Balkan Business Brief

Could we expect a Formula 1 race in Albania, in the near future?

In the Albanian city of Elbasan, the construction of a race track should soon begin and at the same time a new era of Albanian motoring. Interest in this investment was expressed by 5 of the best design studios of such structures, among them the creators of the most popular Formula 1 tracks. The planned track will be more than 3 km long and will enable a series of activities and races to take place in accordance with the standards of the International Automobile Federation. The construction of the raceway will contribute to the image of Albania as a tourist destination, but it will also create new and significantly better-paid jobs, lead to greater use of high technologies and, at the same time, contribute to strengthening the economy. The Auto Moto Park of Albania is not just a track, but an entire complex in which a number of various events and fairs will be held, including the construction of a retro museum. Soon one more reason to visit the Balkan region!

The future of tipping in Serbia

Do you leave a tip every time you visit a restaurant or only when you are satisfied with the service? The business association of hotel and catering business of Serbia - HORES, will send a request to the ministries of tourism and finance to introduce tipping into financial transactions. The president of the HORES association said that their proposal is that the tip should be 10% of the bill, while there is a dilemma whether the tip should be mandatory or not. Because what if the guest is not satisfied with the service??

However, the introduction of the gratuity item on the fiscal account has other reasons. Restaurateurs believe that the introduction of tips into legal channels would facilitate their relationship with the inspection, which until now has not tolerated excess money in the cash register. Employers are also convinced that the introduction of the gratuity item would stimulate the workforce in this sector and reduce their outflow abroad. In addition to the above, hotel and catering business, believe that this item should not be taxed. However, the system of tips on the account could easily be abused, so it is possible that the state will give its proposal for the solution of the initiative and the mentioned problems.

The complete support of Slovenia's VC Silicon Gardens for Croatian startups

Split Tech City, the association of the Split technology community, has entered into an agreement with the Slovenian VC fund Silicon Gardens. The Silicon Gardens venture capital fund is one of the largest regional funds, and it will invest between 50 thousand and one million euros in Croatian startups. In addition to financial support, the fund also provides mentoring support, and thus represents a complete support for the Croatian technology scene and startup ecosystem. The role of Split Tech City is to propose interesting startups to the Slovenian fund and at the same time connect them with the fund. The fund will evaluate startup companies and give guidelines and suggestions on what needs to be fixed and improved, so that the company is really attractive to investors and at the same time achieves financial support. Also, what makes the fund special is that it was founded by 20 successful founders, so their slogan is "founders for founders". The value of Silicon Gardens' first fund - SGF I, in 2014 was 300,000 euros, while the value of the second fund, SGF II, was 6 million euros. The plan is to establish a third fund - SGF III, which is expected to have 30 million euros at its disposal, and it is expected to start active work and investing from June 2023.

The battle for Tu? retail: Montenegrin Voli and German Rawe in the running

The fourth largest retail chain in Montenegro, Tu?, is up for sale again and there is interest from buyers from Europe and the region to take it over. The company is majority owned by the Alfifinancial fund, which has been checking the interest of potential buyers since the end of last year. Among the buyers, two retail chains showed the greatest interest - the Montenegrin retail chain Voli and the German giant Rawe. The Voli retail chain with its retail stores owns 30% of the market share in Montenegro, and in addition, the company has focused on tourism and the agro-prediction industry in an effort to become the largest domestic food producer. Another interested buyer, the German group Rawe, owns several retail chains in Germany, Austria, Lithuania and other countries and achieves annual turnover of around EUR 60 billion. It is expected that in two months it will be known to whom and how Engrotu? will be sold, and the possibility of selling it in individual parts is not excluded.