Tue, Feb 07 2012

Commerce and Industry in Bulgaria's Varna

Mon, Nov 27 2006 09:00 CET

byBennett Tohara

1434 Views 1 Comment
Commerce and Industry in Bulgaria's Varna

The Varna Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) promotes commercial enterprise as the main business association on Bulgaria's northern Black Sea coast. It does so through a wide range of activities: it serves as a forum, league and network for companies; defends, lobbies and advocates on their behalf; and is involved with business-related projects and events.

The VCCI has about 200 registered members, according to Ivan Tabakov, the chamber's current chairperson. Among them are industrial giants Devnya Cement, VAMO Engine and Navigation Maritime Bulgare; the collective Chamber of Tourism, and state institutions and non-profit organisations. Each member has a representative in the chamber's general assembly, where they elect nine members to a management body.

The VCCI itself is one of 28 regional chambers under the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, which in turn belongs to numerous global networks such as the International Chamber of Commerce in Paris and the Eurochambers in Brussels.

Membership is not mandated by law, and Bulgarian chambers operate as independent, non-governmental entities in accordance with legal statutes, a framework similar to those in the UK and other English-speaking countries. That said, more than 3000 other smaller firms use the chamber's services, such as issuing certificates of origin, approval of invoices, preparing documents and business invitations for foreign business people.

Tabakov, a former electrical engineer, explains how many foreign investors and traders, particularly from Germany, Belgium, Holland, Italy, Turkey, Greece, Ukraine and Russia consult the chamber on such matters as taxes codes, regulations, hiring and the business climate. However, of the thousands of registered British businesses in Varna, meaning property owners, not one has paid him a visit.

On a larger scale, the chamber participates in multinational programs such as PHARE. A European Union-sponsored initiative designed for post-communist countries, it has advised and helped set up projects geared towards economic reconstruction and integration, including implementing quality management systems, for example.

Tabakov's interview was interrupted by two businessmen who came in to get approval for HACCP — analysis of critical control points for the food industry. The VCCI also works with Lloyds of London and SGS, a Swiss outfit, in the certification of industrial standards of local enterprises.

For companies wanting to introduce or publicise new products, or services, the chamber can assist in organising exhibitions, seminars or conferences, including trade fairs, such as the one in which they recently took part in in Kavala, Greece.

"I have also led or joined Varna delegations elsewhere, and reciprocally hosted visits by my counterparts and business and government officials both from Bulgaria and abroad," Tabakov said.

A staff of six workers carries out these tasks. They operate not out of a grand structure, but from a small rented building quietly tucked away on the fringes of the main square bordering the Sea Garden. Appropriately, the chamber is near the Economics University, founded in 1920.

The VCCI did start off with its own building when it was one of four chambers established in Bulgaria in 1895 by decree of Prince Ferdinand. It was closed by the state in 1948 and converted into the present Naval Headquarters, but reopened in 1991 in the former Czechoslovakian Consulate, where it has remained since. Tabakov would also like the chamber have its own building once again.

Tabakov says he looks forward to Bulgaria joining the EU, including the increase in international commerce that he expects to develop after membership and the appropriation of development funds that will flow from Brussels.

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Comments

Anonymous Eric R. Gilliatt, MBA/TM Sat, Sep 05 2009 10:19 CET
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Last month my wife and I came on holiday from our home in Kiev, Ukraine to visit the Black Sea resort of Varna. This was our first excursion to Bulgaria and we found the city of Varna, as well as the Golden Sands area, to be very delightful for a holiday. We enjoyed the city, the Bulgarian people, and the warm seashore areas.

What we were incredibly UNHAPPY with was the misfortune of our choice of accommodations at Eden Holiday Apartments in Alen Mak Resort Area, Chaika, 9000 Golden Sands. I believe the VCCI, and Ivan [...]

 Read the full comment Tabakov, as VCCI Chairman, should be aware of their deceptive and dishonest business practices. At the very least, they are damaging thereputation of the city of Varna.

First of all, like most European residents, we travel a lot and we found this hotel to be one of the very WORST we have stayed in. While the hotel facility itself is new, we found the ownership and operations to be simply terrible, dishonest and very deceptive. It is owned by three Russian immigrants, not Bulgarians, and only one of them speaks a very limited amount of English. So, if you don’t speak Russian, forget it. In our case, both my wife, who is Russian, and I speak Russian. Still, it was of no consequence in either getting good service or resolving the serious issues.

Unlike any ‘normal’ hotels we have stayed in, we were made to pay in cash, in FULL before we could stay. Then we were charged MORE than we were quoted despite it NOT being an apartment. Ultimately and most importantly, we were not given an apartment which is what we emphatically stated to the owner we wanted when we contacted them, it was what we reserved, and the hotel name proclaims they have. We were given just a simple, very crowded and very common hotel room. Despite their name, there are NO apartments.

Secondly, when we finally got out to look around the area the next day and found a nice apartment for less money, the owners on-site refused to give us a refund on the remainder of our stay. This is in DIRECT violation of their stated refund policies on their website. No amount of yelling in Russian came to any results as they rudely said one of their owners (off-site) had refused to give us a refund “so there was nothing they could do.” In other countries, they would be subject to legal actions for such unethical "bait and switch" actions. Ultimately then we were forced to stay there captive in a facility we neither wanted to be in, much less endure the inconveniences of its remote location, and we had to pay extra to do it. It all but ruined the holiday which was my birthday gift to my wife.

Futhermore, their website says the facility is five minutes to the seashore. That is if you have a car. In reality it is a 20 minute walk, about half of which is on a very dirty, steep, unpaved, bumpy road, (about 1 km) to the beach. There was NO ocean view from our room's balcony on the second level as we were promised, just a lot of very thick trees. The staff also didn’t change our room linens until the fourth day of our seven day stay, only after we complained repeatedly, then only once, not daily.

In conclusion, our visitations of other EU countries like Hungary, Germany, France, England, Netherlands, and Romania, we have come to expect businesses to operate with some modicum of integrity under EU business standards, and International Chambers of Commerce standards. Even two star hotels we visited in the EU have provided very satisfactory resolutions to serious problems, including room changes or appropriate refunds. These actions we have listed here for this 'hotel' are quite serious and we do not make our dissatisfaction known to you lightly. You may be assured we will do all we can to prevent others from booking or visiting this hotel. Furthermore, we sincerely hope you concur with the EU standards of business integrity, and will endeavor to maintain them with this hotel...After all, it is your city, as well as we clientèle, who are being deceived and damaged.

Regretfully submitted,
Eric R. Gilliatt, MBA/TM
International Technology/Business and Marketing Consultant
Kiev, Ukraine


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