Razvan Rusu, a 24-year-old young man from Reghin, has just graduated from University and laid the foundation of a small jam factory last year, in a village of about 1,000 inhabitants from Mures. Monthly, this factory held by the company called “Traditions in Nature” produces over 1.000 jam jars.
If at the beginning the factory from Idicel Padure had only one employee whose job was to prepare four different kinds of jam, it is now when the team became larger, consisting of 5 persons: four housewives and one driver. There are also more products than there used to be: 11 different kinds of jam made after the original recipes from that region. Most of the fruits used in this homemade jam come mainly from the native courtyards. Razvan admits that there were few times when he used the raw material from other cultures, but this only happened when it was impetuous necessary. Thus, the wild fruits used in this “Razvan” brand are as it follows: blueberries, bitter cherries (very hard to find though), yellow cherries, blackberries, wild blackberries, cranberries, plums and sour cherries.
The Jam Factory from Idicel Padure
Razvan Rusu opened a new concept store in Cluj-Napoca which he called „Răzvănărie“. It is a 12 square meters place with a whole wall full of jars of jam and a special room designed so that different types of pancakes and cheese dumplings with jam could be cooked.
“It is a small place, but I’ve used a warm and modern design and cooperated with furniture and setting artisans, all of these resulting into some unique elements”, the young man explains.
The new business from Cluj-Napoca has been got off by Razvan Rusu together with Alexandra Farago, a 24-year-old friend who joined him in this entrepreneurial adventure after she had graduated from the Law School.
Razvan Rusu and Alexandra Farago
When the production started in 2012 at IdicelPadure, 1500 jars of jam were produced between August-December, and in 2013 Razvan Rusu estimated that he would produce 15.000 jars.
After less than a year, “Razvan’s Sweetness” got on the shelves of Mega Image and Auchan stores from Bucharest, in other stores from all over the country, and also in some groceries with traditional food in Great Britain and Italy. Furthermore, the young entrepreneur promotes and sells his jam online via his own site.
The price of a 200 gr jar of jam ranges from 12 lei to 19 lei, depending on its kind. If a jar of blueberry jam is 12 lei, one of bitter cherries is 17 lei, and the plum jam is sold with 19 lei.
“In 2013 we had a turnover of 70,000 lei and a low income, but this year I estimate a sales duplication due to the fact that we have a whole year in front of us and so many products in our portofolio. I haven’t been thinking yet so much about the income. I want to organise my business so that it would be a sustainable one and to support it self without any seasonality problems” the young man explains.
As business plans for expansion, RazvanRusu wants to define his new product he’s working at (which is not “jam”) and to grow the production with 10.000 jars more so that he could reach a number of 100.000 jars per year.
Also, he wants to expand „Răzvănăria“and, when the time comes, to open a new store in Bucharest.
„ We want to make things in a simple way, in accordance with our strengths and the market demands. We have correctly placed ourselves for 2014 and took into account the fact that the new-created places must have their own identity and that we should think about creating new products so that to stir one’s curiosity and to attract people”, the young entrepreneur says.
References:
http://dulceatalurazvan.ro/
http://transilvaniareporter.ro/
www.adevarul.ro
