An interview with Arkadiusz Drążek, Sales Manager at ZPC Brześć

Friday, 30 January, 2015 Food From Poland 21/2015
Could you please tell us more about the product portfolio of Brześć, have all products been introduced into the European market?
Brześć has specialised in the production of crispy snacks for over 30 years, systematically expanding its product range and enriching the product offer at the same time. The flagship products of the company are puff cookies – crunchy puff and puff croutons. These products are very popular among the customers. Crunchy puffs are sold in several versions introduced over the past few years. The customers can find crunchy puffs with sugar, cinnamon or seeds – enriched with linseed or sunflower seeds. Another important segment of our production involves yeast products. These include yeast cakes with raisins as well as yeast croissants with various types of stuffing: berry, vanilla and apple. Our product range offer also includes  ready cakes, such as poppy seed cakes, pound cakes, lemon pound cakes or regional ginger bread from Kujawy.
We are continuously trying to enrich our offer, as reflected in the development of our production of puff pastry products. The leading products in this segment are French cookies – Palmiers. It must be emphasised that all products of Brześć are made on the basis of natural ingredients and they contain   no synthetic preservatives. Export to the European market involves mainly puff products, i.e. crunchy puffs and puff croutons, yeast cakes account only for a smaller fraction.

How can 2014 be assessed from the perspective of Brześć?

From our perspective, last year can be assessed very positively. We managed to strengthen our position on the market by means of increased sales and reaching a broader group of customers, also in the supermarkets thanks to private label brands. Participation in international trade fairs resulted in many valuable contacts which translated into an increase in export.

How does the company perceive sales expansion to the EU countries, how has export been so far, what tendencies are projected for 2015?

We are open to export to countries we have not reached yet. Each year we notice that the number of foreign enterprises we enter into cooperation with, similarly to the number of our products held for export, is increasing. I do not think that the year 2015 will be any different in this regard – I can even say I’m certain that at the end of the year we will be able to pride ourselves on cooperation with new foreign enterprises or commercial chains.

Has “crunchy puff” become a leader also in the EU countries?

It is difficult to estimate, since we have no access to the sales results of other enterprises producing similar products. However, it is a fact that our straw, similarly to other products, has been recognised abroad and this positive feedback allows us to believe that the percentage of our products held for sale will be even greater.

Introduction of the new production system was a milestone for the company, are there any plans regarding further development investments or introduction of new products into the company’s portfolio? What are the plans for 2015?

2014 was very investment-intensive. In this period we managed to launch another production line and modernise the packing process. Thanks to this, our current possession status can fully meet our production needs. Nevertheless, we continuously monitor the food market and the behaviour of customers, which allows us to assess whether potential new products could receive great popularity. We have several product ideas, however I’d prefer not to talk about them at this stage.

Thank you.
Monika Dawiec


tagi: brześć , drążek , interview , poland , food , sweets ,