"Business always benefits from experiences gained in an individual country. When you have a presence on a market, you are close to real familiarity with the local conditions," stresses Raimo Anjala, the managing director of the Teknos Group. This also applies to the European Union as it enlarges.

When talking about the importance of local familiarity, Anjala avoids mentioning the EU countries or Baltic states as one block.

"Each country is different. In the Baltic states there are three different, separate countries in each of which you operate in the way required by the country's own language, culture and legislation. Each country must be recognized separately," Anjala says.

Poland best known

Of the new EU countries, Poland is the best known to Teknos through the company's own sales company. There are also exports to Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, the Czech Republic and the Ukraine.

"When Poland was going through the strong growth stage in the 1990s, we set up our own sales company there. Today Teknos is known in Poland as a western, medium-sized paint company that supplies different paints mainly for the wood and metal industries but also directly to consumers," Anjala says.

Anjala expects EU membership to bring new positive growth and the area to remain a tempting market area in the future. "We believe that in the longer term the economy will perk up in the new EU region as a result of the membership, which will benefit the old Member States as well. At the practical level we expect the EU will ease logistics and the paper war."

Representation in Moscow

From Teknos's point of view, the development of the Russian market is every bit as important as the enlargement of the EU. The company has been operating in Russia for a long term through dealers.

"We don't have our own sales company in the country but we are at present opening up a representation in Moscow. It will provide back-up for sales and communicate to customers a stronger presence on the local market," Anjala states.

>> www.teknos-group.com
>> Paint consumption will increase in new Member States (28.5.2004)

Teknos's strength lies in technical expertise, which is supported by the long-term investment in research and development.