The story about the successes of Herzegovinian entrepreneur Petar Corluka is one of those that has sparked the most reactions this month. The text had a great echo in the domestic and regional public, and was therefore chosen as the story of the month. The text follows:
Companies owned by Petar Corluka, also called the first Herzegovinian billionaire, continue to grow, thanks to constant investment and the introduction of the latest technologies and best business practices.
Recently, Corluka has been increasingly entering various sectors of business, such as tourism, hospitality, and several types of production. However, he is not giving up investments in his core business, which is Violeta, with which he first developed paper production, and then began producing various hygiene products and cleaning agents.
According to the announced investments, it is clear that he will not stop and that the expansion will continue in 2025 with the construction of another factory.
The company Violeta achieved revenues of 442 million BAM last year. That is about 40 million more than the previous year, continuing the steady growth trend from previous years.
Also, in 2024, a record profit of 57.5 million BAM was achieved, which is about eight million more than the previous year. This profit represents pure capital for further investment in the announced projects, and will enable the construction of new plants, the introduction of modern technologies, and, of course, new jobs.
The number of employees last year increased by about 70 to 814. This is a company that offers very competitive salaries, as well as excellent and detailed training for all employees.
The business is constantly expanding
It should be mentioned that the company’s core activity is the production of household paper, which later expanded to various hygiene products, cleaning agents, diapers, etc. In a short time, he created a recognizable brand from Slovenia to Macedonia. On an earlier occasion, he told the story of how his business journey began.
“We didn’t copy anyone, we try to be different. Large systems are sluggish; our advantage is speed and flexibility. The first and most important rule is: high technology and the best quality. We invest in production and continuously search for innovations: we want something new, better, and higher quality. That is the key to our success,” the Herzegovinian entrepreneur previously explained as the reasons for strong growth.
Interestingly, he did not inherit wealth, nor did he acquire it in the privatization process. Everything he created is the result of work, vision, and business moves.
At the beginning of his career, he left his position as a lawyer at Putovi Grude, where he returned after graduating from university in Sarajevo, founded the trading company Prodex, and began importing tropical fruit with several associates. He developed retail, opened supermarkets, and became a representative for a range of recognizable food products. He realized that some products were being unnecessarily imported and decided to enter production.
Then he entered the “hygiene” business, where he earned serious money and became a regional player. The company Violeta was founded in 2001, and the Violeta brand was launched a year later. Production began with toilet paper, paper tissues, wet wipes, diapers, and eventually detergents and fabric softeners. He later started production in Zagreb as well, and the products won over customers with incredible speed.
In recent years, he has also been heavily investing in hospitality, especially on the Croatian coast.
In the meantime, he bought the failed company Lasta Capljina, whose products are now simply unavoidable on the shelves of regional and Bosnian-Herzegovinian (BiH) markets. Through Lasta, he bought a well-known gingerbread factory in Austria.
“We are generally expanding our business, and we invest everything we earn. As the owner, I don’t need a single BAM, but we must follow trends in order to stay on the market, because if we don’t follow and invest, we will not be able to operate. If we don’t sell, we won’t be able to produce. So the point is to stay on trend and do the same, if not better, than what our best competition is doing,” Corluka said in an earlier statement.
A major investment underway
Last year, the group also opened a new cardboard packaging factory in Grude, an investment worth 40 million euros. Riding the wave of these successes, they are embarking on a new major investment. This is a factory that will be located in Grude and will produce what already constitutes the company’s core business, but in a more modern way, Corluka confirmed earlier this year.
“The factory where we currently produce has been operating for over 20 years, and now new technologies, new quality, new raw materials have come onto the market, and all of this affects the final product. So in the new factory, we will produce a new generation of products, because new generations of consumers want new generations of products,” Corluka explained at the time.
The location of the new factory will be in Grude, in the zone where the cardboard and fabric softener factories are also located.
“We are guided by the idea that we must invest in our core business to remain competitive and not fall behind. So this is an investment that will enable us to follow the global trends of new generations. The assortment will be similar, slightly changed, but improved,” he emphasized.
The factory is expected to be completed in 2026.
It should be recalled that the company is building a hotel with other facilities in Grude, Biznis Info writes.
