Wholesalers and distributors were developing steadily last year

This year is the first that our wholesaler ranking also features distributors. In our magazine’s supplement, approximately 20 companies are talking about last year’s success stories and hardships.

Zsuzsanna Hermann
MD-editor-in-chief
Trade magazin

The wholesaler segment expanded by about 10 percent in 2019, so HUF 1,200-1,300 billion worth of sales were realised in the HoReCa channel and sales represented the same level in the retail channel.

There are about 200 wholesalers operating in the Hungarian FMCG market. A growing number of them are trying their hands at retail too. All of them pay special attention to keep adding new products to their selection, focusing on high quality and private labels. Hungary’s No.1 wholesaler has remained Metro, and many groups such as Mirbest or
FÁN Group have kept their positions among the best.

As for the different segments, drink wholesalers are still the strongest, such as Central Drinks, Hansa-Kontakt or Z+D. Some of the wholesalers and distributors only wished to share their data with our readers. You can read about these companies below, and below, we are publishing the information reported by the companies – in alphabetical order. //

Beauty care at a professional level

Tamás Szóráth
owner, MD
Alveola

Alveola Kft. is a key player in the domestic market of professional cosmetics, offering beauty products to professional partners and consumers alike. Since the successful launch of X-Epil, Alveola Kft. has been focusing on its own brands.

In 2020 Alveola Kft. is already running four online shops, for both professional customers and consumers. In January 2020 they opened a modern production facility in Dunakeszi, which also has a 5,000m² warehouse. Thanks to this step the company is now one of the best in Europe, using similar production technology to that of leading Western European companies.//

We are opening new doors

János Péterszegi
owner-MD
BA-HA-MA’S

2019 was the year of dynamic volume sales growth and progress in terms of the quality of our services and product selection. Our company has undergone a transformation recently, we made changes in the assortment based on partner needs, acquired new customers, expanded our operating area and recruited new workers.

2020 is about adapting to the new kind of environment. New management techniques are being used and there is more focus on external and internal communication. Based on our pandemic situation experience from March, we have prepared a few scenarios for the autumn-winter months. //

‘In 18 years we have developed into a company of European significance’

István Czírbusz
owner
Baromfiudvar 2002

Baromfiudvar 2002 Kft. is 18 years old in 2020. This year the company was forced to adopt a new strategy due to the pandemic, as new kinds of challenges have to be met. Owner and commercial director István Czírbusz told: they are proud of the fact that Baromfiudvar 2002 Kft. managed to keep all of its workers. In the current situation, the company feels obliged to help the HoReCa sector get back on its feet.

Baromfiudvar 2002 Kft. knows there isn’t any other way, but to follow the government’s pandemic instructions. Here and now the two biggest priorities are preserving jobs and serving partners as well as possible. //

Stability and reliability are the goals for Chef Market

Dr Richárd Andrejszki, the CEO of Chef Market told our magazine that 2019 was a superb year in the life of the company when the hard work is done in previous years bore fruit. For instance, investing in automation simplified processes and made them less prone to errors.

Dr. Richárd Andrejszki
CEO
Chef Market

By the end of last year more than half of Chef Market’s mainly HoReCa customers were using the company’s online shop. In close cooperation with MarChe Logisztika Kft., WMS warehouse management technology, Waze-based traffic predicting, Webeye vehicle tracking and E-HACCP use in every process have been adopted.

Dr Andrejszki said: by the end of March sales plunged 70 percent because of the pandemic, so Chef Market decided to open to the consumer market already on 16 March. This move was successful, but sales can’t get back to the pre-pandemic level without the return of HoReCa partners. The sector seems to be coming back to life after the shock and in the remaining months of the year Chef Market – with its high-level services – will do its best to ensure stability and reliability for professional partners.

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Network expansion on a modern basis

István Dobi
managing director
Dél-100

Dél-100 Kft. was founded in Kiskunfélegyháza in 1998 and supplies more than 200 stores with products. The company is also the franchise owner of Plusmarket and GoodsMarket stores. Dél-100 Kft.’s suppliers include multinational product manufacturers and distributors, but Hungarian companies are prioritised. Dél-100 Kft. distributes more than 500 reform and organic products too. Owner and managing director István Dobi told: having a modern IT and logistics background that keeps improving is a prerequisite of network expansion. Other benefits of working with Dél-100 Kft. include a value-for-money product selection and offering advantages to franchise partners. //

New products – as soon as possible

Miklós Horváth
managing director
Dél-Gasztro

With a logistics centre in Szeged, Dél-Gasztro Kft. has been doing food wholesale and retail in the counties of South-East Hungary since April 2013. Dél-Gasztro Kft.’s main profile is supplying public sector catering partners, restaurants and hotels, plus resellers and retail outlets with food products. They work with many Hungarian small- and medium-sized suppliers, but with multinationals as well.

Managing director Miklós Horváth informed that one of their priorities in 2019 was starting to offer new products to partners as soon as possible. Due to the pandemic situation, 2020 isn’t about increasing sales, so Dél-Gasztro Kft. is utilising its extra capacities available for doing direct manufacturer/distributor deliveries. //

Modernised headquarters and an updated assortment

Depó-Trade ’94 Bt. has been doing food, confectionery and coffee retail and wholesale for more than 25 years, mainly in Komárom-Esztergom County. Managing director Imre Sárai told our magazine: last spring they moved and they modernised the warehouse and their offices. Currently, the company offers approximately 1,800 different products to partners. Sales dropped 10-15 percent because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but Depó-Trade’94 Bt. was able to keep all of its workers. In 2020 they calculate with moderate sales growth. //

Digitally prepared

Gábor Fenes
managing director
Family-Friss

Family-Friss Kft., the No.1 retailer and wholesaler partner of many hospitality units and shops in the West Hungary region is 30 years old. We learned from managing director Gábor Fenes that they built a modern order picking hall and after the company’s participation in the Modern Enterprises Programme, Family-Friss Kft. earned the ‘Digitally Prepared Enterprise’ certification.

In the pandemic period sales slumped nearly 40 percent due to the closure of the HoReCa sector. They changed the company structure and optimised the product selection in order to be able to keep workers. In 2020 the company concentrates on introducing a new complex business management system and on developing an online shop that partners can use to place orders. //

Focusing on their private label product selection

Csaba Kanizsai-Tóth
managing director
FÁN Group

FÁN Group Kft. has been one of Hungary’s top fresh product wholesalers for more than 15 years. Managing director Csaba Kanizsai-Tóth told that they supply partners with their own private label fresh product brands (Hentes, Lotti, FinCsik, Pingvin), offering quality products in the medium-price category.

100-percent Hungarian-owned FÁN Group Kft. has won the Value and Quality Award twice. This year is about sustainability for the company, and despite the COVID-19 pandemic they expect sales to remain stable. In February 2020, they opened a trade centre office in Budapest, because they know how important PR and communication work is. //

Concentrating on products and partners

Gábor Horváth
commercial director
Halker

Halker was established in 1990 and with premises established later in Veszprém and Szombathely, they supply HoReCa and public sector catering partners with products. Commercial director Gábor Horváth said: in 2019 one of the most important events for the company was the Mirbest Gastro Expo, where partners could get an insight into Halker’s large product selection.

Halker’s own private label products (Kukta, Kedvenc Ízek and BoVita) are characterised by a good price-value ratio. During the pandemic they focused on preserving the stability of the company – which employs 428 people; luckily they are back on a growth path again. //

The service is the same, but the ideas are new

Zoltán Gödry Jr.
MD-owner
Helit

Helit Kft. has been a stable supplier of Budapest restaurants, hotels, snack bars, and office and school cafeterias since 1991. Owner and managing director Zoltán Gödry Jr. talked to us about organising the Mirbest Gastro Expo in 2019, where partners had the chance to learn about innovative convenience products and technologies from the experts of Helit Kft.

Unfortunately, sales performance suffered a blow due to the Covid-19 pandemic this year. The company made great efforts to supply HoReCa partners at a pre-pandemic level, for instance by increasing the flexibility of services. //

Close ties with partners

Zoltán Péterszegi
managing director
Húsház Hungary

As a result of capacity increasing investments and recruiting new workers, net sales by Húsház Hungary Kft. grew dynamically, to HUF 6.4 billion in 2019. Managing director Zoltán Péterszegi revealed that they kept developing last year too, for instance, the company purchased 12 new trucks – which were followed by 11 more in 2020. The pandemic period proved for the company that the key to a business’ success is close cooperation with partners. Húsház Hungary Kft.’s main goal is to strengthen its relationship with small Hungarian businesses further this spring. They even launched a ‘Safety Package for the Hospitality Sector!’ programme. There are always new market opportunities, but having close ties with partners is more important for Húsház Hungary Kft. than sales growth. //

Constant progress

Róbert Jakab
owner
Kedvenc Kereskedőház

Kedvenc Kereskedőház Zrt. creates the conditions for making progress for its more than 4,500 partners and 300 workers, with product presentations, trade workshops and training programmes. Recently the company built a 1,500m² dry goods warehouse, launched a 5,000m² warehouse development project in Kecskemét and increased its solar panel energy.

During the pandemic, they set up a crisis management team and ever since Kedvenc Kereskedőház Zrt. has been busy finding the best solutions to the emerging problems day by day – informed owner Róbert Jakab. They play special attention to complying with hygiene rules. //

Matusz-Vad – A partner of successful restaurants for 25 years

Balázs Matusz
president-CEO
Matusz-Vad

Former chef Balázs Matusz has been building his company Matusz-Vad Zrt. for 25 years, and now they employ more than 200 people. It was in 1994 that he realised: the restaurant business needs a professional game meat supplier. In 2014 the company built its Budapest headquarters with a cold storage facility and offices on 26,000m².

Right now the biggest challenge is to recover from the negative effects of the coronavirus pandemic. Thanks to this hard work, in the third quarter sales by Matusz-Vad Zrt. were back at the same level as in the 3rd quarter of 2019. //

Sustainability and digitalisation are in focus

Imre Horváth
managing director
METRO

In 2019 we expended two new private label product groups that are tailored to the needs of the HoReCa sector: METRO Chef offers a large selection of cooking ingredients, while METRO Professional consists of kitchen equipment, table setting and cleaning products. In the spirit of sustainability, we stepped up the fight against food waste, for instance, every day we give food products that are about to expire to the Food Bank.

We gave the METRO online shop an. Thanks to the digitalisation of our delivery processes, we can ensure the tracking of orders and give partners more precise delivery times. //

From paving to petrol station

Dr. Zsolt Beréti
managing director
Niklós

Sales by Niklós Kft. dropped a little in April 2020 because of the pandemic, but they were higher than the base level already in May. Managing director Dr Zsolt Beréti spoke to us about their development plans: new paving, new forklift trucks and a brand new complex fleet-monitoring system. What is more, Niklós Kft. intends to set up its own filling station at the company’s premises in Bonyhád. October will bring the launch of Niklós Kft.’s online shop, which will run together with their complex business management system. In the current situation, they see great market potential in supplying restaurants and pizzerias with products. //

Orbico: Giving momentum to brands

Gergely Kovács
business development manager
Orbico

As a member of Orbico Group, Orbico Hungary and Orbico Beauty have been the distributors of leading global brands for eight years now. Their partners include P&G, Shell, Bvlgari, Duracell, Kellogg’s Company and Lavazza. Gergely Kovács, business development manager of Orbico Hungary told: they provide trade services and support to partners, improving the distribution of brands and establishing profitable long-term partnerships with them. He mentioned that the new partnership with Lavazza – which started last year – isn’t only a category but a channel innovation too: Orbico has taken its first step in the HoReCa direction. Orbico’s plans include targeting the pharma channel. //

No workers laid off, growing product selection

Attila Hencz
owner-MD
Premium-Gast

Keszthely-based Premium-Gast Kft. started doing wholesale in July 2006 and they supply 500 partners with high-quality Hungarian and Austrian products. Owner and managing director Attila Hencz talked to our magazine about their 10-percent sales growth in 2019 and the problems caused by the Covid-19 pandemic: hotels and restaurants – where 40 percent of the company’s sales are realised – were forced to close. Still, Premium-Gast Kft. managed to keep all of its workers. They sell nearly 900 different products, 85 percent of which are meat and 5 percent are dairy products, while 10 percent are canned food. //

The importance of product quality in a transformed world

Bernadett Strasser-Kátai
managing director
Real Nature

Real Nature: Healthy and tasty at the same time

Our company has been dedicated to healthy consumer lifestyle and sustainable business operations for more than 10 years. Real Nature Kft. follows the same strategy now in a market that has changed completely because of the pandemic. We think it is important to supply shoppers with the GMO-, sugar-, preservative-, lactose- and gluten-free versions of products or vegan foods too. When compiling our product portfolio, Real Nature Kft.’s strategy is having a product selection that can contribute to shopper health with sustainable products. //

A new product selection structure

Mátészalka-based SZAL-TÓ’s owner and managing director Árpád Szalai reported to us that pálinka sales are declining, finding and keeping workers is difficult and thanks to the very hot spring/summer period, demand increased for soft drinks, mineral waters and beer. Attila Tóth, owner and managing director sees a shift in demand towards quality products – with this in mind such products are being added to the portfolio.

Attila Mihály Tóth
owner-MD
Szal-Tó

Árpád Szalai
owner-MD
Szal-Tó

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic SZAL-TÓ had to restructure operations, as the closing of HoReCa units caused problems in sales. In order to serve partners better, the company keeps investing in buying vehicles and technological development, plus workers regularly participate in training programmes. //

Standing on more than two feet

István N. Szabó
owner-MD
Z+D

Z+D Kft. is located in Keszthely and will celebrate its 30th anniversary next year. We learned from owner-managing director István N.Szabó that they employ 320 people and work with approximately 8,000 references. He reckons that the secret behind their success is doing customer-focused retail work on a daily basis, a true partnership with suppliers and trusting Z+D Kft.’s highly qualified workers. The company is a regional centre of Reál in West Hungary and runs its own C+C stores in the Lake Balaton region. They have several wholesale logistics centres in West Hungary and Budapest. Z+D Kft. serves nearly 6,500 food and HoReCa partners. //