Business news

VITEBSK, 11 May (BelTA) – A ceremony took place to open a factory of the international shopfitting holding company Modern-Expo Group in Vitebsk on 11 May, BelTA has learned.

The retail equipment factory’s launch created more than 200 jobs in Vitebsk. The number will rise in the future. The enterprise uses 25,000m2 of manufacturing premises, which the Vitebsk-based electronics manufacturer OAO Vityas could spare, and relies on state-of-the-art metalworking technologies. The factory’s machine tools and equipment are unique and automate 80% of the manufacturing process. The enterprise is a resident in the free economic zone Vitebsk. The products the factory makes will be sold in the Eurasian Economic Union and Europe. Over $8 million has been invested in building the facility, repairing the premises, and buying the equipment.

During the opening ceremony Vitebsk Oblast Governor Nikolai Sherstnev underlined that the project will greatly bolster the country’s export potential. The products the enterprise makes will also have an import-substituting effect. These factors will be reflected in the company’s profits, salaries of the workers, and the oblast’s budget. “I am convinced that the investors from Ukraine and Poland will not regret having decided in favor of Vitebsk,” said the governor.

Taking part in the opening ceremony were representatives of the Vitebsk city administration, the Vitebsk Oblast administration, representatives of foreign delegations, embassies, and companies, which participate in the sixth international economic forum Innovations, Investments, Prospects, which began in Vitebsk on 11 May. The opening of the enterprise with foreign investments and a tour of the manufacturing premises demonstrated Vitebsk Oblast’s potential for investing capital and technologies in doing business from the best angle. “For us it is more than opening yet another factory. We open new opportunities,” said Modern-Expo Group Director General Petro Pylypiuk. “We now believe that Belarus is the best country for investments in Eastern Europe. And Vitebsk Oblast has enabled the best conditions for doing business. We trust that together with Vitebsk residents we will create the best enterprise in the industry in the Customs Union territory.”

The Modern-Expo Group shopfitting factory in Vitebsk can make a wide choice of products from metal, plastic, pasteboard, and fiberboard. The output capacity stands at 1,000 tonnes of metal per month. So far the first stage of the project has been commissioned, with only one third of the acquired premises now in use. The investor intends to go ahead with the second startup complex that will allow racking up the output and commissioning personnel facilities. The third rollout phase will use all the acquired premises. Construction operations are already in progress in the shop that will make brand equipment. The Vitebsk-based factory may make the entire range of Modern-Expo Group shopfitting products in the future, including refrigerating equipment, retail stalls and warehouse stalls, POS equipment, cash register boxes, and other things. The products the factory made can already be found in the country’s largest retail chains.

Modern-Expo Group is an international holding company. It is one of the European leaders in making and selling shopfitting equipment. The factory in Vitebsk is the third manufacturing site. All the manufacturing sites are located in Eastern Europe. The company has been present on the market for 23 years. It employs over 3,000 people, with offices located in Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, Poland, Germany, France, the UK, and the UAE. Modern-Expo Group products are sold in over 60 countries across the globe. The customers include Carrefour, Auchan, Metro, Real, McDonald’s, Intermarche, Leclerc, Zabka, Al Safeer, British American Tobacco Company, Hills, Lenta, Magnit, Euroopt, Korona, OMA, and other domestic retailers