FDI IN A TURBULENT YEAR: FROM DISINVESTMENT TO NEW GREENFIELD VENTURES 14

BOSCH TO CONTINUE EXPANDING ITS OPERATIONS IN ROMANIA 19

STARTUP FUNDING HEADED FOR CHOPPY WATERS IN 2023 22

December, 2022 / Volume 26, Issue 10 www.business-review.eu SETTING THE TRENDS IN INFLUENCER MARKETING 32

XCLUSIVERSE:
GOING BEYOND
THE TRADITIONAL WAYS
OF DOING BUSINESS
www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December 2021 EDITORIAL 3

• Editorial • REAL ESTATE

Anda Sebesi
• Editor-in-Chief • 6 2022 Real estate market:
Residential sales hit new
records, inflation remains
top threat

COVER STORY

8 Xclusiverse: going
Cautiously optimistic beyond the traditional
ways of doing business

about 2023 ENTREPRENEURSHIP

2
022 was marked by new growth in terms of foreign direct
investment, despite the general unsteadiness of the last 12
months, while greenfield investments in manufacturing 22 Startup funding headed
have balanced out the increasing risk of disinvestment in critical for choppy waters in 2023
sectors. For now, we are mainly talking about the local energy mar-
ket, which is periodically affected by legislative changes, but other
areas may also be prone to departures in the coming period.
MARKETING AND ADVERTISING
Enel was the latest major player to announce its departure from
the Romanian energy market, but 2022 also saw the exit of several
investors from the food industry. At a lower level, several compa-
nies in the mobility field also left the local market earlier this year, 26 The powerful role of social
media groups in ad campaigns
including ridesharing company Free Now and delivery service Just
Eat Takeaway. 32 Setting the trends in
influencer marketing
Next year will be an unstable one in terms of the macroeco-
nomic context, so the number of IPOs will be on the low side. The
hopes of Romanian companies will concentrate on new private CITY
equity and venture capital funds, some established with backing
from Brussels. As a result, all eyes will be on new private equity
players, namely the investment funds created using financing from
the National Plan for Recovery and Resilience (PNRR). The good
36 Treat yourself to some
news is that prospective investors have submitted 20 applications Romanian sparkling wines
for the equity investment programme, which has a budget of EUR
37 Landmark historical
400 million. building in Bucharest reopens
With all these concerns on our minds, all we can do is hope as cultural hotspot after 80
for 2023 to be better than we expect, and for the local business years
environment to find ways to turn difficult situations into major 38 Where to find the
opportunities! Christmas spirit in Bucharest

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Anda Sebesi JOURNALISTS: Aurel Constantin, Mihai Cristea, Deniza Cristian, Romanita Oprea, Oana Vasiliu
CONTRIBUTORS: Ovidiu Posirca, Claudiu Vrinceanu
COPY EDITOR: Anca Alexe PHOTO EDITOR: Mihai Constantineanu PHOTOS: Dreamstime ART DIRECTOR: Raluca Dumitru
Publicație auditată
PUBLISHER: Bloc-Notes Media Network ADDRESS: 82-98 Calea Grivitei, 1st floor, Hotspot Workhub, District 1, Bucharest, Romania pe perioada
SALES MANAGER: Roxana Suhan SALES & MARKETING MANAGER: Luiza Luca Apr 2015 - Mar 2016

PRODUCTION: Dan Mitroi DISTRI­­BUTION: Eugen Musat

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: George Moise GENERAL MANAGER: Catalin Alistari USA MANAGER: Oana Molodoi FOUNDING EDITOR: Bill Avery
EMAILS: editorial@business-review.eu, sales@business-review.eu, events@business-review.eu
ISSN NO. 1453-729X
SUBSCRIPTIONS on Manpres Distribution Business Review is a member of Fwei

4 NEWS
WHO’S NEWS
BR welcomes information
for Who’s News.
Submissions may be edited fo­­­r
length and clarity.
Get in touch at
mihai.cristea@business-review.eu
Gemma Webb
has been appointed CEO and
Chairman of the Board of Direc-
tors of RetuRO Sistem Garanție
Returnare S.A., the company
that has been designated
as the administrator of the
deposit-return system by the
Romanian government. Webb
has over 25 years of experience
in both B2B and B2C across
a range of industries includ-
ing FMCG, chemical, plastic
packaging, print, tobacco, and
waste management services.
In her new role, she will coordi-
nate the implementation and
management of the deposit-
return system in Romania.
Florentina Ciontea
a specialist with over 15 years
of experience in multiple
areas of human resources, has
been appointed HR director
by Sodexo Benefits & Rewards
Services (BRS) Romania. Floren-
tina brings her expertise in the
development and implementa-
tion of organisational culture
transformation strategies, as
well as her passion for people,
personal development, and
change leadership. Before
joining the Sodexo team, she
worked in companies such as
Novo Nordisk, Intesa Sanpaolo
Bank Romania, Unicredit Tiriac
Bank, and Banca Romaneasca.
page 5
1 in 4 organisations in Romania
use coaching services
By Deniza Cristian
Both women and men in Romania are equally
interested in coaching
A quarter of organisations in
Romania use coaching services
that improve employees’ com-
munication skills, increase
productivity and individual or
team performance, and help
people find balance between
their personal and professional
lives, according to an analysis
carried out by the International
Coaching Federation (ICF) in
Romania.
According to the ICF, over
70 percent of people who have
benefitted from coaching ser-
vices have improved their per-
Wages for most banking sector roles
up significantly from 2018 levels
By Deniza Cristian
Average net salaries for the most
sought-after jobs in the banking
sector have increased by between
4 and 46 percent between 2018
and 2022, according to data from
Undelucram.ro. The smallest
average wage increases have
been recorded for financial ana-
lyst roles, while credit analysis
specialists have experienced the
formance at work, strengthened
their relationships, and gained
more effective communication
skills. 86 percent of organisations
that have used coaching services
believe they have seen a return
on investment from the process.
“Most organisations in
Romania use coaching services
to develop their employees’
personal and professional skills,
but also to improve their job per-
formance. In the current context
dominated by labour shortages,
a war at the border, and inflation,
companies turn to such services
largest growth. The most sought-
after job titles in banking include:
financial analyst, relationship
manager, branch manager, loan
officer/credit analyst, and bank-
ing services consultant. Salaries
for these positions range from
RON 3,300 to 7,000; in 2018,
they stood between RON 2,310
and 5,470. “We can see that the
www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December 2022
as retention tools, to keep their
best and most talented employ-
ees and build solid businesses
over the long term, because
nothing can be done without
good employees, after all. Our
studies show that companies
that believe in coaching see
significant improvements in
their engagement and retention
indicators,” says Madi Rad-
ulescu, Vice-President of ICF
Romania.
Both women and men in
Romania are equally interested
in coaching. The differences
become more visible when it
comes to age or occupation.
There is a much greater interest
among active, working people
who are part of the millennial
generation (25-42 years old),
with almost 50 percent of those
surveyed in the ICF study
mentioning that they have par-
ticipated in coaching sessions.
However, most coaches are
over 55 years old, followed by
the 25-34 age group.
The smallest
average wage
increases have
been recorded for
financial analyst
roles
www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December 2022
Romania’s dental services
much more affordable than those
in Western Europe or US
By Mihai-Alexandru Cristea
Dental services are much more expensive in the west
Prices for dental services in
Romania are up to 75 percent
more affordable than those in
the west, and interest in medi-
cal tourism has grown steadily
year after year. With prices 4
times lower in Romania than
in Western Europe or the US,
thousands of Romanians living
abroad are expected to visit
dental clinics in their home
country in December, accord-
ing to an analysis by Life Dental
Spa, a network of dental clinics
specialising in pain-free, state-of-
the-art laser treatments.
In this context, approximately
15 percent of the Romanians who
return to the country during the
winter holidays visit a dental
clinic at least once for treatment
or a simple consultation.
“More than two years after
the outbreak of the pandemic,
medical tourism is again a suc-
cessful practice in Romania and
we expect a record number of
patients, both in our own clin-
ics as well as across the market.
It is a fact that dental services
are much more expensive in
the west, so Romanians tend
to come back to the country
during the winter holidays with
a dual purpose: spend time
with their loved ones and fix
certain dental problems or get
a routine check-up. We have
thousands of patients who live
and work abroad and who plan
their schedules in a way that
allows them to pay us a visit,”
says Cristina Obreja, MD, dental
laser specialist and founder of
Life Dental Spa.
Every year, thousands of
patients from Spain, Italy,
Germany, the UK, and even the
US, where the cost of dental
treatments may be as much as 4
times higher than in Romania,
visit Life Dental Spa clinics dur-
ing the winter holidays.
lowest salaries in banking are
also the ones that have seen the
highest increases in the industry.
We believe that an increase of
only 4 percent over four years
in financial analysis positions
may lead to candidates being
less motivated. We hope this
data will provide more transpar-
ency, clarity, and insight, both
for employers to make the right
decisions regarding salaries as
well as for candidates to make
better informed career moves,”
says Costin Tudor, founder and
CEO of Undelucram.ro.
NEWS 5
Ziv Gigi
has been promoted to the
position of Executive Director
for the SEE Region at GTC.
In his new role, he will be
responsible for all office
sector operations in Bul-
garia, Romania, Serbia, and
Croatia. He will be in charge
of the company’s strategy and
development plan, as well as
all of its operational activities,
including leasing and asset
management.
Dennis Selinas
the future CEO of Globalworth,
has been elected President
of the Board of Directors of
the Association of Real Estate
Investors in Romania (AREI),
for the upcoming 2-year term.
In this role, he will repre-
sent the Association and its
members in interactions with
all relevant stakeholders from
the public and private sectors
and civil society, maintaining a
transparent and constructive
dialogue.
Bogdan Iliescu
is the new Commercial Direc-
tor of Nusco Imobiliara. Iliescu
has over 15 years of experi-
ence on the real estate market
and has contributed his
expertise in many successful
projects. Previously, Bogdan
has served in sales, coordina-
tion, and management roles in
several real estate companies
operating in both consulting
and development.

6 REAL ESTATE
2022 Real estate market: Residential sales hit
new records, inflation remains top threat
This year is likely to end with new records on the Bucharest residential market, certainly in
terms of units sold but possibly also in terms of the number of dwellings delivered, according
a market report released by real estate consultancy SVN Romania, which is based on official
statistics and the company’s own research.
By Aurel Constantin
Home sales have increased by over 53 percent over the last three years
O
ver 52,000 homes were sold in
Bucharest and its surroundings in
the first ten months of 2022, up 9.16
percent compared to the same period of 2021,
according to data published by the National
Agency for Cadastre and Land Registration.
2021 was the best year in the local residential
market’s modern history, with a 37 percent
annual increase in home sales in the region,
after 2020 had also ended with a 5.3 percent
advance on the previous year.
At the same time, over 27,000 new homes
were under construction at the beginning of
this year in Bucharest and its surroundings,
according to SVN Romania’s research, this
being the biggest figure of recent years. 2022
could therefore also bring a new delivery
record, as the most recent data published by
the National Institute of Statistics showed
that deliveries had increased by 14.7 percent
in H1 2022 compared to H1 2021.
“2022 was another very good year for the
local residential market, despite the generally
unfavourable context, the constant rises in
inflation and interest rates, and the relentless
negative forecasts. 2023 will most likely bring
a lower number of deliveries in Bucharest
and the surrounding areas, and implicitly
fewer transactions, considering the fact that
the reporting base is represented by absolute
records. Overall, home sales have increased
by over 53 percent over the last three years,
so 2023’s results must be analysed with this
context in mind,” said Andrei Sarbu, the CEO
of SVN Romania.
This year’s results were recorded in a
context in which the accessibility of buying
a new home maintained a satisfactory level,
according to the profile index calculated by
SVN Romania based on average prices and
national statistics.
In September, the most recent month
with available official data regarding wages,
103.8 average national wages—or 8.6 years’
www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December 2022
worth of incomes—were needed to buy a
new one-bedroom apartment in Bucharest
with a net surface area of 50 square metres.
For comparison, one year earlier, one would
need 102.3 average wages (8.5 years) to buy
a similar apartment. That’s only a 1.5 percent
decline over the last 12 months, during which
general economic conditions have deterio-
rated to a significant extent.
The research took into account a 16
percent annual price increase on the new
segment, while the national average wage has
risen by 13.8 percent in the last year and the
RON-EUR exchange rates remained stable.
The current value of the SVN index is still
almost four times smaller than its 2008 peak,
when buying a one-bedroom apartment in
Bucharest required 393 average wages or a
working period of almost 33 years. Official
statistics also show that over 50 percent of
home sales in the region are cash-based, with
no mortgage loans.
EXPANSION PLANS REMAIN INTACT
Real estate investors and developers operat-
ing in Romania argue that inflation, the rising
costs of financing and construction, and the
geopolitical situation are the main macroeco-
nomic factors that may impact the Romanian
real estate market, as they are expected to put
pressure on both demand and rental levels.
However, despite all the above-mentioned
issues, investors maintain a positive outlook
and their expansion plans in Romania are
mostly intact, according to the first edition of
Cushman & Wakefield Echinox’s “Real Estate
Investor Sentiment Barometer.”
Cushman & Wakefield Echinox surveyed
the top management of 45 local, regional, and
global investment companies with a com-
 www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December
May 2016 2022
bined real estate portfolio of more than EUR
10 billion in Romania, reaching a share of ap-
proximately 50 percent of the local real estate
market. The survey was conducted between
October 1 and November 1.
Inflation was almost unanimously (93 per-
cent) indicated as the top macroeconomic risk
for the Romanian real estate market, which
will also be affected by increasing financing
costs (based on 86 percent of responses) and
the geopolitical situation (76 percent).
Despite the challenges the market faces, a
clear majority of the responding investors (71
percent) said they were looking
to expand their portfolios. The
remaining 29 percent aimed to
maintain their existing portfolios
over the next three years. None
of the respondents had plans to
downsize their operations.
“The results of the survey
conducted among real estate
investors and developers in
Romania reveal the level of
maturity that the local market
has reached, as the vast major-
ity of players, whether local and
foreign, are making long-term
plans, fully understanding the
cyclical evolution of the market.
2022 is likely to reach transac-
tion volumes of more than EUR
1.2 billion, despite the fact that a number of
investors have decided to be more cautious
in a highly volatile context. 2023 will be
influenced by the evolution of inflation and
by that of financing costs. Once these are on
a downward trajectory, the appetite for major
real estate investments will return to high lev-
els,” said Cristi Moga, Head of Capital Markets
at Cushman & Wakefield Echinox.
Bucharest remains the preferred destina-
tion for future real estate investments, while
secondary markets (cities with a population
of over 250,000) are also popular targets
among investors and developers. In the
survey, 63 percent of respondents indicated
Bucharest as their key location for new
investments, while only 20 percent were ac-
tively targeting tertiary locations (cities with
less than 250,000 inhabitants). Almost 50
percent of investors also saw secondary cities
as attractive investment targets.
INDUSTRIAL SEGMENT DEVELOPMENTS
As for market segments that will attract new
investments in the next 12 months, only 5
percent of respondents expected more de-
velopment activity on the office market. The
explanation for the low appetite for this seg-
ment has to do with the bureaucratic issues
in Bucharest and the uncertainty surrounding
the authorisation process pertaining to new
projects. A special mention also goes to the
Private Rented Sector (PRS), which is forecast
to see more investments than the office sec-
tor in 2023.
A vast majority (64 percent) of respon-
dents foresaw more developments in the
industrial segment, while 18 percent ex-
pected new investments to be made in retail
projects.
Most respondents predicted an upward
movement for rents in the office (58 percent)
and industrial (55 percent) segments, while
the share of those indicating a rise in rental
levels for retail assets was only 38 percent.
Inflation (86 percent) and construction
costs (79 percent) were indicated as the main
factors that could influence rental levels.
Other notable factors were the level of com-
petition on the market and the lack of new
supply for the office sector in particular.
Questioned about the evolution of de-
mand, most investors expected medium-term
stability for all types of spaces. On the other
hand, 30 percent of interviewed companies
indicated a worsening occupier demand on
COVER
REALSTORY
ESTATE14
7
the office market, while expectations were
more optimistic when it came to industrial
and retail spaces.
The top five factors that may influence
demand (either positively or negatively) are
overall inflation, the geopolitical situation,
the growth of e-commerce, the emergence of
new companies on the market, and the lifting
of pandemic restrictions. Some investors
were also concerned by the deterioration
of economic activity/recession and also by
the unclear status of employees returning to
offices.
Most investors believed that their portfolio
values would remain unchanged in the fol-
lowing 12 months. By asset class, 30 percent
of respondents estimated an increase in value
for retail properties, while 23 percent of them
indicated a further appreciation for industrial
and office projects.
In terms of the general business condi-
tions in Romania, among the most appreci-
ated were the quality of the IT infrastructure,
the labour market, the tax framework, and
the country’s macroeconomic stability. The
least appreciated aspects were related to the
quality of the transport infrastructure and
bureaucracy.
Investors were found to hold quite positive
views about the Romanian economy and
its short-term evolution, with 45 percent of
survey participants expecting the GDP to
increase, 38 percent predicting a stagnation,
and 17 percent foreseeing a decline.
 www.business-review.eu
8 COVER STORY Business Review | December 2022
www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December 2022 COVER STORY 9

XCLUSIVERSE:
GOING BEYOND
THE TRADITIONAL WAYS
OF DOING BUSINESS
By Anda Sebesi

With over 20 years of experience in

entrepreneurship, business, and marketing,
Florina Onetiu is also the creator and leader of
a unique and innovative product, a business of
the future, based in the United Arab Emirates:
Xclusiverse. With the goal of becoming
the world's largest metaverse for premium
products and services, the Xclusiverse platform
provides users across the globe with a
complete virtual business experience.
 www.business-review.eu
10 COVER STORY Business Review | December 2022

What is the Xclusiverse platform, when did you launch it, and Dubai on holiday and we ended up staying for a few months due to
what was the reason behind this innovative initiative? the lockdown in Germany. Arriving there, we realised that Dubai
Xclusiverse is a game changer, the first step into the future or, better was a very important technology hub for the new technologies we
said, the present future. That’s mainly because it offers a complete wanted to build. We discovered a place that was very open to the
virtual business experience for users, addressing global markets, new business environment, with an amazing rate of implementation
in a reality that is becoming a part of our daily and digitalized life. of new technologies, starting from the development of blockchain
Xclusiverse is a complex product with multiple uses and varied businesses to the introduction of all operations into the metaverse,
domains; it is the only metaverse that connects entrepreneurs and and not just at the business level, but at the government level as
helps them take their business to the next level. We are aiming to well. That's why we chose to create this business product here while
become the world’s leading cross-platform with our 5X™ process: targeting the entire world.
Xtended Reality platform, Xtraordinary people, Xclusive physical In the beginning of 2021 we started working and developing the
and virtual products, business, and in March
Xquisite experiences, 2022 we launched the
and Xciting interactions. Alpha version of the
The idea of creating Xclusiverse platform,
these business connec- which is under continu-
tions in a new world, ous development, with
which is different from new features being
anything I knew before, added constantly.
was born in my mind 12
years ago—back when Who developed the
Second Life was gaining platform and how
popularity. At that time, large is the project
of course, I didn't know team?
anything about the Our team has grown sig-
concept of the meta- nificantly within a very
verse. But the idea stuck short time. By the end
with me in the years that of this year, we expect
followed and I knew that to have an even larger
someday I would start a team, probably reaching
business that would en- 60 employees and col-
hance the world of busi- laborators. More than 60
ness through virtual in- percent of them are Ro-
teractions. Cristian, my manians, which makes
business partner also me very proud, as do our
had a dream of develop- colleagues’ profession-
ing a business in which alism, knowledge, and
real estate properties expertise.
could be fractionalised If we were to strictly
and sold to investors this refer to the develop-
way. Our ideas brought ment of the platform,
us together again as we’d be talking about a
business partners. mixed team, consisting
We therefore decided to build a holding of companies with of an internal team located in Dubai and an external team located in
several focus areas: an investment fund for real estate, a software Romania. Currently, there are 28 people working on the platform in
company that could fractionalise assets, and a virtual reality plat- these two areas. For the design and architecture components of the
form to bring these assets and other luxury products and services platform, we also have a team in Sweden, with about 7 people, so in
together, in an immersive experience through a new version of total there are about 35 people (Dubai, Romania, Sweden), and that
shopping in the Web3 space. Before the pandemic, in 2019, our idea number is going to grow in the near future.
had been to start this revolutionary business, with a major technol- As for the NFTs, the artwork is being developed together with a
ogy component, in the US. We had prepared for that, but when the very talented team of Romanian designers who live in Barcelona,
pandemic came along we couldn’t implement our plan and we had Spain. The development work for the NFTs is carried out internally,
to "reconfigure" our route. After moving to Germany, we went to by our programmers.
www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December 2022 COVER STORY 11

How much have you invested in the development of the plat- on Entertainment, and in the following months we will launch other
form so far? Is the development process going to continue? conferences and events dedicated to the business district. The Art
The first part of the development and implementation process took district will be the final one, to be released in August.
more than a year. And yes, the platform is in continuous growth, The business model is based on both business customers (B2B)
with new features, products, departments. To date, the investment and individual customers (B2C). Through the way it has been con-
has reached a total of USD 1.4 million. ceived, designed, and implemented, this metaverse—which is an ex-
tended virtual reality—serves the world globally and has the power
Who are the main users of the platform? to offer people and businesses from the most important industries
Xclusiverse primarily targets companies that offer premium & an extraordinary level of online interaction and connection, as well
luxury products and services to their clients, those that want to as a perfect environment for doing business at the highest level.
scale their business using an innovative tool that will bring traction As for the key elements of this metavere business model, they are
in front of a demanding audi- also based on statistics and ex-
ence, and are early adopters of tensive research. For example,
technology, channels, and new 30 percent of businesses are
methods of marketing and pro- expected to have offices in the
motion. We are talking about metaverse by 2026 and in the
industries like luxury real next 5 years more than 25 per-
estate & development, fashion, cent of people will be present
beauty, hospitality, concierge and active in the metaverse,
services, architecture, and art. according to a study by KPMG.
The end users of the Currently, according to
platform will be high income Statista, there are 50,000 B2C
individuals who want to ex- users in the metaverse, and the
plore new ways of interacting, number is expected to grow to
shopping, and having fun. 2 billion by 2026.

What is your business model What are the benefits for

and what are its core ele- individuals or companies
ments? who decide to make their
The Xclusiverse World was entrance into the metaverse
built using advanced research through Xclusiverse?
and design techniques from For B2B clients, the main ben-
the entertainment and gaming efit is that they can find new
worlds. By creating shared revenue streams, grow their
languages embedded within business, and position them-
collective wisdom, ideas can be selves as innovative brands.
passed across time and space. In the Business district, for
Humanity's evolution and example, companies will have
progression has been shaped virtual offices which will be
by stories, which have spanned tailored to their core needs.
generations and societies. Here they can attract and meet
Through the transmission of new customers from all over
cultural memory, storytelling the world, because there are
evolved to help us make sense of the world. A shared language is a no space and time limitations, so they can become truly global com-
means of passing down collective knowledge. panies. In other words, they can scale up their business very easily.
The Xclusiverse ecosystem will begin with 5 districts: Down- Having an office in a virtual world will be a step up from the website
town, Business, Luxury, Art, and Experience (which includes they had before. In the platform, the possibilities for interaction
Entertainment, Learning, Education, and Events). All districts become endless, as people can actually come in to see you and what
have been created with the world's most important industries in you are doing. This will become one of the most effective ways to
mind and with the aim of providing an immersive environment for promote and grow a business.
users. The first three districts were launched in preview mode in On the other hand, the Xclusiverse metaverse gives businesses
December and will be fully available at the beginning of next year. the opportunity to develop their product portfolios and target
In March 2023 we will launch the Experience district, with a focus market segments that they would not normally be able to reach

12 COVER STORY
using traditional means of exposure and promotion. In the Luxury
District, people will not only have amazing fashion, jewellery, and
beauty experiences, but they could also enjoy exquisite services
and products from industries like cars, yachts, private planes or
hotels. In this area, for example, the user can customise their avatar
by purchasing different outfits and accessories. They can also try
out products for both the virtual world and the physical world.
The Experience (Entertainment) District is a suitable environ-
ment for event organisers, regardless of the number of participants
and whether we are talking about local or international events.
Everyone can have an experience that is somehow doubled by a
kind of "digital twin" at these events. So, besides the fact that more
people can have the opportunity to attend your event, even if they
can't physically be there, they can also enjoy other kinds of
products here that they wouldn't have access to in
the real world—including a different kind of
interaction. This world has no limits and you
can essentially do anything you want to
enhance your experience. You can con-
nect with people you may not normally
get a chance to talk to, you can meet up
with your friends from other corners of
the world at a virtual concert, and you
can even fly, because the Entertain-
ment District comes with superpowers.
Another benefit for all Xclusiverse us-
ers is that they can interact without being
restricted by space and meet business lead-
ers, celebrities or high-profile people, whom
they would normally have little chance to meet in
real life due to distance, time or money, in the dedicated
"MEET & GREET" area. Here, people will have the chance to interact
with global stars, celebrities, and thought leaders in a non-limiting
virtual environment where they can shake hands or even have a
brief conversation.
Are Romanian investors ready to develop their businesses in
the metaverse? Are global players better paid for this type of
venture?
Xclusiverse’s initial strategy was to only target B2B customers. They
should be prepared to expand into the metaverse now, because if
we were to look a bit more closely at what happened 10-15 years
ago, at the Web 2.0 level, we’d see that many companies missed the
opportunity to open online shops or develop their apps, and I am
convinced that they’ve come to regret that in recent years. But now
they have a chance to regain the ground they’ve lost. Many luxury
brands went through the same thing. They were very reluctant
when online shops first appeared and only a few wanted to go in
that direction. And when the pandemic came, it hit them pretty
hard. That's why now, in the Web3 space, luxury brands are the
more enthusiastic ones. As for Romania, I already know for sure
that there are companies—in technology, architecture, hospitality or
logistics—who want to be ahead of the times.
www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December 2022
For the moment, it is clear that the metaverse is still not for
everyone. It’s for those who are inspired enough to see that in the
next two-three years, many of their B2C customers will become
active in the metaverse. To conclude, I very much believe that
some Romanian companies are ready for the metaverse, especially
since Romanians generally have a keen interest in technology and
digitalization. At the same time, as far as our B2C customers are
concerned, they will come along with the market growth. We are
ready to offer them great experiences in the metaverse. But as more
influencers and thought leaders will begin talking about it, their fol-
lowers will start exploring the new medium as well. Just like what
happened with social media, e-commerce, and everything else.
How large of an investment should a company that’s
interested in entering the metaverse be ready to
make?
It all depends on what each company wants
to achieve. Our rental services for standard
spaces, for example, start from USD
4,000/year for a virtual office, going up
to USD 14,000/month for showrooms
in the retail area. Of course, companies
can choose spaces that are customised
to their needs, and we have the capa-
bilities to offer the best solutions.
What are your short-term goals for
Xclusiverse?
On the technology side of the business, 2023
and 2024 should bring the completion and launch of
the final product, with all five of its main districts—Down-
town, Business, Luxury, Art, Experience. We aim to attract custom-
ers for each of the B2B districts and to exponentially increase the
number of B2C customers every month. We aim to achieve this
through various brand activations. In terms of business growth,
another goal would be to attract investors to support and further
develop the product. As a financial goal, for 2023 we are estimating
that revenue will increase to USD 4.5 million.
How important is the role of the luxury industry in the plat-
form’s development on other markets? Which markets are you
targeting for your expansion?
As I mentioned earlier, we pay special attention to the district that
will feature premium and luxury brands. The companies in the
Luxury district of Xclusiverse will have a different product category.
While these brands have so far been selling physical products on-
line, now they can also create digital products that they can sell in
Web 2.0 or Web 3.0, in the metaverse. And on top of that, they can
also build their NFT collections, which is basically art. Users and
customers of these companies in Xclusiverse will enjoy an innova-
tive experience and interaction with the products. In the B2C area,
in collaboration with renowned designers and in association with
international fashion magazines, we are preparing a collection of
Xclusiverse-branded outfits for avatars in our metaverse. We look
www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December 2022 COVER STORY 13

forward to making this exclusive collection available to our users Xclusiverse closed the year with a super event that united the real
through our partnership with Ready Player Me, after they’ve been world and the virtual world, officially opening the doors of the
created and validated by top specialists in the field. Xclusiverse Metaverse to all innovation and technology enthusiasts.
From a Shopping 3.0 perspective, we are very excited about what We met physically on December 5 in an exclusive location in
we have created as a team. In addition to a variety of physical and Dubai, but the event was also streamed live in the metaverse. Dur-
virtual products, users will get the chance to try on and test their ing this private event, we showed our guests a preview of the first 3
favourite products: clothes, shoes, cosmetics, but also cars, planes, districts of Xclusiverse: Downtown, where users can interact freely;
yachts, gadgets—all in a new, novel, revolutionary way. Especially Business, for companies who want customised virtual offices; and
with the Luxury and Luxury, for brands that
Business divisions, we are will be able to showcase
planning an expansion to their products in vir-
the US, Middle East, and tual showrooms and users
Western Europe. who will enjoy amazing
shopping experiences.
How does Xclusiverse This preview was based
integrate the real world on interactions, allowing
with the virtual one to people to discover some of
provide tangible ben- the showrooms and shops
efits to both the B2B and that will be made available
B2C segments? next year.
XCLUSIVERSE is the only We also launched
metaverse that connects our first NFT collection
real-world vendors, spe- about the first part of the
cialists, real estate agents, Xclusiverse story, told in
educators or business a meaningful and artful
people to help all of them way. The whole collection
take their businesses to is about rebirth and rein-
the next level. The plat- venting worlds, aiming for
form consists of 3 compo- an evolution of ourselves
nents: the metaverse, the as a species. This first
new digital world with a Xclusiverse event was
zone of intense interaction dedicated to people who
in the virtual environ- have chosen to contribute
ment; e-commerce, a to this dream and become
space where brands can rent showrooms, commercial spaces where investors and business partners. This initial share of the collec-
they can sell their products either digitally as NFTs or for real; and tion celebrating the first citizens to arrive to the Xclusiverse will be
crypto investment, where utility and security tokens will be issued named The Settlers. 2,000 NFTs with unique traits and perks will
and allow users to make investments and trade assets on exchange form the first part of collection, divided into 4 main sub-categories:
platforms. Those who enter the Xclusiverse world will be able to The Main, The First, The Chosen Ones, and The Ambassadors. The
buy virtual products as individuals. special subcollection is endorsed by 4 International Key Opin-
They can even purchase security tokens, which can represent ion Leaders from various industries for each Xclusiverse district:
fractions of real properties in Dubai or other metropolises, to own Downtown – Carlos Calva, Business – Dr. Jonas Ridderstrale, Luxury
and trade. Companies can rent virtual offices where business people – Diana Verde Nieto, Art & Experience – Ferdi Alici.
can meet clients from all over the world and showcase products The physical event was streamed live in the metaverse and a
and services from all segments through a complex and interactive live video with people from the metaverse (at the same time) was
virtual journey. Unlike current platforms for business meetings or streamed in the physical event. People present in the metaverse
courses, Xclusiverse offers a much more engaging and real experi- used both platforms: the web and Oculus. On the web platform, it
ence where you don't feel the barrier of a screen, but share the same was the first time in the world that a physical event was streamed
reality. in the metaverse. We had almost 200 participants in the physical
event and 1100 people on metaverse, during the entire event. 4 rare
What can you tell us about the launch event for Xclusiverse’s NFTs were auctioned and purchased in both worlds simultaneously,
first three districts and NFT collection, which took place in at an auction broadcasted live in the metaverse from the physical
Dubai on December 5? event and also in the real world, from the metaverse platform.

14 INVESTMENTS
FDI in a turbulent year: from disinvestment
to new greenfield ventures
At a lower level, 2022 also recorded several departures by companies in the field of mobility
D
ivestment is beginning to resurface
in Romania as a potential trend in the
field of foreign investments. For now,
we are mainly talking about the local energy
market, which is periodically affected by leg-
islative changes. Still, other areas may also be
prone to departures in the coming period.
Enel is the latest major player to announce
its departure from the Romanian energy
market. As one of the largest private investors
in the industry, Enel has been operating in the
electricity distribution and supply sector as
well as in the production of electricity from
renewable sources since 2005. In the spring
of this year, Exxon Mobil announced that it
would be selling its Romania branch to gas
producer Romgaz for over one billion dollars.
The transaction also includes Exxon’s partici-
pation in the Neptun Deep project.
2022 also saw the departure of some inves-
tors from the food industry. At the beginning
of the year, industrial giant Tereos, the largest
sugar producer in France and the second
largest worldwide, decided to give up its
business in Romania. The reason? Since it was
first acquired by Tereos, the sugar factory in
Ludus (Mures county) had collected signifi-
cant losses and had been struggling, mainly
due to the constant reduction of the areas for
sugar beet cultivation, despite actions aimed
at compensating for these losses. In response
to this disinvestment, the government then
reported that it had analysed several sce-
narios, including a series of measures aimed
at saving, restructuring, and pursuing the
competitiveness of the Ludus sugar factory. A
solution could come from state aid for rescue
or restructuring, but this type of project must
first be approved by the European Commis-
sion.
At a lower level, 2022 also recorded several
departures by companies in the field of mobil-
ity: ridesharing company Free Now halted its
operations this year, while Just Eat Takeaway
stopped its delivery operations in Romania.
NEW GREENFIELD INVESTMENTS IN THE
CENTRE AND WEST OF ROMANIA
In 2021, Romania passed the EUR 100 billion
threshold for its foreign direct investment
balance, and 2022 brought new greenfield in-
vestments, which are the most economically
significant due to their long-term effect. Ger-
man company Diehl Controls, a manufacturer
www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December 2022
2022 was marked by new
growth in terms of foreign
direct investment, despite the
fact that the last 12 months
have been unsteady. Green-
field investments in manufac-
turing have balanced out the
increasing risk of disinvest-
ment in critical areas such as
energy and the food industry.
By Claudiu Vrinceanu
of components for household appliances,
completed a greenfield investment that high-
lighted Romania’s strengths, especially since
investors had looked at a long list of 20 target
countries. The company is investing EUR
40 million in a research centre and produc-
tion unit in Brasov. Bihor county also stood
out in 2022 as it drew new investments: EUR
125 million from Stihl and EUR 650 million
from Nokian, with both companies expected
to invest more in the coming years. Also
in manufacturing, Austrian company Syn
Trac will build a new tractor factory in Arad
county. Its investment of more than EUR 400
million will create around 600 jobs.
On the other hand, there are also ten-
sions in the FDI ecosystem: German battery
manufacturer Varta announced that it was
facing a difficult economic situation amid
which revenues have declined, so its strategic
investment of EUR 1 billion in Romania is still
on hold. However, additional investments by
current players on the local market could bal-
ance out these delays. Stada and Hella have
revealed new such plans, which will lead to a
20 percent growth in FDI for 2022 compared
to 2021. The new ventures confirm Romania’s
potential, ranked 4th at the European level in
terms of investment intent for next year, after
Portugal, the United Kingdom, and Lithuania,
whether it’s for setting up new businesses or
expanding existing operations, according to
an EY survey.

16 STARTUP
Romanian scaleups that stood out in 2022 and
the trends behind their success
2022 was a tough year for
startups across Europe, which
raised USD 85 billion in fund-
ing, a decline of USD 15 bil-
lion from 2021, according to
State of European Tech. Let’s
take a look at Romanian tech
scaleups that have managed
to raise more than 1 million in
a new round. We’ll also high-
light the trends behind the
four selected case studies.
By Claudiu Vrinceanu
NESTOR
Y Combinator-backed startup Nestor, an
HRtech platform changing the way businesses
retain talent by building a language for skills
at work, raised a USD 2 million seed round for
further expansion. Founded in 2018 by Raluca
and Bogdan Apostol, Nestor is headquartered
in San Francisco and targets HR people in
Fortune 500 companies across Europe, North
America, and Latin America.
The trend: Over the past few years, the
transition to hybrid work environments,
coupled with ongoing phenomena such as
the Great Resignation and Quiet Quitting,
have forced organisations to rethink their
workforce development strategies. Workforce
development is agile, business-focused, and
democratised to give people more ownership,
opportunity, and equity. Rigid job structures
and the push for employee training from
the top down, assuming that the organisa-
tion is the one who best knows what skills
people need, clearly do not work in this new
dynamic. This hurts employees, leaving them
with the feeling that they have no say over the
work they do.
SWISSPOD
Swisspod Technologies, a high-speed ground
transportation system founded by entrepre-
neur Denis Tudor, has attracted an invest-
ment round of EUR 1.8 million. The new
The video gaming industry has undergone a radical transformation
financing adds to a seed round that reached
EUR 1.1 million, earlier in 2022. In addition,
the startup also got a grant from the Swiss
government, which was assigned for building
a circular testing Hyperloop infrastructure
and a propulsion system for high speeds on
long distances. Recently, the Swiss govern-
ment decided to extend the funding period
to support R&D activities for the project in
Switzerland until 2025.
The trend: the migration to electric and
energy-autonomous transport solutions. This
new direction streamlines the output of new
startups addressing issues such as carbon
emissions, energy consumption, traffic, and
capacity while aiming to transform frag-
mented logistics architectures into automated
networks.
LICENSEWARE
Bucharest-born open app ecosystem business
Licenseware has raised EUR 1 million from in-
vestors led by Early Game Ventures in what is
being billed as a late seed stage raise. Backers
include Fortech Investments, Acequia Capital,
and Hellen's Rock, with further interest from
ROCA X, Growceanu, Transylvania Angels
Network, and Startup Wise Guys. Fortech and
Early Game Ventures also previously backed
Licenseware last December with EUR 500,000
in pre-seed funds.
The trend: While companies are looking to re-
www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December 2022
duce cloud costs, some cloud providers auto-
matically provision more storage space than
clients need, which can lead to unnecessary
expenses. In this context, users are looking to
access a range of third-party enterprise apps
with competitive licensing fees underpinned
by public development frameworks that
reduce development times and costs.
MACHINATIONS.IO
Machinations.io, the Romanian web platform
that allows game developers to optimise
the mechanics and economics of premium,
free2play, and play2earn games, stood out
this year with Series A funding of USD 3.3 mil-
lion. The funds are being invested in growing
the team and launching new products and
services to support the rapid advance in the
number of users. The financing round was
led by Hiro Capital¬—a European investment
fund focused on the gaming segment—and
also included follow-on investments from
GapMinder, Acequia Capital, and Venrex
Investment Management.
Trend: The video gaming industry has un-
dergone a radical transformation. The web3
gaming revolution is now in full swing, with
developers harnessing the power of block-
chain technology to create new concepts that
redefine the gaming experience. This new
trend highlights the great challenge of design-
ing Sustainable Game Economies.
 www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December
May 2016 2022 COVER
INTERVIEW
STORY 17
14

Building a better future through regenerative

farming and biodiversity preservation
Irina Siminenco, Corporate Affairs
Manager at Nestlé Romania, sat down
with Business Review to talk about
the company’s commitment to sus-
tainability both in Romania and at the
international level.
By Anda Sebesi

lives, and better cocoa. The plan, along

What are the key sustainability projects
being developed by Nestlé in Romania?
Nestlé’s ambition in terms of sustainable
development is to reach net zero emissions
globally by 2050, through a transition to 100
percent renewable energy, the development
of alternative packaging, innovation in
recipes, and concrete involvement in
activities that increase biodiversity and
reduce the amount of carbon dioxide through
tree planting, under the sustainability pillar
called "Nestlé for a Waste-Free World."
Nestlé’s sustainable development strategy
is based on several projects, including
awareness campaigns. One of our biggest
community-based educational projects is
"The Blue Planet is Counting on You!", a
project initiated by the PRAIS Foundation
in partnership with Nestlé Romania. The
programme targets teachers, primary
school students, their families, and all those
who want to contribute to protecting the
environment, through simple daily gestures.
What can you tell us about Nescafé Plan
2030, an initiative that aims to make coffee
farming more sustainable?
The Nescafé Plan 2030 is meant to help drive
regenerative agriculture, reduce greenhouse
gas emissions, and improve farmers’ lives.
Nescafé will provide farmers with training,
technical assistance, and high-yielding
coffee plantlets to support their transition
to regenerative coffee farming practices.
The brand is investing over EUR 1 billion in
the plan and this investment builds on the
existing Nescafé Plan as the brand expands its
sustainability work.
Can you provide some details about the
company’s policy on sustainable sourcing?
At Nestlé, our goal is to minimise our impact
on the world’s resources, doing our best
to make sure they remain available for
coming generations. To that end, we are
operating responsibly, creating a positive
business environment, and empowering our
employees to make sustainable business
decisions. Our approach is centred on
farmers, supporting solutions that are right
for their regions and crops.
Our Sustainable Sourcing team makes sure
that the raw materials, the packaging, and
the services we source have been produced
in accordance with our Responsible Sourcing
Standard. Our initiatives aim to protect and
promote human rights and animal welfare
while protecting and restoring forests and
natural ecosystems that are critical to the
sourcing of our ingredients. We have 540
sourcing specialists and more than 4,500
support staff who are assisting in the
transition towards regenerative agriculture.
What are the objectives of the Nestle
Cocoa Plan?
The main goal of the Nestlé Cocoa Plan
is to contribute to better farming, better
with our Rainforest Alliance certification,
allows us to take steps to address social and
environmental issues and create a sustainable
cocoa supply chain. We are committed to
sourcing 100 percent of our cocoa through
this plan by 2025. We also aim to provide
training and resources to help farmers
improve their crops, increase their incomes,
and improve their lives. We make lives
better by tackling child labour, empowering
women, and improving education to help
communities thrive, as well as making better
cocoa by enhancing supply chain traceability
and tackling deforestation.
What can you tell us about Nestlé’s
reforestation initiatives in Romania?
Globally, Nestlé is committed to planting 20
million trees a year, with Nestlé Romania
being an essential part of this objective. In
Romania, we planted 55,000 trees between
2019 and 2021 together with the Cozia
National Park, and this year we’ve planted
20,000 acacia trees with the help of the Mai
Mult Verde Association, as part of the Honey
Forest initiative.
Carried out under the "Nestlé for a Waste-
Free World" sustainability pillar, Honey
Forest brings together all our afforestation
projects as well as our education and
awareness campaigns in schools and for
the wider public, which map and promote
biodiversity in Romania. We strongly believe
in the role bees play in the local ecosystem
and we direct our efforts towards helping
them and supporting local communities
of beekeepers, while contributing to the
restoration of degraded soils and areas.

18 INTERVIEW
Hervis launches new app and gives fresh look
& feel to its stores
Catalin Pozdarie, general manager at Hervis Romania, tells Business Review about the compa-
ny’s new approaches for the local market and how it intends to strengthen its leading position in
Romania over the coming years.
By Anda Sebesi
When did you launch the Hervis App?
What was the reason behind it and what
are your main expectations for this app?
In a continuously changing retail environ-
ment, where every company is looking for
ways to keep its customers as close as pos-
sible, the launch of the HERVIS App was a
natural and necessary step for us. Nowadays,
more than 60 percent of all online purchases
are carried out through a mobile device,
mainly phones. The app is a tool that allows
us to improve the customer journey and fur-
ther simplify the buying experience.
What are the key benefits for the users of
this app?
First of all, our customer is always connected
to HERVIS. They get information about our
latest campaigns, store openings, new prod-
ucts releases, sports events, and so on. The
customer can find all their account benefits
in one place: for example, bonus points from
previous purchases or bonus points they
get on their birthday and other personal
events. With this app, customers can more
easily access the HERVIS online shop and
use the points from their accounts for future
purchases, all in a simple and intuitive user
interface.
What can you tell us about the
company’s development plans in
Romania?
Economists are expecting the near future
to be under the influence of a higher cost of
money. That means that a lot of companies
are going to postpone their investments from
2023 to 2024 or later. Hervis Romania, as part
of SPAR Group Austria, is proud to announce
that it will continue to invest on the local
market even under these circumstances. We
have several openings planned in new cities
in 2023, as well as an increase of the number
of stores in cities where we already have a
presence. We are also working to expand our
logistics capabilities on the local market.
www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December 2022
How does the Hervis brand position itself
on the local market? Can you provide some
details about your exclusive brands?
Hervis is known as a specialist sports retailer.
This field has become increasingly crowded
in recent years. New players have entered
the market, while existing ones have rapidly
grown in terms of number of stores. Even so,
Hervis has managed to hold on to its leading
role on the local market, with a strong online
and offline presence.
Hervis exclusive brands will help us
maintain and strengthen our position. We
are continuously developing the range of
products being offered under Hervis exclu-
sive brands to provide quality and comfort at
more affordable prices. As proof of the fact
that we believe in our brands and as a way to
test them under real life conditions, we have
signed a partnership with Salvamont Roma-
nia. Hervis is providing the apparel and gear
for the entire Romanian Salvamont team.
We are proud and honoured to have this
opportunity and the feedback has been very
positive. We will soon launch a new product
range that’s more focused on lifestyle and the
casual athlete.
Hervis shops have a new look. Why did you
decide to adopt this strategy and how do
you expect it to impact your results?
Retailers that want to maintain their position
on the market and develop new ways of inter-
acting with customers are always looking to
improve their appearance. HERVIS has intro-
duced this new fitting concept at an interna-
tional level, and it has been implemented in
all the countries in which we are present. We
are displaying the merchandise in a cleaner
manner; the brands are more visible for the
customer and the instore flow is easier to
understand. This new mode of presentation
ensures that the store keeps its modern and
dynamic vibe.
 www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December 2022 BUSINESS 19

Bosch to continue expanding

its operations in Romania
The Bosch Group is one of the biggest inves-
tors in Romania’s automotive industry, with
both its manufacturing sites and engineer-
ing centre having seen steady development
over the years. Business Review talked to
Mihai Boldijar, the General Manager of Rob-
ert Bosch S.R.L. and the representative of
the Bosch Group in Romania, Vice-president
with regional responsibilities to get some
insight into the company’s plans.
By Aurel Constantin

who adhere to the values of the Bosch Group.

How has Bosch’s business in Romania
developed up to this point?
Romania is a strategic market for the Bosch
Group, which invested approximately EUR
700 million here between 2005 and 2021. Last
year alone we made investments that reached
EUR 83 million, mainly in the development
of our production units in Cluj and Blaj. In
parallel, we recorded encouraging financial
results, which allowed us to continue with
the business development process. The
successful outcome was made possible by the
extraordinary engagement and resilience of
our associates, as together we’ve managed to
overcome many major challenges.
What are the main investments Bosch has
made in Romania?
Bosch's investments in Romania are
considerable and they underline the Group's
commitment to this country. In 2021, we
inaugurated a third production plant in Cluj,
where we manufacture electrical control
units. The Bosch Engineering Centre in
Romania has started the construction of a
new office building in Cluj-Napoca, which
will be completed next year, following an
investment of EUR 21 million. In addition,
we’ve extended the Bosch Engineering Centre
in Bucharest and we currently have more
than 1,200 employees across all the sites
of the engineering centre, out of a total of
approximately 8,800 in Romania, all involved
in state-of-the-art technology projects.
What measures have you taken to coun-
terbalance the rise in prices for energy
and raw materials?
The increased prices of raw materials and
energy have affected the entire economy. We
have implemented several energy efficiency
projects within the Bosch units in Romania,
including solutions for energy consumption
monitoring, replacing old lighting with LED
technology, using motion and brightness
sensors, and installing solar panels. The
annual average energy generated by this
system is 8,252 MWh, enough to cover the
needs of approximately 4,000 households.
The savings are important and we are taking
the first steps towards energy independence.
The total investment in solar panels amounts
to more than EUR 5 million, and the project
in our plant in Cluj is among the biggest in the
country considering the total power installed
on the roof.
What are your plans for the near future?
We plan to continue our investment
and development plans in 2023, as our
commitment to Romania is very strong. At
the moment, we have hundreds of open
positions within our organisation and we
want to expand our teams with professionals
We also continue to support young people
who are just starting out their careers with
over 1,000 opportunities available for juniors,
young graduates, and students. We will
also continue our partnerships with the top
universities in the country. Last but not least,
there will be further development in our
production units and engineering centre.
What are the top trends in the automotive
industry and what is Bosch’s approach
towards them?
There are several important development
directions in the automotive industry, and
I am happy to say that Bosch is one of the
market leaders in terms of innovation. We
are systematically adjusting our Mobility
Solutions business segment to areas of
future importance such as electromobility,
automated driving, and future electronics
architectures. At the Engineering Centre in
Cluj, we are already working on a series of
interesting projects, and in the future we
intend to continue to grow in terms of the
number of projects and our skills as well as
take on more responsibility in several areas.
For example, in Cluj we develop software
for electric cars, such as control units for
battery management or cloud-based services
to increase battery life and performance.
In addition, we continue to invest in AIoT
solutions, which represent a combination of
AI and IoT.
 www.business-review.eu
22 ENTREPRENEURSHIP Business Review | December 2022

Startup funding headed

for choppy waters in 2023
The outlook for the startup funding environment in Europe has worsened in recent
months, as the economy is dealing with the impact of inflation, which remains stubbornly
high, while interest rates continue to go up. Venture capital funding in Europe fell by 37.5
percent to USD 14.8 billion in the third quarter compared to the same period of last year.
However, the Central and Eastern Europe region continues to attract investments despite
the ongoing crisis in Ukraine.
By Ovidiu Posirca

Alexandru Vasile, Data Against Data

T
he Romanian startup ecosystem
stayed on a development path in 2022
and had reached a combined value
of EUR 2.9 billion by October 2022, according
to a Dealroom.co report. If we included the
value of startups that were founded in Roma-
nia but have since relocated to other markets
outside CEE, the total value would climb to
EUR 8.5 billion.
Cristian Munteanu, managing partner at
Early Game Ventures (EGV), points out that
everyone should be aware of the “storm”
that will be heading our way in 2023.
“For startups in Romania, next year will
be marked by less available capital, employ-
ees who will be less tempted to quit their
jobs and join startup teams, and clients who
will be more reluctant to test new products
and services. The excruciatingly difficult job
of startup founders will be even harder next
year. On a positive note, the economic down-
turn will drive away both ‘tourist founders’
and ‘tourist investors,’” he tells BR.
Munteanu adds that savvy investors will
look to deploy capital in deep tech start-
ups that still need several years of product
development before entering the market or
in startups whose business models tend to
thrive in times of crisis. For instance, EGV has
invested in OxidOS, a developer of software
that gets embedded into microprocessors
for the automotive industry, as well as in
BonApp, a mobile app offering heavy dis-
 www.business-review.eu
December
Business Review | May 2016 2022
counts for food products. Serial entrepreneur
Radu Georgescu wrote last August about the
beginning of an economic crisis and the ways
in which founders can step up to ensure the
survival of their startups.
“Don't ignore the writing on the wall these
days. Sitting ducks are always shot. Lay or
double down depending on the opportunity
(not on your dreams),” he wrote in a post
published on crowdfunding platform Seed-
Blink.
In the last part of this year, VC funds are
consolidating their conservative approach to
fresh investments, which will also translate
into prolonged negotiations over deals.
“Startups will likely also place more
emphasis on rightsizing their business so
they can conserve cash and better position
themselves for a new funding round,” experts
noted in a report published by professional
services firm KPMG.
Cristian Dascalu, managing partner at
Techcelerator and partner at GapMinder, be-
lieves that the Romanian & CEE startup mar-
ket will not feel as big of an impact in 2023
as the one in Western Europe will. He notes
that local funding volumes reached EUR 110
million in 2021 and public data on the first
six months signals a decline of around 20
percent in Romania compared to 2021.
Asked about the categories of tech that are
going to drive the development of Roma-
nia’s startup ecosystem, Dascalu mentions
advanced analytics, AI/ML, data & cloud,
cybersecurity, and fintech.
“Founders are now more skilled at obtain-
ing cheaper and faster product traction. They
are pursuing customer insights and testing
their hypotheses internationally before cod-
ing a full-fledged MVP. This is making them
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
COVER STORY 14
23
so much more efficient with their
time and early-stage investors' mon-
ey. Funding money will continue to
exist, but the competition will be
more intense,” Dascalu argues.
ENTREPRENEURIAL ENERGY IN CEE
CONTINUES TO ATTRACT SIGNIFI-
CANT FUNDS
Despite the economic uncertainty,
the CEE startup industry has at-
tracted 19 new funds to the region
in the year to date. This includes the
Catalyst Romania Fund II, which has
a budget of EUR 50 million.
“Next year will see the birth of
many public-led initiatives, such as
the West Region’s accelerator and
venture capital programme. If we
were to look at other CEE countries
with similar experiences, we would
expect strong growth in startups
across verticals. Of course, given
the high degree of local technical
expertise, software and AI will prob-
ably be over-represented,” says Ciprian Man,
co-founder of angel investment platform
Growceanu.
Man also points out that some investors
have started to shy away from early-stage
startups due to the general sense of uncer-
tainty and the discounted investment oppor-
tunities available in other, more established
asset classes.
“This trend is likely to continue into 2023,
but that does not mean that the startup sec-
tor will be deprived of investment money. In-
 www.business-review.eu
24 ENTREPRENEURSHIP Business Review | December 2022

deed, Romania’s ecosystem still lacks strong thrown at us throughout the years have funding. Regardless of the financial context,
deal flows, meaning there are not enough shaped generations that face difficulties with our focus remains on protecting our users
high-potential startups being created. Those a ‘bring it on’ attitude, and that’s an advan- from fraud by empowering them to delete
their data from companies that should
not have it,” Vasile adds.
Looking to next year, EGV’s Munteanu
suggests that there are some good signs
for the Romanian startup sector. He
explains: “The first has to do with talent:
many developers who have been work-
ing for tech giants abroad, mainly in the
US, will be terminated and ready to join
or launch a startup. Then comes capital:
over the last few years we’ve seen the
birth of the first generation of profes-
sional investors: good people who are
connected to the ecosystem, with strong
networks and experience under their
belts. Lastly, it is the economic crisis
itself: what better time to reassess your
options, gather your courage, and start a
company than a recession?”
The majority of investments made
in 2022 have been in bridge rounds to
that do exist require a lot of work, accelera- tage that Romanians
tion, and support in order to perform,” he have over many
adds. other nations,”
Nevertheless, the Growceanu co-founder says Alexandru
reckons that a stronger involvement of Vasile, the CEO of
public funds in the startup ecosystem could Romanian startup
mobilise more investment activity in CEE AgainstData.com.
from specialised VC firms over the course of The firm helps users
several years. find out what kind
Data from the past five years shows that of data companies
CEE has been one of the fastest growing have collected from
regions in Europe by enterprise value. Since them. Until now, the
2017, the value of startups founded or HQ-ed startup has attracted
in the CEE region has grown 4x to EUR 190 over EUR 200,000
billion, while the rest of European markets from investors and
saw an average growth of newly founded it is planning to
firms of 3.1x, to EUR 3.4 trillion, according raise another EUR
to Dealroom.co. What is truly remarkable 500,000 in a sepa-
about the CEE entrepreneurial ecosystem is rate funding round.
that almost a quarter of its startups whose “At AgainstData.
valuation topped USD 1 billion were not com, we believe
VC-backed. By comparison, the Europe-wide startup funding and
average of bootstrapped unicorn firms is just investments in Ro-
7 percent, while Western Europe’s is as low as mania will continue
5 percent. into 2023, and the
“I believe the funding opportunities are teams that will be
there; all we need is the resilience to keep able to unlock op-
building. And no one does resilience like portunities will also
Romanians. The problems that have been be able to unlock
 www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December
May 2016 2022
prolong the runway of portfolio companies in
the form of convertible loans or debt financ-
ing, rather than the high valuation equity
rounds that kept the headlines in 2021, ac-
cording to Alexandru Bogdan, CEO of ROCA
X. The fund has completed 11 investment
transactions to date with a volume of EUR 3
million.
”2023 has the potential to be a new peak
for Romanian startups' financing as extra
money and new VC players will enter the
ecosystem through initiatives such
as PNRR, while many of the
promising startups which
slowed down a bit due to
the negative sentiment
will be in a good posi-
tion to attract top cash
for accelerating their
growth,” he tells BR.
PRIVATE EQUITY SEES
POTENTIAL IN EUROPEAN
STARTUPS WHILE CVC INVEST-
MENT SLOWS DOWN
The KPMG report points out that during Q3,
debt financing gained new attention in Eu-
rope as large PE firms made forays into offer-
ing lending products to startups. This comes
on the back of rising interest rates, which
make such operations more profitable.
“With geopolitical and macroeconomic
uncertainty expected to continue, VC inves-
tors in Europe will likely become even more
aggressive in their investment decision-mak-
ing heading into Q4’22. Early-stage compa-
nies could feel the biggest impact, which
could hinder the health of the deals pipeline
long-term. Energy and ESG are expected to
remain hot areas of investment in Europe
heading into Q4’22, particularly as they relate
to alternative energy and battery
storage. B2B is
also ex-
pected
to remain very
attractive to investors, as com-
panies across the board focus on improving
efficiencies and enhancing their profitability,”
the report notes.
The biggest financing deal closed in Q3
went to German B2B software developer
Celonis. The company got USD 1.4 billion in a
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
COVER STORY 14
25
Series D round. In second place was Swedish
Northvolt, a cleantech that got USD 1 billion.
The third biggest funding volume was at-
tracted by Swedish fintech Klarna, which
secured USD 800 million in a late-stage VC
deal. UK-based fintech SumUp and French
AI & ML startup ContentSquare each got
around USD 600 million in fresh funding.
On the other hand, inflation concerns
and the risk of recession in Europe have
led to a significant decline in corporate
venture capital investment (CVC). The
participation of CVCs in venture deals
amounted to USD 8.8 billion in Q3 2022,
compared to USD 13.1 billion in the same
period of last year.
“Corporate players have pulled back in
tandem with most of the venture inves-
tor universe, joining fewer rounds for a
smaller aggregate than in prior quarters
of the past couple years. Again, tallies are
still historically robust, but a pullback
is still evident as corporations look to
assess the extant panoply of risks more
closely,” KPMG experts write. Despite all
the challenges, first-time venture financing
of companies in Europe is proving resilient as
investors see the long-term prospects of the
entrepreneurial sector. Around USD 12 billion
was attracted by startups as first-time fund-
ing during 2021, with this year’s estimate
set to get close to USD 8 billion, according to
KPMG data. This would be the second big-
gest volume since 2014.
"In 2023 we will see an echo
of the high-pressure points
of this year so probably
many energy related
startups due to the high
prices affecting all
sectors of the economy
from solutions to reduce
consumption and make
savings at consumer level
to new and more efficient
energy production solutions like
biogas, biohydrogen etc. On the European
continent we will also see some technologi-
cal independency initiatives to replace US
giants like Google Drive, Google services
or AWS, but it will probably be difficult to
identify the potential winners," concludes
the CEO of ROCA X.

26 ADVERTISING
The powerful role of social
media groups in ad campaigns
Secrecy is sometimes the best way to market a business. Facebook Groups are a very good
example, as they are considered to be the most effective way to gain valuable insights
from, and engage with, a brand’s top customers.
By Romanita Oprea
Simina Zidaru, Tribal Worldwide Romania
“
There are 1.8 billion people who say
they use Facebook groups every
month. These opt-in communities
offer businesses a great way to bypass the
merciless Facebook news feed algorithm and
connect with audiences where they are actu-
ally likely to see and interact with branded
posts. Groups are effective because people
want to be there. Think about it: is someone
going to opt in to a group for a company they
don’t really like?” said Michelle Martin for
blog.hootsuite.com. Moreover, according to
the specialist, these groups bring together
the brand’s #1 BFFs, who are ready to be its
personal cheerleading squad. Brands should
solidify and enhance that relationship and
make use of the exclusive access a Facebook
group provides, along with special content or
privileges.
“Being able to test new strategies and ideas
in this small focus group will give you a lot
of information. As a bonus, your super fans
will appreciate being ‘in the know.’ It’s your
job to keep the group productive, on topic,
and respectful. But don’t try to control it too
much. Encourage members to start conversa-
tions and feel comfortable enough to speak
the truth. Maybe your latest product launch
didn’t wow as much as you thought it would.
Instead of policing negative opinions and
keeping the group as a positive echo cham-
ber, welcome the feedback. Allow users to
share their true opinions of what went wrong,
thank them for it, and keep the conversation
going,” Martin explained.
“Get your Facebook group members talk-
ing by actively sharing discussions relevant
to your brand niche. This strategy not only
enhances more activity in your group but also
boosts the probability of your posts appear-
ing in your members’ feeds. The information
you’ll want to receive in asking the users
include the kind of content they want to see
on your group regularly. By asking ques-
tions, you can better understand what your
customers need. In addition, the information
you gather will help you learn what your
existing consumers like and dislike about
your product offerings,” said Neal Schaffer,
CMO at Fractional and teacher at Rutgers
www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December 2022
Business School and the Irish Management
Institute. Facebook groups are providing
more and more opportunities for brands to
expand their reach and they are most help-
ful in creating more compelling customer
loyalty programmes. This is why Facebook is
likely to continue adding new features to its
groups, and why Facebook group marketing is
expected to become an increasingly powerful
advertising tactic.
A SUCCESSFUL EXAMPLE FROM ROMANIA
Birra Moretti® and Tribal Worldwide created a
group on Facebook, where users were invited
to join to have fun like they would at the Elec-
tric Castle festival—before the festival actually
took place. With lots of featured activities and
artists, the group encouraged users to role
play as if they were at the event, commenting,
posting, and interacting with each other.
But the goal of the group was to not only
create a strong community around the brand,
but also to reward the most active fans, with
50 double tickets for the Electric Castle fes-
tival in play. The group format follows a popu-
lar trend among Millennials, where members
play pretend on different topics. Among the
most well-known groups are “A group where
we pretend that we’re in student halls” and
“A group where we pretend that we’re at the
Vama Veche beach.”
“Electric Aperitivo: A group where you win
tickets to EC2022,” created by Birra Moretti®
and Tribal, gathered people who were already
familiar with this group format and who
joined the game naturally. Birra reinvented
the way groups were traditionally being used
by brands and transformed them into an
authentic communication tool with a close-
knit community. Artists that performed on
the Electric Castle 2022 stage also joined the
 www.business-review.eu
28 ADVERTISING Business Review | December 2022

group, including Robin and the Backstabbers, be successful for certain types of brands and analyse their behaviours and conversations
Byron, Ana Coman, Dimitri’s Bats. Members not for others? on those channels. As social media grows in
also included well-known influencers Sore “My mom is on a plant group, my friend both size and importance, becoming a core
and Sanziana Negru, local radio station Virgin on a motherhood one, my creative colleagues part of daily life, it is vital to apply research
Radio, and even the official festival page. All go on meme groups, and I have friends on tools to begin to understand this new discus-
of them posted and interacted with members, vintage clothes, curly hair, skincare routine sion forum.
and some even created exclusive content for or investment banking groups. And these are “Finding out what people say on forums
the group. just a few examples that highlight the variety is a great way to understand social trends
“It seems ambitious to develop a consumer of people’s interests and the highly specific around specific topics. People will either
promo inside a closed group that’s created nature of some groups. I would say that the discuss a topic in detail or ask for advice,
especially for this purpose. But we under- right type of group can be created for every so if you can understand publicly posted
stood the insight and the dynamics of closed
groups. The results were beyond expectations
and a strong community was born, one that
we will definitely be reactivated,” says Sharon
Annette, Marketing Director at HEINEKEN
Romania.
Users interacted with the brand and with
each other, and some even created content
themselves, without it being a requirement
for the campaign.
“We wanted to speak the language of the
person who goes to EC and create an activa-
tion that they want to be a part of. We didn’t
just want to promote something, but to create
a natural experience that can be organically
integrated into people’s everyday lives. We
noticed the popularity of this type of group
and we realised that there was room for one
more, one that would reward you for having
fun like you would at the Electric Castle festi-
val,” says Simina Zidaru, managing director at
Tribal Worldwide Romania.
The results were excellent, with over 2.5k product category out there. You just have to forum topics, you will get an insight into the
members in the group, smart user-generated find the people who are interested in what concerns around various issues and themes,
content, and authentic brand interactions. you do. Groups really are a big deal nowa- which could support social media research,”
In fact, the level of engagement within the days,” Zidaru argues. specialists from research agency Pulsar write.
group exceeded that of regular social media Social media research can help your busi- Moreover, the research that gets done
profiles. The community still exists and it will ness in a number of ways: understanding and prior to the start of a campaign is extremely
be reactivated at various times throughout improving the online image of your brand; important, as campaign creators get to talk to
the year. understanding the market for new products; people who are passionate about something
But how different is it from other types comparing your presence to a competitor’s; or to subject matter experts—those are people
of social media campaigns? What does it es- and attracting new audiences by understand- who cannot be fooled. “The level of interac-
sentially require? ing trending topics around your category. tion is really high, so you can’t fake it, either.
According to Simina Zidaru, this approach Thanks to advanced social listening and People comment, start conversations, and
is not for everyone. And if you embark on audience intelligence tools and platforms, you must be there, participating. Otherwise,
such journey, you should really know who researchers today are able to aggregate data it will be just another brand interaction that’s
you’re talking to. Because, as Zidaru notes, if relating to specific events and topics or selling a message. In a group, a brand be-
you want the group to work you must be truly within a specific audience group from social comes a persona that must act as an expert or
relevant; all the content you create and all media, web, forums, news, and blogs. It’s an adviser. I would certainly suggest for people
your community management must be done approach that’s constantly evolving, with who are tasked with handling groups to be
in a way that means something to the people researchers developing new methodologies super well-documented, if not truly passion-
who are active on that group. Otherwise, and techniques in order to understand the ate about the topic,” the Tribal Worldwide
you’ll lose them. Is the strategy more likely to way audiences use social media channels and Romania representative explained.

30 TECHNOLOGY
Romania has consolidated its position
as a world-class technology hub
Romania has consolidated its position as a world-class technology hub in the past five
years, according to the Romanian CEO of Mokka (Revo Technologies), Alexandru Balaci,
who sat down with Business Review to talk about the latest fintech trends, the outlook
for the Romanian startup scene in 2022, and Mokka’s plans for 2023.
By Mihai Cristea
What’s your outlook for the Romanian
startup scene in 2022 in terms of funding
opportunities and hot industries for inves-
tors?
Romania has consolidated its position as a
world-class technology hub in the past five
years, and this was acknowledged by the EU
when Bucharest was designated to host the
European Cybersecurity Competence Centre.
This dynamic has a tremendous positive im-
pact on the local startup scene, opening our
market to more investment opportunities,
which in turn will contribute to more growth
and focused development. For example, Ro-
mania is now a top destination for outsourc-
ing banking and fintech software develop-
ment, and this will help scale startups in this
lucrative area.
What are your plans for Mokka in 2023
and what are the areas that will generate
growth for you?
www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December 2022
Revo Technologies has ambitious develop-
ment plans in all key markets in Central and
Eastern Europe. We are in an optimal position
to develop partnerships with leading mer-
chants, e-commerce platforms and dominant
payment service providers in this geography
as it is our main focus. As for Romania, we
intend to continue to expand our business
based on our leading position in this market.
The plan is to invest in building partnerships
with top Romanian and international traders,
which operate in Central and Eastern Europe,
and to collaborate with top e-commerce pay-
ment services providers.
Mokka is the leading Buy Now Pay Later
(BNPL) service, operating in Poland, Roma-
nia, Bulgaria providing online and offline
BNPL financing solutions for merchants and
consumers.
Mokka has developed innovative and
flexible BNPL payment solutions, allow-
ing customers to buy now and pay later in
both online and traditional stores. Mokka’s
product is unique as it integrates the latest
technology to deliver a semless 2-click experi-
ence for customers with a range of convenient
payment plans from 30 days to 24 months.
Mokka has partnered with over 7500
leading regional merchants across the most
popular categories such as fashion, footwear,
kids, electronics, jewelry, furniture, travel,
and others. Merchants enabling this payment
method experience higher conversion rates,
increased average shopping cart value and
a boost in incremental sales while strength-
ening consumers’ loyalty. In Romania, the
Mokka service is available in stores such
as Noriel, Ideall, Lensa, Reserved, Sinsay,
Mohito, House, Cropp and many others. As
of September 2022, Mokka is trusted by more
than 15 million registered consumers in CEE.
 www.business-review.eu
32 MARKETING Business Review | December 2022

Setting the trends in influencer

marketing
As the global head of influence, Rahul Titus is in charge of the strategic direction
of Ogilvy’s influence proposition, which covers the full spectrum of influencer
collaborations, from big celebrities to micro-influencers. BR sat down with him to learn
about his work leading a team of creative experts who are responsible for delivering
best-in-class influencer marketing for clients including Walgreens Boots Alliance, Bacardi,
Unilever, and TCCC.
By Romanita Oprea

in mind, so they build for agility. They are

You say that things are changing very
quickly. How do you keep up? Do you
have a special department that only does
research to predict new trends in order to
stay ahead of the curve?
Yeah, sure. At Ogilvy we take lots of pride in
being market leaders and really being the first
movers in this space. Obviously, we've got
over 250 people around the world who do
influencer marketing alone. These are dedi-
cated influencer specialists. And the way that
we've hired these teams, under great people
like Ana [Ana Sisu, head of PR & influence at
Ogilvy Romania], was with agile principles
platform native; they come from this space.
And I think one of the biggest mistakes we've
seen other people make has been bringing
in people who don't come from influencer
marketing—and I think that’s when you start
falling behind, right?
We are set up for success from the way we
structure our people and our teams. That's
what makes the biggest difference.
Secondly, I definitely encourage my teams
to be brave and bold, and I think that’s the
Ogilvy DNA. We want to push boundaries. We
want to do more. Ogilvy’s first principle was
wanting to be known for actions, not words.
Because honestly, I've done it for so long
and I'm really sick of seeing people holding
a product and saying “buy this”—that’s not
influence. It’s so much bigger than that. We
make sure to allow people to create cam-
paigns, even to make mistakes. That's okay.
I would rather try something and fail than
not try to do anything at all. That's how we
make sure that we are set up for success.
We obviously also keep a very close eye on
trends. Every year, we launch a trends paper,
which comes out on November 30, where we
talk about the biggest influencer marketing
trends in the world.
Last year, we predicted that B2B influence
would get really big, and it's definitely been
one of our biggest growth areas this year. Also
last year, we spoke about purpose-driven
influencer marketing becoming a big part of
campaigns, going beyond people simply hold-
ing products and actually driving purpose.
www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December 2022 ADVERTORIAL 33

Hays study: salary indexation

- top of the agenda
Hays Romania looks at how inflation has a marketwide impact, and where employers can
optimise their hiring and retention strategies to remain competitive. The aim is to offer a
clear image of how organisations in Romania are tackling inflation growth right now and
what is on the horizon for salary and pay rates.

text, the biggest challenge for organisations

is to effectively keep core staff and build
teams in conditions of rising operational
costs. Even so, they are prioritising the heart
of the business – the people. We will see the
salary increases made this year continuing
through the beginning of 2023. Of the 64% of
employers increasing salaries, 46% said they
will be starting in January 2023, while 34%
already adjusted earnings in 2022.
Hays recommendation - Salary increases
are not your only form of recourse. Take into
account other benefits, such as home work-
ing and subsidising utilities, or engaging
your employees better with an improved
employee value proposition. A good organ-
isational culture, consistently promoted
and followed up on, can be a vital tool in
retention.

INFLATION OUTSTRIPPING INDEXATION

Timur Makhmutov, Managing Director Hays Romania In September, the monthly inflation rate
in Romania reached 15.9%, according to

I
n October 2022, Hays surveyed 122 re-
spondents operating across the country
in various market areas and industries.
The data is supplemented by on-the-ground
expertise from recruitment consultants, eco-
nomic observations from credible sources,
and one-to-one discussions with clients
fuelling the conclusions.
GROWING INFLATION FORCES
EMPLOYERS TO REACT
The immediate impact of 2022 inflation of
growing consumer prices and shrinking
interest rates – and the potential conse-
quences on people’s standard of living
– means organisations must take action to
find feasible ways of supporting employ-
ees while maintaining operating margins. The
results of the study show that most organisa-
tions know this. Precisely 64% are making plans,
or have already taken action, to mitigate the
effects of growing inflation on earnings through
salary/benefit package indexation.
Hays recommendation - Start communicating
what you are doing for your employees clearly
and openly. If people trust that you are acting,
they are less likely to look for a new job. Organ-
isations that plan ahead, stay ahead. Even if you
are not well placed to offer significant increases,
employees would value transparency.
TODAY’S DECISIONS, TOMORROW’S
ACTIONS
In the current economic, social and political con-
Trading Economics. Just 24% of respondents
are increasing salaries by 11%- 15% - barely
keeping up with the current inflation rate.
With the prevailing 44% looking at increases
of 5%-10%, we can conclude that employers
want to support employees but remain cau-
tious in a fluctuating market.
Hays recommendation - Be aware of
what your competition is offering on the
indexation agenda. Ensure you conduct
thorough exit interviews with people leav-
ing your business. If you do see a trend of
employees leaving for specific competitors,
find out what they are doing differently and
make adjustments. If you are ahead of the
league, don’t be shy to make a clear state-
ment to your people.

34 MARKETING
This year, every brand around the world is
talking about purpose. So, we like to be the
agency that sets the trends.
We don't get all of it right, to be very hon-
est. Even 70 percent right is good, I'm okay
with that. And I think that's what we're trying
to get to.
You mentioned mistakes. Can you give us
some examples?
Mistakes make us better, I think. We have no
issues talking about some of the things we've
tried and not succeeded with.
Three years ago for example,
when I was working on one of
our first trends papers, I said that
virtual influences were going to
be really big and take over the
world. Three years later, it hasn’t
happened, but that’s okay.
But what is happening this year
is artificial intelligence influenc-
ing. AI-powered influence is
now getting big, and we’ve had
wonderful projects where we’ve
used AI influencers as part of a
marketing campaign. That's one
of our big trends for next year.
Therefore, our prediction of a
trend three years ago was maybe
a little too early, right? That’s actually great,
because it gave our agency three years to get
our product right.
So, when we talk about AI, I know for a
fact that we as an agency have much more
capability, reliability, and strength in this
space than anybody else in the marketplace.
Mistakes happen, but they lead to better
things; mistakes are part of our DNA.
What advice would you give clients for
their first time working with influencers?
My advice has always been: take that first
jump! Don't be scared to do it and do it well!
A lot of clients right now are starting to dip
their toes in the water with, say, 50,000
euros a year. I say if you're doing it, do it
well, because you’ll see that it will always
work out for you. I’ve been doing this for 12
years, as you know, and I've never, ever in
my career seen a brand campaign do better
than an influencer campaign. If you put an
influencer campaign on social media versus a
brand campaign, the influencer campaign will
always do better. Always. So why wouldn’t
you want to do that? Try it! You never know.
It might become the centrepiece of your mar-
keting strategy.
Tell us about the areas where you’re see-
ing the power of micro-influencing. Why
is it sometimes better to take this route
instead of working with big influencers?
At Ogilvy, when we talk about influence,
we’re talking about a spectrum. So that's
everybody from a celebrity down to micro-
influencers, creators, employees, consumers.
Everybody has a role to play. For us, influence
is not only limited to social media, which is
good. Micro-influencers are incredibly power-
ful. It's a very underutilised part of influencer
marketing. But I would never recommend
micro-influencers as a replacement for big
influencers. They have a very clear role.
Big influencers give us mass reach, mass
awareness, and fame. You work with some-
body that's got a million followers, people
are going to know them much more than the
small ones. But what they don't deliver are
those high engagement rates. Micro-influenc-
ers are very good at driving high engagement
rate entry into smaller niches and communi-
ties, and they will deliver for you in terms of
ROI.
You need to make sure that your KPIs
match up with what you're trying to do.
Because if you're trying to hit mass reach on a
market like Romania, you need to work with
the big ones. If you want to break into small
communities of mothers based in Bucharest,
www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December 2022
then you must work with the micros, because
they will do much better.
Do successful brands today have to be
present on all major social media plat-
forms or can they just focus on some of
them? Please explain.
I don’t think all brands need to be on every
single platform, and I make that very clear. I
think there is an expectation that you have to
be on TikTok, on Twitter, on LinkedIn, and
the list goes on. But my answer is: absolutely
not. I have lots of brands that will not get onto
a platform until they're absolutely sure what
they want to achieve. Choose the platform
that your audience uses the most! If you are a
B2B brand and your audience is on LinkedIn,
don't set up a TikTok page and start doing
viral dances. It's not going to work. It doesn't
mean that you can’t follow the trend, just do
what's right for your audience. But if you're
trying to tap into new audiences, those new
platforms might be interesting. If some of
my brands are on Twitch, it’s not because
they are gaming brands; they are on Twitch
because they want to target gamers. Some are
on TikTok because they want to target Gen
Z, because their audience is dominated by
millennials and they want to get to a younger
segment. So, meet people where they are with
your existing audience, and try out new plat-
forms to bring in new audiences. But don't
just do it because it's cool. There's no point
to that, because by the time you’ll finally get
everything right it will be too late, and you
will mess up. It’s better to stay focused.

36 ROMANIAN WINES
Treat yourself to some Romanian
sparkling wines
If you are looking for something festive for the season, take a look at our selection of Romanian
sparkling wines. Historically, Romania was the fourth country in the world to produce sparkling
wines, after France (1544), Ukraine (1799), and Germany (1826). You might be impressed by the
bubbly offer.
By Oana Vasiliu
Whether you're stocking up for parties, or just buying a bottle for NYE,
these Romanian selections will not disappoint
A
ward-winning Carastelec Carassia
must be on everyone’s list. It is made
exclusively by bottle fermentation
and maturation, using the Champenoise
method. The Carastelec Winery (Salaj county,
northern Transylvania) and its sparkling
wines contributed to the introduction of Ro-
mania as a sparkling wine producing country
in the luxurious fourth edition of Christie's
World Encyclopedia of Champagne and
Sparkling Wine in 2020, and since then, the
company has received several other awards.
Best bet: Carassia Classic Brut (from RON 85),
a classic assemblage of Chardonnay, Pinot
Noir, and Meunier, creating a deep, complex
sparkling with a rich and precise mousse with
pronounced biscuity notes—a subtle combi-
nation of structure, length, and purity.
Podgoria Silvana is located in the Silvanei
Hills region (Salaj county), being the north-
ernmost winery in Romania, and its grape
varieties include Feteasca Regala, Pinot Noir,
Muscat Ottonel, Feteasca Alba, Chardonnay,
and Traminer. Since 1974, real champagne
has been produced here using the traditional
French Champenoise method, with glass
fermentation, which is related to the types of
wine that are produced. The most precious
feature of the place is the unique microcli-
mate, which ensures a natural fermentation
that is carried out over a period of 2-3 years.
The wine matures slowly with the help
of specially selected yeasts, during which
time the positions of the bottles go through
a series of inclinations and settlements at
different angles. Their sparkling wines start
from RON 50.
Prince Stirbey (Dragasani region, Valcea
county) offers a couple of sparkling wines:
the Stirbey Cramposie Spumant and the
Stirbey Spumant Rose ExtraBrut (from
RON 95). In the early 20th century, experts
from France and Germany discovered that
Cramposie grapes were a suitable variety for
www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December 2022
producing sparkling wine. Stirbey Crampo-
sie Spumant is also produced in the tradi-
tional Champenoise way: the base wine’s
first fermentation in tanks is followed by a
secondary fermentation in bottles, where the
wine us aged on yeast for four years. After
the wine has aged properly, it is riddled by
hand for two weeks and then disgorged. For
the dosage, the wine yard uses only the same
sparkling wine, not adding any sugar, result-
ing in a true “brut nature.”
Bauer J.O.H.A.N.N.A. is an authentic Ro-
manian wine made from a native grape vari-
ety, Feteasca Regala, and aged for more than
five years in the cellars at Crama Bauer, in the
south of Romania, at the Dragasani vineyard
(Valcea county). The wine is produced using
the authentic méthode traditionelle, whereby
after the second fermentation in bottles,
the wine spends a staggering 48 months on
fine lees (sur lie ageing), and it is produced
in limited edition of only 1,500 bottles. This
is also a so-called millésime sparkling wine,
which means that it is created from a single
harvest—that of 2016—and it is dedicated to
Johanna Braun, the great aunt of oenologist
Oliver Bauer. Prices start at RON 120.
Rhein Extra Imperial Brut is a single-va-
rietal sparkling wine made with Chardonnay
grapes (this style is called Blanc de Blancs)
and produced in accordance with the classic
Champenoise method. With extensive sur lie
ageing (ageing on fine lees), this is the wine-
maker’s flagship cuvée. Rhein Extra (Dealu
Mare region, Prahova county) is the oldest
Romanian classic sparkling wine, with its
first appearance at Pivnitele Rhein in 1892. In
1920, Rhein Extra became the official supplier
of the Romanian Royal Family. Bottles are
priced from RON 40.
 www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December 2022 CULTURAL HOTSPOT 37

Landmark historical building in Bucharest

reopens as cultural hotspot after 80 years
Casa Mița Biciclista (the Mița Biciclista House),
a famous historical building in the centre of
Bucharest, reopened its doors to the public
in November, after 80 years, with two Grand
Balls. BR talked to Alberto Grosescu, co-
founder of Casa Mița Biciclista and ARCEN,
about this new cultural hotspot.
By Oana Vasiliu

What's the story of the house?
Casa Miţa Biciclista in Piaţa Amzei was built
in 1908 according to plans drawn up architect
Nicolae Mihaescu. Its art-nouveau and neo-
baroque architectural influences are what
make it unique. It is said to have been a gift
that the famous courtesan after which it is
named, whose real name was Maria Mihaes-
cu, received From Prince Ferdinand when she
was 23 years old.
The building conveys a strong air of gran-
deur, sumptuousness, and elegance, to the
measure of the famous figure about whom we
actually know very little.
It is clear that Maria Mihaescu—Miţa
Biciclista—was an avant-garde; she was the
first woman to ride a bicycle in Bucharest,
she frequently travelled outside the country,
and she was adored by princes, kings, writers,
doctors, and famous politicians.
After the 40s, amid war and impoverish-
ment, Miţa Biciclista becomes a discreet
presence of Bucharest life. She is forced to
rent out several rooms, and the house is
nationalised in 1950, forcing her to live there
with several other families. Miţa died in 1968;
until the 2000s, 14-
16 families lived in
the house.
At the end of the
2000s, the house—a
historical monument
of national value—
was bought by a
private owner who
began restoration in
2013. In 2020, the house was sold to another
private owner.
How did your NGO manage to take over
the coordination of the space?
After 12 years of experience in cultural, com-
munity, and heritage protection projects,
ARCEN aims to transform Casa Miţa Biciclista
into a creative establishment: a cultural space
featuring a brasserie and cinema.
It will be a long process, which will involve
several communities and creative groups,
partners, artists, architects, and communi-
cation professionals, but we believe that its
reinvention will result in a recovery of a piece
of the city’s history. The new history of the
Miţa Biciclista House began this year with the
events that marked the opening of the house
to the general public.
How would you describe the place to a
foreigner?
It’s a representative fragment of Bucharest,
where we aim to capitalise on the potential
of the city and its heritage as well as set an
example of revival through culture.
What's the most amazing story you’ve
found out about Mița Biciclista?
In our research, we discovered that Maria
Mihaescu had been traveling since she was
18 years old and had participated in the Nice
Carnival for years, where she even won the
competition for the most beautiful allegori-
cal chariots. Her appearance was recorded by
newspapers and she was often referred to as
Princess Mihaescu.
Another interesting episode revealed by
the team that dealt with the restoration of
the house is the fact that a German pistol
was discovered in the walls of the building.
We know absolutely nothing about it, but it
certainly sparked our imagination.
What are your plans for this new cultural
hotspot? What should we expect to see
there in 2023?
We aim to open up the house with a perma-
nent programme and a brasserie, cinema,
and cultural space that will host exhibitions,
mini-concerts, and conferences—a natural
development of ARCEN's activity.
La Miţa Biciclista will thus become a key
meeting place in the city, whether it’s for par-
ties, culture or reflection.
The reopening marks the beginning of
a new history for the house and a promise
we’re making to the city.
Bucharest needs a meeting space in the
centre that’s open to cultural and civic initia-
tives, an alternative space for expression,
at the intersection of various energies and
urban bubbles.

38 NEW IN TOWN
Where to find the Christmas spirit
in Bucharest
Experiences are so much more fulfilling than objects, so we encourage you to grab your family
or a group of friends and go do something together, as there are plenty of Christmas-themed
events across town.
CHRISTMAS MARKETS
The Bucharest Christmas Market
is located in Constitution Square
and it will stay open until Decem-
ber 26. Some say that Bucharest’s
Christmas Market is one of the
best in Europe, featuring locally
made gifts as well as traditional
Romanian beverages and foods.
As usual, the symbolic and im-
pressive Christmas tree is present
to mark the wonderful Santa’s
House attraction. It’s the best
place to be for children on a jolly
Christmas evening.
The West Side Christmas
Market is taking place in Drumul
Taberei Park, until December
27. The natural, 8-metre-high
Christmas tree, adorned with
snowflakes, stars, and LEDs with
festive motifs, will be placed
in the middle of the fair. The
organisers, namely the team
behind the UNTOLD festival,
aim to turn the space into the
largest Christmas theme park in
Bucharest. They have prepared
special Christmas workshops for
Magic West Side Christmas Market
can be found in Drumul Taberei
both kids and adults, with lots of
magical activities and light shows
all around the Christmas Market
space.
CHRISTMAS FAIRS
Mezanin Market at Universul
Palace returns with two holiday
weekends: December 10-11 and
December 17-18. Visitors are
welcomed by a relaxed vibe, with
passionate people and coffee
from Beans & Dots, in the cre-
ative district, near Cismigiu Park.
Visitors will be able to find jewel-
lery, interior design products,
interesting drinks and sauces,
children’s and adult clothing,
eco-friendly products, books,
sweets, and honey in healthy
combinations, special accesso-
ries, and natural cosmetics from
over 50 small entrepreneurs.
Dichisar de Iarna is taking
place at Impact Hub Universitate
(21 Tudor Arghezi Street) in the
next two weekends. It is the most
important design and handmade
fair in Bucharest, bringing cre-
ations by artists from all over the
country. Sala Dalles (18 Nicolae
Balcescu Blvd.) is nearby it also
hosts a special Christmas fair
between December 16-19.
At the National Peasant Mu-
seum, this month’s weekends are
booked with several Christmas
Fairs. BR particularly encourages
you to visit the charity Christmas
fair "Daruim si Ajungem MARI,"
which will take place on Saturday,
December 10. A team of volun-
teers and creative friends have
prepared lots special things with
their hands: tree decorations,
gingerbread, craft beer, jewellery,
handmade clothes and accesso-
ries, scented candles, cosmetics,
homemade sweets and goodies,
and more. All the funds raised
will be donated to the Ajungem
MARI NGO, which takes care of
orphan children.
CHRISTMAS CAROLS
The Saint Joseph Cathedral in
Bucharest will once again host a
Christmas Concert by the Royal
www.business-review.eu
Business Review | December 2022
By Oana Vasiliu
Bucharest Christmas Market
seen from above
Choir. The event is scheduled for
December 13, where the choir
will be conducted by Razvan
Rados, while Ciprian Mardare,
Silviu Alexandru Mihaila, Ileana
Sima, and Stefan Ailenei will be
featured as guests. Entrance is
free of charge.
The Madrigal – Marin
Constantin Chamber Choir has
already announced its national
tour “On the road to Christmas,”
also kicking off the celebrations
for the Madrigal Choir’s 60th
anniversary. In Bucharest, the
concert will take place at the Na-
tional Opera, on December 19-20.
The Bucharest Symphony
Orchestra, led by John Axelrod,
returns to Sala Palatului on
December 30 to deliver the tenth
edition of its New Year concert.
The event will present the Classi-
cal Rock concept in a programme
combining classical works with
pop and rock music. Artist Florin
Ristei will perform at the event,
offering a unique musical jour-
ney. Tickets are still available.