorenj and the forest are strong Slavic brands with which generations of Slovenian, but also consumers in the region are related. We are satisfied with finding a partner who will continue to invest and develop forests and Gorenjk and thus preserve valuable brands, Dalić said.
Prerequisite for the implementation of the sales contract is allocating the confectionery part of the grain in a separate society under the name Šumi Gorenjjk doo in order for the buyer to then take a hundred percent stake in that new society. Additionally, Podravka’s companies still remain distributors of a confectionery portfolio in the markets where they are already present.
