BusinessMagazin

Tag: K Tech Electronics

  • Ultra-bankruptcy

    The story of K Tech Electronics, the company behind the Ultra Pro Computers stores, is coming dangerously close to an unfortunate end. Once one of the most important IT retail brands in Romania, along with Flamingo, Depozitul de Calculatoare and Best Distribution, Ultra Pro Computers rose in a time when computer retail was in its infancy and was the only one to have kept its initial business philosophy – small stores specialized in IT products, almost intact since the beginning. Now, the company is going through its most difficult moments in fourteen years, precisely because of this philosophy.

    The main problem of K Tech now are the unpaid debts to banks and suppliers, which, according to a source close to the company, have exceeded 15 million euros. K Tech therefore defaulted both because of the lack of cash, as well as of the abruptly declining sales of late – with the same sources saying that the company’s business was slightly up last year to almost 80 million euros, around 1-2% of which was a net loss, but, in the first few months of 2009, the decline stood at more than 50% compared with the same time of the previous year.

    One also has to consider the monthly expenses of the company, approximately one million euros, of which only 10% are personnel expenses, and the rest being used for rents and inventories, which contributed to the gradual postponement of payments and to the piling up of debt. Over two thirds of the 15 million euros are bank loans taken out by K Tech Electronics to develop the business, for which it pledged as collateral inventories and properties that have lost a lot of their value in the meantime as a result of the economic decline.

    Payment delays of more than thirty days made UniCredit Tiriac, to which the Fughinas’ company owes 7 million euros, along with six other banks – Citibank, Alpha Bank, Banca Transilvania, BCR, Banca Romaneasca and BRD, to resort to the compulsory execution of K Tech Electronics. The banks won the right to seize the warehouses of the IT retail company – one of which located in the Key Logistic Center park and the other at the company’s headquarters in the APACA complex, so as to use the stocks valued at approximately 5 million euros to recoup some of their receivables.

    Most of the stocks in the central warehouse were sold to Flamingo at the beginning of last month (an information which the officials of the company would not comment on) at a lower price than the actual value of the products, a source close to the company says, but the process was stopped when K Tech Electronics challenged the compulsory execution, thus putting the plans of the seven banks on hold. Debt to banks is not the only problem of the IT retail chain. Another over 5 million euros that Fughinas’ company did not pay in time should go to suppliers of products and utilities.

    Part of them are already going to court to request that K Tech be summoned to pay or be declared bankrupt, the most recent such example being Tornado Sistems, one of the biggest distributors of IT&C products in Romania. ”The over six-month old debt we have to recover is not that high, it’s in the range of tens of thousands of euros, but so far we have not been able to reach a friendly resolution,” says John Cusa, chief executive of the distributor, explaining the filing with the Constanta Court of Law at the beginning of last week.

    Traducere de Loredana Fratila-Cristescu si Daniela Stoican

  • Cat de adanca este criza Ultra Pro

    Afacerea sotilor Alina si Cristian Fughina, K Tech Electronics, care opereaza lantul de retail IT Ultra Pro Computers, pare sa traverseze una dintre cele mai dificile perioade din istoria sa. Mai multe voci din piata spun ca, in fata problemelor interne puse intr-un context economic unde toate magazinele IT au de suferit, K Tech nu mai poate decat sa restructureze cat mai mult din operatiunile de distributie si retail si sa aleaga o strategie cat mai conservatoare pentru urmatoarea perioada pentru a putea iesi din impas. La baza acestor afirmatii stau in primul rand dificultatile financiare in care pare sa se afle compania, daca e sa luam in calcul faptul ca, timp de cateva zile din saptamana trecuta, depozitul central a fost pus sub sechestru pentru o datorie de 7 milioane de euro a K Tech la UniCredit. Pe de alta parte, inclusiv faptul ca Asbis Romania si Star Print, doi dintre furnizorii companiei, alaturi de Scop, Elko, LG Romania, Asus, Gigabyte sau Kingston, au deschis o procedura de insolventa impotriva companiei, potrivit mai multor surse din piata, indica probleme cu lichiditatile, K Tech fiind astfel in incapacitate de a plati datoriile fata de distribuitori.

    “Deocamdata nu pot face niciun fel de comentariu pe marginea acestor informatii”, a fost singura declaratie a lui Adrian Dogaru, directorul executiv al companiei de distributie si retail, in timp ce nici Alina Fughina, care conduce K Tech Electronics, si nici Cristian Fughina, ce s-a orientat de mai multa vreme spre afacerile imobiliare ale familiei, nu au fost de gasit.

    Compania a umblat la structura retelei inca din 2007, cand compania avea peste 70 de spatii comerciale, comparativ cu numarul maxim de 84 de magazine atins inaintea inceperii procesului de restructurare. Din luna decembrie a anului trecut au fost inchise insa alte 13 dintre magazinele Ultra Pro Computers, printre care cele din Cluj, Satu Mare sau Iasi, conform informatiilor disponibile pe site-ul companiei, cel mai recent fiind unul dintre spatiile comerciale satradale din Bucuresti. Reteaua a ajuns astfel la 42 de unitati, la care se adauga doua service-uri, personalul s-a redus si el, iar acum K Tech ar avea in plan sa reduca si numarul angajatilor din sediul central, intentie exprimata in cadrul unei sedinte interne convocate in urma cu aproape doua saptamani, conform unei surse din interiorul companiei; ar exista deja departamente formate doar dintr-un singur angajat. “Da, de astazi (27 martie – n.red.) service-ul se restrange la doar 6 oameni, iar la sediu se statea la coada pentru semnarea fisei de lichidare”, comenta pe blogul www.zoso.ro un utilizator pe nume ioni220, care sustinea ca pana in acea zi fusese la randul sau angajat al K Tech.

    La o trecere in revista a declaratiilor facute recent de oficialii companiei, reducerea cu aproximativ 20% a retelei de magazine nu apare ca un plan imediat de actiune, in contextul in care in luna noiembrie a anului trecut, K Tech anunta planuri de deschidere a doua unitati, iar la inceputul acestui an avansa posibilitatea inchiderii a numai trei magazine pe parcursul primului trimestru, decizie ce depindea insa de renegocierea contractelor de inchiriere. “In conditiile actuale de piata, daca cei care inchiriaza nu isi revizuiesc politica de preturi in conformitate cu piata, este normal sa renuntam la anumite spatii si sa cautam solutii alternative de relocare”, spunea atunci Catalin Butolo, directorul de marketing al companiei, fara sa dea vreun indiciu ca numarul magazinelor inchise ar putea fi atat de mare.

    De remarcat este faptul ca firma a renuntat de-a lungul timpului la aproape toate magazinele stradale din Bucuresti, preferand galeriile comerciale de genul Carrefour. Din cele sase magazine pe care le mai are K Tech in Capitala, fara a lua in calcul service-ul aflat in cadrul sediului central din zona APACA si magazinul din zona Chibrit din Capitala, cinci sunt pozitionate in centre comerciale (Carrefour, Auchan si City Mall).

    Cu toate ca nici planurile viitoare pentru spatiile comerciale respective nu au fost anuntate, proprietarii mai multor centre comerciale, printre care si George Teleman, managing partner la fondul britanic de investitii Equest Balkan Properties, in portofoliul caruia se afla proiectul Vitantis Shopping Center din Capitala, infirma acum posibilitatea incheierii contractului cu K Tech. “Sunt si raman in continuare in Vitantis”, a spus Teleman.

    Totusi, scaderea consumului si implicit a vitezei de rotatie a stocurilor, concomitent cu diminuarea retelei, ar putea sa-si spuna cuvantul asupra afacerilor K Tech. Pentru anul trecut, compania nu a anuntat inca cifra de afaceri, care provine in proportii aproape egale din activitatile de retail si distributie, dar estimarile ce vizau depasirea nivelului de 80 de milioane de euro, dupa ce in primele noua luni afacerile K Tech s-au cifrat la 51,3 de milioane de euro, nu mai par la fel de plauzibile.

    Felix Enescu, Gartner: "Putinele lanturi de magazine din Romania care au ramas concentrate pe comertul IT nu vor mai rezista foarte multa vreme in formatul actual"