Herti is a major supplier of aluminium, plastic and composite closures to the wine and spirits industries. Philip Yorke talked to Mr Zahariev, the founder and managing director of the company, about its move into non-traditional market sectors, its latest investments in new technology and its development of biodegradable screw cap materials.
Herti was founded in Bulgaria in 1993 as a private company and began by specialising in the production of aluminium closures. Over the years its product range and manufacturing technologies have been continuously extended and upgraded so that today the company can offer an unrivalled range of high quality closures in aluminium, plastic and composite formats and designs. In fact, Herti's aluminium closures cover more than 95 per cent of all types of aluminium closures available on the market today, with diameters ranging from 18mm to 43mm, and with heights ranging from 12mm to 60mm.
Currently the company manufactures more than 1 billion articles annually and these are sold in over 35 countries worldwide. Herti offers its customers a range of complete packaging solutions for the closing of different types of products in terms of capacity and design. These are produced for many of the world's leading manufacturers of spirits, wines and bottled water, both still and sparkling. More recently the company has been growing its portfolio of customers in other product areas such as fruit juices, olive oils and medicines.
Innovation and customer service have always played a major role in the company's success and Herti continues to work closely with its clients and partners to optimise their packaging needs. Recently the company has registered a number of patents for innovative closures developed in-house, including one for a utility model and the others for new production designs. Herti develops and markets new products together with its subsidiaries in France, the UK and Romania and is proud of its exclusive product quality and performance. Understanding its clients' requirements and providing them with packaging solutions that are tailored to suit their needs is a priority at Herti.
In the year 2000 the company was certified to ISO 9000 and since 2010 has been recognised by BRC/IoP for meeting the strict global standards for packaging and packaging materials. Above all, Herti's closures are designed to support and enhance its customers' brands. "The most important priorities for us are the quality of our products and the satisfaction of our customers" said Zahariev. Today Herti employs more than 350 people and in 2011 generated sales of over €15 million.
Winning new customers, reaching new markets
Winning the trust of major wine and spirit manufacturers in mature markets such as the UK and France takes a great deal of dedication and a keen understanding of the markets. Delivering consistent, high quality products on time and on budget have helped to attract some of Europe's biggest players. Since Bulgaria joined the EU in 2007 the company has established major distribution centres in the UK and France, from where it delivers its aluminium screw caps to the wine and spirits industries in each country.
Zahariev said, "We are committed to extending our global reach and have recently moved into the US and Austrian markets with our aluminium wine closures. The diversity and comprehensive range of our closures backed up by short delivery times and consistent high quality means that we can offer very competitive packages to our new customers. We can also offer a very wide range of technical services, as well as 5-colour printing, design services and innovative project management. Our composite closures are also seeing strong demand, especially in new markets such as those for olive oil and pharmaceuticals. For the future we are busy developing a new, bio-degradable plastic material and we have been making good progress in this important area."
Growing demand for screw caps and pilfer-proof closures
Aluminium closures of the 'pilfer-proof' type have long been a speciality at Herti and their composite closures are made of both metal and plastic. This composition allows for more decorative designs, whilst at the same time offering additional security benefits, thus making it very difficult for counterfeiters to fill a branded bottle with illegal alcohol. Vodka producers in particular appreciate the value and advantages offered by Herti's composite closures. Since the 1990s the company has built up a strong presence in the Russian market and this remains its largest single market for composite closures.
Herti offers these special closures in diameters ranging from 18 to 43 mm and in heights from 12 to 60 mm. They are used for sealing bottles with capacities ranging from 50ml to one gallon (4.54 litres). Recently, screw caps for bottling wines have become ever more popular for medium quality, young and flavoured wines sold in the big supermarket chains such as Tesco, Sainsbury and Marks & Spencers in the UK, as well as for the leading US supermarket chains. The main advantages are that they are easy to open and re-seal, and prevent oxidisation and avoid flavour modification - often a problem with cork-taint.
All Herti aluminium caps are classified either as standard, deep-drawn or extra long. Zahariev commented, "We apply the requirements of the highest world quality standards to all our products in addition to the principles of good corporate management. We offer complete packaging solutions and, as members of CETIE, we are devoted to the sustainable development of our products and services as well as to the protection of the environment across all our business activities."
For further information about Herti JSC, visit www.herti.bg
Source:Packaging Europe