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An innovative approach setting trends in the field of roller shutters
Two generations of the Kosec family, who have written the success story of ROLTEK together, have roller shutters in their blood. ROLTEK is a leading manufacturer of roller shutters and venetian blinds with their own production facilities in Slovenia. Their care for the environment and desire for a better tomorrow guide their constant development. Today the family and around 100 ROLTEK employees follow their vision to meet the desires of even the most demanding customers with a sustainable and socially responsible approach both in Slovenia and abroad. Last year, ROLTEK achieved €10.8 million of revenue, which is a 20% improvement on the previous year.
Born and bred with entrepreneurial spirit
The founder Janez Kosec grew up with entrepreneurial spirit and roller shutters. He began working for the family company after completing mechanical engineering education. In 1995, he decided to pave his own path, and he and his wife founded ROLTEK. From the very beginning, Janez wanted a company with a completely different philosophy and strategic focus on foreign markets. They focused on the Austrian market where Janez started selling door-to-door with the support of his wife, who knew German. The company grew quickly and expanded in Dob pri Domžalah. “Our guiding philosophy was always to make high-quality products at a good price and to provide good services,” says Janez.
Janez, the entrepreneur, never had any doubt about starting his own company: “I was born and bred with an entrepreneurial spirit. My father taught us our work ethic and showed us that you don’t come far without work,” he says. His wife and co-owner Brigita, who also comes from an entrepreneurial family and takes care of finance in the company, confirms: “We never doubted our success. Our goal was to make sure that everything we did, we did well, and that we only did what we knew how to do.”
The goal is not only growth; we want to become a trendsetter for Central Europe, offering innovative products, servicing, and focusing on our consumer, ourpartner.
The goal is not only growth; we want to become a trendsetter for Central Europe, offering innovative products, servicing, and focusing on our consumer, ourpartner.
The children were included from the very beginning
There was also no doubt about involving their daughter Barbka and son Janez, jr. It happened spontaneously: “It was all combined. At first, the company and our living space were in the same house, and later everything was tailored to ROLTEK, so the children were always present.” When they represented their company at different fairs, they took the children with them. “They wandered around the fairs and we put our business cards in their pockets just in case and told them to show the cards if they got lost,” remembers Brigita.
Both children went to high school abroad and completed an international baccalaureate in Oxford. Janez, jr., finished his BSc and MSc in automobile engineering at the University of Warwick. He says he learned a lot from this experience and that it broadened his horizons, since it put him in contact with industry and large corporations.
During their study years abroad, both children remained connected to the company since they worked for ROLTEK during summer breaks. After obtaining their degrees, they came back home and became actively involved with the business. Janez, jr., remembers: “We were always involved; we saw how things were done and when you see a company grow, you are drawn to it.”
Barbka studied international hospitality management and science in Switzerland. At the beginning she found it hard to imagine how her knowledge could benefit an engineering-focused company like ROLTEK, but she soon realized she had a lot to contribute. She found her calling in talent development, marketing, and working with people. Years of swimming practice also honed her persistence: “During my years of practicing swimming, I learned that you cannot do well without persistent work. I learned discipline, which I can now apply to the business world.”
Her biggest challenge at the beginning was that her image of the company did not match reality. An example is the question of company values, which were not clearly defined in the past, but which they used to find new employees who share similar values: “We built the foundation so that all future employees can recognize themselves in our values before even coming to work for us.” Signs in the company spaces remind the employees of these values every day. “Barbka took the values and advantages Janez and I integrated into the company from the very beginning as self-evident; she made them more visible and highlighted them to our co-workers,” says Brigita in praise of her daughter.
The best workers are already part of the company
“We really appreciate talent that grows within the company and sometimes we have to help people recognize what they can do themselves. We know each other and we know our employees, which is why we can spot their potential and develop it,” say the family. Most of the new recruits come to the company on the recommendation of existing employees. They like to work with young people, especially if they are interested in staying with the company long term. However, they are noticing a lack of knowledge in people who come to them straight out of school. This is why they are even more focused on building good relationships with people already working for ROLTEK.
The company provides several benefits not usually offered by other firms. Barbka explains that many of these activities have been part of the company culture since the very beginning, but the employees’ view of them has changed over the years in accordance with changing trends in the HR field. However, the family’s conviction that they must treat employees the same as family members has been part of their philosophy from the very beginning.
They are very proud of the fact that despite the seasonal nature of their work, everybody works in one shift. “We consider the social aspect and biorhythms and make health a priority,” they say in explanation of their decision.
They are proud to make products that are good in every way: good for the environment, good for people and which help to save energy.
Digitization winds blew in with the second generation
When Janez, jr. started working for the company in 2016, he acted like a new broom. “I had a feeling that we had only been maintaining our position before, and I knew we could do more,” he says. The company entered the digital era, created a department to develop new products, and started changing their processes. Digitization also brought them better access to customers.
They are also familiar with robotization, in the form of dedicated machines, of which the company owns several. All new investments and machines they invest in are connected to a central communication system, which transfers data to production facilities practically in real-time, allowing them to respond instantly. This is especially useful for urgent orders and prevents mistakes that could arise from manual processing. Automated cutting machines ensure repeatable and accurate cuts. But the Kosec family also point out that there is not much mass production in their field. Most of the time, production is adapted to the individual customer, which prevents robotization of the process in practice.
And what are their goals for the future? “The goal is not only growth; we want to become a trendsetter for Central Europe, offering innovative products, servicing, and focusing on our consumer, our partner.” Today’s market demands innovative products, competitiveness and the right production technology that prevents human errors.
The Kosec family plan to focus on further innovations, having recognized the need for development on the Slovenian market and a desire for new products not made by other companies. “ROLTEK’s trend is to be innovative and make high-quality products.” They also focus on forming equal partnerships with their co-workers, suppliers, and customers: “One of our core values is genuine, open contact with people.”
Constant growth brings new changes
ROLTEK’s constant progress stalled only during the 2013 financial crisis and last year they reported almost 20% growth. This leads to the need for new employees who must be onboarded and trained. However, they are constantly aware how quickly things can change in their field. Their workload varies seasonally, which means they have to be agile and respond quickly to market changes.
Most of their customers are window manufacturers and around 20% are direct consumers. Their foreign markets are Austria, Croatia, Hungary, Italy, Germany and Switzerland, and quite a lot of their products are also exported directly by window-manufacturing companies.
Sustainability was self-evident
Sustainability, which is now valued by all socially responsible companies, has been part of ROLTEK from the very beginning. It was self-evident to the Kosec family that the products they make should be sustainable and when consumers choose their products, they in turn act sustainably. “I am proud that we make products which are good in every way: good for energy savings, good for the environment and good for the people. They improve living conditions,” sums up Barbka. Social responsibility and support for the local environment are also dear to their hearts; every year they donate to people in need and have been supporting the local soccer club NK ROLTEK Dob and the Studenec local summer theater for decades
Janez in Brigita Kosec, Co-owners
Company name: ROLTEK d.o.o.
Number of employees (2020): 97
Net sales revenue (2020): €10.8 million
Interviewees:
Janez Kosec, Founder, director and owner
Brigita Kosec, Finance and co-owner
JJanez Kosec, jr., Head of Technical Department
Barbka Kosec, Back office and Marketing
Summary
ROLTEK in a nutshell: innovation, sustainability, persistence, partnership, development.