A well-earned reputation for quality

CARVING OUT an international presence: Simpo is to export its quality furniture to the U.S. market, with sales expected to reach $33 million in 2002.

“I am certain that everyone living in this country knows about Simpo and has at least one item of our furniture in their home,” says president Dragan Tomic, who has been running the company for the last 34 years. He is, he confesses, immensely proud of a business whose products have earned themselves a reputation for quality and style both at home and abroad.
Simpo is a “socially-owned” company that was originally established as a manufacturer of wooden furniture back in the era of Marshal Tito. Since then, the company has diversified, but is still renowned for its stylish array of leather furniture that has won acclaim from consumers around the world.
Simpo possesses a series of specialized furniture factories, employing 5,000 of the company’s 7,000 employees in the south of the country where its presence has made a great impact on a traditionally poor region.

Each of the factories specializes in a particular product, ranging from wooden frames and soft foam to leather sofas and laminated furniture.
Further expansion is already taking place. A new factory set to employ 400 people and produce 5,000 sofa sets a month for upholstered furniture is being built with the help of Italian partners and there are plans for the creation of an equivalent facility devoted to leather sofas.
Simpo has had a long experience of cooperation with international partners from the United States, France, and Italy, and formerly exported large quantities of furniture to all three countries.

Unsurprisingly, international sanctions had a negative impact on this aspect of the business and the company is now looking to reestablish its position in the export market. “Fortunately we still have a very good image abroad. Clients still remember our trademark and our service.”
Reentry into the American market is scheduled for 2002 with sales of leather sofa sets, bedroom and children’s furniture expected to reach $33 million.
Simpo prides itself on the quality of its products, its ability to meet deadlines and its competitive pricing, while its international links have allowed it to keep a finger on the pulse of changing trends and tastes.
“This is the only way to compete,” says Mr. Tomic. “Today the market is the judge, not the state. And that is the way we want it.”