Different colors of business
To turn an ordinary distribution company into a regional leader in several specialized product segments and survive the growth crisis, you need to constantly learn and not be afraid to make mistakes. The history of the Poltava businessman Pavel Rybka is a clear confirmation of this. The Khimrezerv Poltava, Palitra and Budavtokhim companies, which he created more than twenty years ago, have now entered a new phase of development.
The history of the company began in 1996. It was precisely as a branch of the eponymous paint and varnish factory that “Khimreserv” appeared, which consisted of only two employees. Over time, the company "Himrezerv Poltava" became a separate company engaged in the wholesale trade of paints and varnishes and specialized chemicals. In 2000, Budautokhim was founded for the sale of car chemicals and lubricants, in 2004, the Palette for the sale of hardware and fasteners appeared. Subsequently, branches were established in Kremenchug and Sumy. In addition, together with foreign partners, they are developing imports from Poland and Italy. The assortment product portfolio at the enterprises of the holding has several thousand items.
Outsourcing production
For many years, the Poltava company has been working on the outsourced production model. She has adapted a private label production model widely used on the B2C market for her own needs, successfully changing some components for promotion in the B2B segment.
“We selected several Ukrainian manufacturers, held tenders among them and concluded agreements with several companies. Having received our technical assignment, they developed “under us” special product lines and made label designs for these products, ”says Pavel Rybka. That is how such brands of paints as TM Farber, automotive chemicals and automotive cosmetics TM Track Line, hardware and construction fasteners TM METIZMIX, products in different price segments of different quality appeared on the Ukrainian market.
Now the company distributes its products and represents in the region the interests of several manufacturers (paint and varnish plants). One of them is TM "Himrezerv", whose production facilities are concentrated in Kropivnitskom. The other is a Kharkov manufacturer of paints in cans under TM New Tone. It is also Finnish Teknos and suppliers of specialized heat-resistant, acid-resistant and oil-resistant enamels.
By entering into new cooperation agreements, they gradually expanded the range of their brands. “Large production companies, when entering the region, often choose a powerful local company as a distributor. In Poltava region in our segment we were exactly like this: we were firmly on our feet, we had our own established base of clients. And while experiencing the need for introduction to the range of new products. Our sales structure allowed us to sell more, so we willingly expanded our portfolio with high-quality products and new deals. Moreover, there were no competitors with a similar range of products in our region. “Blue Ocean,” explains Pavel Rybka.
Technical approach to buyers
Developing this market, the company has managed to become a local leader in it. The entrepreneur tells in detail how he succeeded. “We offer ready-made solutions that can save our customers from headaches,” explains Pavel Rybka. An individual approach to each consumer, meeting customer expectations through close cooperation with them gave their results, expressed in a comprehensive product offering, which is constantly being improved.
“Employees need to know the“ materiel ”: the technical features of each of the products, because we sell our customers not a product, but a solution to solve their problems and effectively achieve the objectives,” he said.
“Hardware and building fixtures required an additional range and, most importantly, individual technical advice. Our specialists were not lazy every time explaining to potential customers what is best for what, and what might be worth giving up. Customers highly appreciated this approach, returning to us for the products, ”says the owner of the companies.
He tells how he tracked the market situation and carefully analyzed the needs of his clients. Due to this pickyness and attention to the commodity "trifles" in the end, some groups of products from related turned into key. In particular, it happened with electrodes, which are used in construction and repair works for welding. At first, these products were attracted for the purpose of expanding the range, and after a while it took a worthy place in sales. As a result, his company took the lead in sales in the region of electrodes of the Vinnitsa plant "Monolith" and significantly strengthened its place in the distribution network of the manufacturer.
Learning is pushing development
For manufacturers of any product, equipment may be in the first place, and the main asset in the trade area is the team. Pavel Rybka is 100% sure of this: “The business connected with trade is built on people. As a manager, it was important for me to create such a team that will work motivated and with pleasure. ”
At the moment, the team has about 75-80 employees and the staff is constantly expanding: several new vacancies have been opened to strengthen various areas. The company has developed a special technique used to train newcomers and improve technical awareness of sales managers.
Since 1997, Rybka has been constantly participating in various trainings, and also regularly invites trainers in various business processes for his team. “In the first years I took three or four trainings a year, and later worked out each of the new stages in the development of the company, and, in the end, it justified itself: it became clear what should be strengthened,” the entrepreneur analyzes. He adds that the concept of training has now returned again - during the past year his company allocated a lot of money for specialized training for employees, and he underwent one-year training as part of the Ukrainian-Swedish project DYB (Develop Your Business) and defended his thesis Stockholm.
“Active training gives an impetus to further serious changes and the qualitative development of the company: it affects the organizational structure, sales system and sales results,” says Pavel Rybka.
And he is right, because the market is changing significantly. If in sales of the “nineties period” some tools worked, now they are completely different. Technical processes accompanying sales come to the fore: the use of modern CRM-systems, building sales funnels and precise monitoring of performance indicators.
Search for promising niches
For many years, the companies mainly worked with legal entities and FOPs. However, today they see new horizons for themselves. Having consolidated in the B2B segment (industrial companies, enterprises of the oil and gas industry, state organizations, government orders received through tenders), now the holding companies are gradually winning the B2C segment: online shopping sites, construction retail stores.
Online tenders, which in the last few years have received widespread in Ukraine as a way to purchase from public institutions, also belong to the new direction of development. Enterprises of the holding successfully take part in them and conclude contracts.
The new product segment is automotive chemicals. It was decided to develop it after a thorough analysis of the market. “Previously, autotech was not a priority for us. The compiled business matrix clearly showed that it is necessary either to abandon this direction in general, or develop it quickly and efficiently. We went the second way - and we didn’t lose, ”says Pavel Rybka.
Market analysis confirmed that the demand for these products in Ukraine will only grow. And with the right construction of the sales chain, its share in the total volume will increase. The company attracted core professionals who previously worked in the field of selling auto parts, they helped to make a high-quality brand portfolio. As a result, only in this autumn-winter season (for the last 3-4 months) autochemistry sales increased six times.
Challenges due to growth
Enterprises of the company grow from year to year. Even in times of economic crisis, they manage to keep sales. Since 2014 there has been a growth spurt. “For me, as for the owner, it was a kind of test: I understood that we need to move on, but it would be impossible without further self-improvement. Every manager should start any improvement from himself, ”he is convinced. That is why I decided to get a business education, became more actively involved in regional business clubs and associations.
Now the company is investing in the expansion of warehouses - their area has already doubled, in software for warehouse logistics, an increase in stock and transport: the purchase of additional cars. Helps in the development of Raiffeisen Bank Aval.
As Pavel Rybka notes, his company has been cooperating with Raiffeisen Bank Aval almost from the very beginning of its existence: cash management services, loans. In his opinion, this bank is one of the best for entrepreneurs.
From the height of his experience, he advises entrepreneurs not only to copy someone else's experience, but to transform it, adapting it to their own needs. And also - be bolder, do not be afraid to make mistakes. “Any mistake is a movement, and only by moving you can find the right solution,” he sums up.
