Detelina Savcheva-Stoynova and Andrey Savchev, Managing Partners of Visioners Concepts, talk about the difference between leadership and management
For more than 30 years, Visioners Concepts has been helping food industry businesses to grow. What do you take from the past and the experience gained, to move forward daringly?
The professional path we have followed over time gives us the opportunity to be visionaries and see beyond problems, thus providing effective solutions based on experience and gained know-how.
We feel the pulse of Production and its needs; therefore the solutions we offer are always innovative and satisfy even the highest demands.
All this gives us confidence that our direction is right and gives us the courage to move forward.
A true visionary sees far ahead. What do you see there? How far does Visioners Concepts’ vision reach? What is the difference between leadership and management?
The experience we have in the production processes allows us to foresee each client’s issues that he is not even aware of at the moment.
The future belongs to the companies that will manage to automate and robotize their production processes, thereby reducing the cost of their products and becoming more competitive.
What we see is that the main focus of the companies, especially now, in times of high inflation and economic crises, is to reduce costs, but nevertheless, due to the rapid changes in the customers’ lifestyles and demands, every company must invest in new products and new markets in order for a production business to survive!
We notice that companies are increasingly willing to seek outsourced assistance from experts without having to employ them.
Outsourcing various operations is becoming more and more common as a practice because in this way companies gain experience and competences that they could not get by just hiring an employee. The most common outsourced business operation on the market is accounting services, which is nowadays perceived as something quite natural.
Nowadays we see that companies are looking for complex, simple, and effective solutions to their issues, and in the future, outsourced operations will be the most profitable for entrepreneurs.
We are in demand because we cover all areas in the food industry and encompass all its sectors: finding the most suitable plant and equipment for the production of fast-moving consumer goods, production technologies know-how, organizing export department operations in-house standards, and ending with a search for international markets and sales. What we offer as a one-stop service is unique in its kind.
In terms of what is the difference between “to lead” and “to manage” – Leaders are those who lead a team forward, these are the people who are able to unite others around an idea/goal, people that are experts in different fields, and guide them towards achieving this idea/goal!
What separates Visioners Concepts from the rest, what are your strengths?
Our clients usually share the following, “When we’re told something can’t be done in manufacturing or export sales, we call you because we know you always have a solution.” Simple solutions with great efficiency are what we offer. We value and protect the time and money of our clients; therefore our proposals are aimed at a long-term solution to issues and a quick return on investments.
You offer different types of services that complement each other, but are also very different – what type of assistance the clients seek from you most often? What is the business model of the company?
Our team and confidentiality are the core of our business model, they make us strong and independent in our work.
In order to solve their issues our clients grant us access to the most sensitive places in their companies and count on us to keep everything on a “between us” basis.
Our business operations are divided into two main directions:
Technology – related to the production process – we have worked on plant, equipment, and technology projects to launch the production of various types of fast-moving consumer goods such as chips, biscuits, bars, meat and dairy products, as well as upgrading and upscaling existing production processes. The most frequent upgrade requests are due to the lack of manpower in production processes – thus raising the question of process automation and robotization, which in turn will lead to long-term optimization and reduction of costs. Our clients are both Bulgarian manufacturers and foreign companies from various countries in Europe, Asia, and Africa.
The most frequent requests from clients in terms of technology are:
- We want to minimize the personnel involved in the production process – Give us a solution!
- We want to optimize production processes – Tell us how!
- We want to start a new production process – Advise us on technology and equipment!
- We have a lot of by-products from the production of the primary product – Advise us on how to utilize them!
- We want to reduce the cost of the product – Tell us how!
Sales and marketing – related to the finished product and its establishment in international markets. Our team consists of dedicated experts with whom we have developed strategies for entering various markets. We have a network of contacts in more than 80 countries around the world and we operate on all continents, which help us to reach different markets, regardless of their geographical location. We have organized participation in more than 100 exhibitions in Europe, Asia, North America, South America, and Africa, which gives a further boost to the products to find their way to the market.
Most frequent requests from sales and marketing clients:
- We need new customers – Find us customers around the world!
- We are a distributor and are looking for new and innovative products – Find such products for us!
- We have a product portfolio under our own brand and we want to expand it with new and interesting products – Find us such products and organize the process of establishing the Private Brand!
- We need a fresh marketing concept that will establish our products and meet the consumers’ needs – Develop one for us!
- We want to participate in an exhibition – Advise us on which is best for us and organize our participation!
What is the feedback you get from the market, what do clients say about you?
Clients’ feedback is actually the biggest incentive in our work. The services and the innovative and customized solutions we offer help us build a personal relationship with clients and they perceive us as part of their team, not as an outsourced service.
Are there global and local trends that affect the Bulgarian market?
Yes, of course. Bulgaria, even though it is a small country, is not falling behind the world trends, which establish, for example, fast-moving consumer goods trends such as healthy foods, functional foods, etc. The problems that exist with the workforce everywhere in the world show the direction for production process optimization – towards automation and robotization.
What changes are occurring in consumption?
In recent years the world has experienced an escalation in the way and pace of life. Perceptions of life have changed:
– perceptions of food – many healthy foods have entered the market, and the main trend is that healthy no longer compromises the taste and satisfaction of food
– perceptions of communication – online meetings and home office are now a daily routine, a way of working and communication
– companies are hired from different parts of the globe – Bulgaria has become an important IT hub that outsources services to many international companies
What is more important to you – people or numbers?
We live in a world of people, which also shows what is most important – humanе attitude, support, and understanding, which is highly valued by our clients and partners and is an added value to the services we offer.
Leadership is the choice to serve others. Who have you dedicated yourself to serve?
We serve the success of our clients!
We are Visionaries who see the future issues of our clients and know how to prevent them!
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