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"If Ukrainians were to choose one company whose
products represent Ukraine on the international market, Chumak
would probably be the overall favorite."
"Chumak does more than simply keep Ukrainian
dinner table supplies with ketchup, mayonnaise and other condiments.
It is proof that foreigners can have success setting up a
business in Ukraine."
"In 1996, Swedish businessmen Johan Boden
and Carl Sturen invested $ 5.4 million to start up Chumak
in Kakhovka, Kherson oblast. Just months after the partners
officially registered their enterprise. Chumak celebrated
the production of its first jars of pickles and tomatoes.
Soon thereafter, they produced Ukraine's first bottle of ketchup."
"Four years after its launch, the young company
was already reaping profits and bringing a measure of prosperity
to the region."
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CHUMAK
Chumak founder Johan Boden displays the fruits of his labor
at the company headquarters in Kakhovka earlier this year.
The company's products can be found in most Ukrainian kitchens
and are developing an international following. (Post photo
by Victor Suvorov).
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"Today, Chumak's authorized fund, including turnover
capital, is more than $ 40 million, and the company produces 33
different products, including several varieties of ketchup, mayonnaise,
cooking oil, canned fruits and vegetables. The company owns four
processing plants, a transport subsidiary and a trading subsidiary.
Its products reach all regions of Ukraine."
CHUMAK'S WEBSITE HOME
PAGE
www.Chumak.com
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"Chumak also operates an agricultural center
that grows vegetables, distributes seed, and helps local farmers
to plant and grow crops the company needs for its products."
"Initially, Chumak was formed as a joint venture
between its Swedish partners and the State Property Fund.
The company has just purchased the SPF's remaining share and
will soon become a closed joint stock company."
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HELPING THE WHOLE REGION
"Boden and his nephew, Sturen, came from a family
with three generations of experience in the food business. In search
of the ideal site for their new business, the two traveled widely.
When they came to Ukraine in 1994, they recognized the potential
of the country's famed black earth."
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"I believe Ukraine can eventually become Europe's biggest
food supplier," Bodan said.
"Soon after beginning their operations, the
partners realized they could rely only on themselves. 'We
had to control every stage of the business, from planting
vegetables to packaging and distribution.' recalls Boden.
The partners did their best to apply Western business practices
in Ukraine, as hard as it was, at that time."
"As Chumak grew, Kakhovka began to prosper,
Boden says. Chumak employees
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Chumak products.
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working late shifts created a demand for private
minibuses, taxis and stores open late. Visitors doing business with
Chumak, created demand for a decent hotel and restaurant."
Chumack ketchup...
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"Chumak was the first company in the region
to provide hot water, showers, free meals, and even Internet
access for its workers."
"Chumak honestly pays all taxes, which makes
no small contribution to the state budget,' marketing manager
Laryssa Metla said. 'We consciously buy all construction materials
in the region, even if we have to pay a little more, to support
local producers,' she added."
"A seasonal employer, the company has a workforce of around
900 year round, and employs more than 7,000 including field
workers, at the height of the growing season."
"Chumak is not only a company it's a philosophy.
We have almost created a family,' Boden said. 'In Kherson
region, we have become one of the few enterprises people can
trust.
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KEEPING CONSUMERS IN MIND
"Chumak's products are designed to appeal to the
Ukrainian palate, and the name strikes a pleasant chord to the Ukrainian
ear."
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"Chumak's were Cossack salt merchants who long
ago plied a trade route from the Black Sea through Kherson
to the north."
"We were one of the first companies to try
and build on Ukrainian traditions," Boden said.
"Chumak has created a tradition of its own:
quality. Chumak's products are 'user friendly' in terms of
packaging, processing technologies, and, of course, taste.
'Our policy is to make high- quality products out of locally
grown vegetables based on traditional Ukrainian recipes.'
Boden said."
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Chumak products.
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"Chumak receives hundreds of appreciative letters
from women offering recipes and advice about Chumak products, which
the company's labs heed when creating new products."
"Before launching a new product, Chumak conducts
consumer polls, samples competitor's products, and regularly holds
exhibitions to show off their latest products."
Chumak vegetable oil...
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"Chumak credits itself for bringing Western
vegetable growing practices to Ukraine. When they started
operating, Boden and Sturen were surprised to see that Ukraine,
the former breadbasket of the Soviet Union, had no culture
of growing cucumbers and tomatoes. During their first year,
the partners brought a Swedish expert on growing cucumbers
to supervise the leveling of the soil and the installation
of a drip irrigation system. Then they invited agronomists
from Kherson to plant the first 30 hectares of cucumbers."
"Absolutely every (company employee) prayed for that field,
' recalled Metla."
"Today Chumak boasts the biggest drip-irrigated
cucumber field in Ukraine. For almost two years, Chumak has
been supplying pickles to McDonald's restaurants in Ukraine."
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"Chumak also exports its products and is building
a reputation abroad. Last September, Chumak's ketchup's and tomato
juice won gold awards at the World Food 2000 exhibition in Moscow.
Their chili sauce and pickles won silver and bronze medals, respectively."
"Chumak's success may stem in part from the public's
perception that their product quality is consistent."
"Few local firms realize that the consumer is their
ultimate strategic investor. You need to provide stable quality,
and this is what differentiates Chumak,' said Lina Popova, director
of the Independent Center for Consumer Expertise."
"Ukraine will become prosperous when more companies
like Chumak appear on the market, Popova said."
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. '))
