MIROSLAV MILETIC General Manager of Bambi-Banat	SLOBODAN PETROVIC General Manager of Knjaz Milos

SERBS display a high level of brand literacy when it comes to choosing which products to buy. Combine this with national pride, and high-quality domestic products find themselves in a strong position to resist incursions by foreign brands.

Brand loyalty is an especially important ingredient in the food and beverages industry, to the benefit of long-established homegrown products such as Plazma cookies, produced by Bambi-Banat, and Knjaz Milos mineral water.

Both brands have a ubiquitous presence in Serbian food stores and are favorites with the Serbian diaspora. The companies that produce them regard themselves as a focus of national pride, and attach huge importance to the quality and the health benefits of their products.

Both companies are also managed by Serbia’s top fund manager, UK-based Salford Capital Partners, which has invested almost $200 million in Serbian companies.

Established over 40 years ago, Bambi-Banat is the leader in the Serbian confectionery industry, and is currently enjoying one of its most successful periods in terms of exports, total turnover, and growth.

General Manager Miroslav Miletic is confident and ambitious for the company’s future. “We see our potential to grow more rapidly,” he says.

Bambi-Banat’s chief products are cakes, cookies, crackers, baker’s goods, and allied products, but it also has a growing business in frozen fruit and vegetables, and in mineral water.

The company has been pursuing a development program aimed at strengthening its position both locally and internationally. Its sights are set firmly on expansion in the regional market.

“We don’t want to keep our point of interest just in Serbia,” says Mr. Miletic. “We want to merge with all the most important players in this region, from Macedonia to Bosnia and Croatia. It will be a market with potentially 55-60 million citizens—all potential customers.”

Beverage producer Knjaz Milos also has ambitions to develop its presence in neighboring countries. “We can do much more there,” says General Manager Slobodan Petrovic.

He emphasizes, however, that the first priority is to strengthen the company’s share in the domestic market. “Increases in future consumption will come from increased purchasing power,” he says. “Our business is linked to the economic indicators.”

In addition to mineral water, Knjaz Milos also produces fruit juices and a Guarana energy drink.
Under Salford’s direction, the company has benefited hugely from a sharpened focus on marketing and distribution. “We were over-staffed, very production-oriented, but with no systems of distribution and no marketing. Now, we have a very strong distribution system, and you see our products in all the shops, kiosks, and cafés.”