They say it is the best water in the world.
There is no lack of interested buyers for the Sveti Rok bottled water manufacturer. Although the necessary decisions needed for acquisition to take place have still not been made, potential investors have already started with their inquiries, reports Poslovni.hr on October 17, 2016.
Several potential investors are informally showing their interest in Sveti Rok. Among Croatian candidates, there are some local retail chains. However, Fran Dobrović, who is at the helm of the company during the bankruptcy proceedings, has also received a request for information from a Canadian lawyer, a representative of a Canadian group, possibly belonging to the Croatian diaspora.
Interest exists in Arab countries as well. There are allegedly potential investors coming from Saudi Arabia, which imports about 10 percent of the company’s export production. According to Dobrović, one of them is one of the leading importers of water in Saudi Arabia, which cooperates with the largest manufacturers of bottled water in the world. While Sveti Rok cannot compete with them in quantity, it can in quality. In direct contacts with the Arab businessmen, Dobrović said that he heard great things about Sveti Rok. “They say that it is the best water they ever had, but add that doing business with Croatia is extremely difficult, although it would not be an obstacle if a way could be found around bureaucracy”, said Dobrović.
It is expected that in October decisions will be made that will enable the company to start looking for a new owner. The company has a concession to use water for another seven years, and one option is to make a request to the Ministry of Agriculture for its extension. This will have an impact on the price of the company. “The state should be flexible since the continuation of production is of great importance for the Lika region, and it is in the general interest to continue with this economic activity. In spite of bankruptcy, we have more employees than before, and we paid the concession for water use for the first time in six years, which is a revenue shared by central and local government”, concluded Dobrović.
