BBBA Guests at the President’s Lunch

The President’s Lunch took place on April 17 at the House of Lords, London, organised by the British Chambers of Commerce. 

BBBA was represented by three board members – Barry Brand (Dare to Care), Christina Trifonova (Vivacom), Georgi Tonchev (eLando), and valued BBBA member – Hristo Popov (Theoremus). They met with BCC’s president, and made new contacts from a range of British chambers. 

We are thankful to the BCC for the opportunity to meet the British business elite, and to our members for representing BBBA and Bulgarian business. 

With 2 weeks to go before new import controls come into effect on the 30th of April, Defra have shared a link you can see here to make sure you have sufficient information to help you comply with the changes.

In order to expand its effectiveness in various health fields and to be even more reliable for its patients and partners, the laboratory chain Synevo Bulgaria formed its own Medical Advisory Board. Its members are distinguished specialists in various health fields whom Synevo will rely on to provide their indispensable feedback and expertise. The goal of the Medical Advisory Board is to improve the relationship between laboratory services and the needs of patients and physicians.

Thanks to the many years of experience and international expertise of the board members, Sinevo will continue to expand its portfolio of services in various medical fields. In this way, the company continues to try to be closer to more Bulgarian patients and identify their specific needs to always meet them with a rich portfolio and accurate research.

Members of the Medical Advisory Board

Dr. Nayden Nikolov is an obstetrician-gynecologist with many years of experience and knowledge in the field of pregnancy, reproductive health, and gynecology. He graduated with a master’s degree in medicine and specialty “Obstetrics and Gynecology” at Sofia Medical University. Over the years of his practice, Dr. Nikolov has completed numerous courses and qualifications, including “High-risk childbirth”, “Basics of obstetric ultrasound”, “Colposcopy and destructive treatment of benign and precancerous changes of the cervix” and many others.

Dr. Raina Stoyanova is an endocrinologist and an assistant at the Department of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapy at the Medical University of Sofia. An established specialist in the field of gestational diabetes, its control, and the prevention of complications from this condition to the fetus, she consults in the field of endocrine diseases and conditions during pregnancy and postpartum recovery. A large part of the patients that Dr. Stoyanova also deals with have various problems such as metabolic syndrome, overweight and obesity, diabetes mellitus, eating disorders, and kidney diseases, as well as for those who want to improve their eating habits and get the most out of their nutrition.

Stoyan Bichev is a geneticist who has been working at the National Genetics Laboratory for more than 20 years. Graduated with a master’s degree in biochemistry from the University of Saint Kliment Ohridski in 2003, his main interests are in the field of medical genetics, monogenic diseases, oncogenetics, personalized medicine and diagnostics. Stoyan has many publications in both Bulgarian and foreign publications. He is a member of the European Society of Human Genetics (ESHG) and the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO).

Our patients, our focus

With the help of Dr. Nikolov, Dr. Stoyanova, and Stoyan Bichev, Synevo continues to demonstrate its determination to implement the latest international innovations in health care, paving the way for modern methods and health information on our country’s territory. For Synevo, working with a medical board is another step forward in providing world-class diagnostic services for Bulgarian patients.

Since doubling its business in 2022 and managing to maintain the same level during the crisis in 2023, the Bulgarian software company eLando plans to expand its business abroad. The company recently received an investment of BGN 1.5 million, with part of the funding intended for significant team expansion. This was announced by Stanimir Boychev, CEO and founder of eLando, on the “UpDate” show hosted by Elena Kirilova.

Since its founding in 2016, the company has been developing with its own funds, but in 2023 a decision was made to expand the business, finding support from the New Vision 3 fund and a private investor who is a client of the company. The investment is in the amount of BGN 1.5 million against an 18% stake in the increased capital of the company, which was valued at BGN 7 million, Boychev said.

“We have planned the new funds and have already started using them to expand the business with more foreign clients, including looking at emerging markets. The other part is for increasing the staff.”

The company has offices in Sofia, Shumen, Stara Zagora, and Plovdiv, with its strategy to hire people throughout the country. The business plan includes expanding the team from the current nearly 50 to around 200 in four years.

eLando has a subsidiary in Manchester, UK, and is in talks with universities to attract developers on-site, and will also seek people familiar with banking. The company will also have open positions for junior developers.

eLando’s software solutions are currently mainly focused on the financial sector, insurance, banking, and payments, with teams in the telecommunications segment implementing solutions for AT&T and Nokia in mobile operators, Boychev said. Clients range from small startups with secured funding to large established businesses.

“About half of the clients are from Bulgaria, and the rest are international,” Boychev said.

eLando has recently partnered with a Turkish company for a banking solution suitable for emerging banks in underdeveloped markets, with the two aiming to enter the market in Guyana. The company will seek development in the UK, the Middle East, and Africa, and has recently attracted Allianz in Germany as a client.

Now in its fourth year, the HR Screening survey, conducted by Manpower Bulgaria with the partnership of the Bulgarian Association for People Management and Assert International Bulgaria, helps to analyze and track trends in the human resources division.

Each year the survey is conducted during the months of March and April with the target audience being professionals from various sectors performing HR functions such as departments, teams or even single roles within organisations.

This year over 200 respondents from 21 different locations representing over 15 business sectors participated. Analysis of the results provides valuable insights into current HR management challenges and practices.

Highlights of the report include:

• Trends in the HR division versus the dynamic labor market
• Perspective on employee engagement and expectations
• Defining talent acquisition and development processes and functions

The primary report with overall results can be downloaded from HERE.

By the end of April and throughout the months of May and June of 2024, additional results will be shared on cross-functional and micro and macro analyses of the divisions against the most represented business sectors.

CMS Sofia is delighted to announce that Jenia Dimitrova, Head of the firm’s Real Estate practice group, has been promoted to Partner. This achievement marks a significant milestone, as Jenia becomes the third woman to join the partnership in Sofia. Her promotion speaks volumes about her dedication, exceptional skills, and the high regard she holds among clients and peers. Congratulations, Jenia, on this well-deserved recognition of your hard work and talent!

CMS Sofia is the largest international law firm in Bulgaria, part of CMS – a top ten global legal services provider with offices in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, South America and Asia.

Responding to the latest ONS Trade figures published this morning, William Bain, Head of Trade Policy at the British Chambers of Commerce, said:  

“It is difficult to draw concrete conclusions from a single month’s data, but there are signs of a nascent improvement in import and export volumes as global demand slowly recovers.  

“The Office for Budget Responsibility’s recent analysis also indicated we should see a modest improvement in net trade this year. But data for the last three months of UK trade, overall, remains challenging. 

“Geopolitical factors also continue to cloud the picture for global trade and could well weaken projected growth in the coming 18 months. 

“Further measures are required by policymakers to nurture the green shoots we are seeing. The UK needs to ensure the Exports Strategy is delivering where it needs to, particularly around digital trade and across a wider range of UK economic sectors.  

“The Government’s new Critical Imports Council needs to focus on improving supply chain security and diversification with business and industry. 

“Today’s data also illustrates the need to keep trade costs as low as possible. This is major concern for British traders given imminent new border charges on certain food and plant imports from the EU, and increasing regulatory compliance burdens on cross-border trade.”

The UK Trade Picture In Detail 

February’s figures showed an improvement in month-on-month UK goods and services trade, both in value terms and after inflationary effects are removed. The increases occurred for both imports and exports. 

This comes in the week that the World Trade Organisation (WTO) forecast stronger global merchandise trade volumes in 2024 and 2025 compared with 2023 – predicting a 2.6% rise in volumes this year, and 3.3% in 2025.  

As inflationary pressures abate, global consumer demand for goods and services is likely to generate trade growth over the next two years. But geopolitical uncertainty remains the biggest unknown factor around the forecasts. 

Goods Imports 

During February, import volumes rose by 0.3% excluding inflation (but declined by 0.4% in cash value terms). There was a 3% rise in EU imports volumes which was offset by a 3.3% drop from the rest of the world. Imports of medicines and pharmaceutical products from the US declined. There were higher imports of ships from Italy and mechanical machinery from Germany. Food imports from the Netherlands fell, particularly in meat, following new border requirements being introduced for EU imports on 31 January. 

Goods Exports 

Overall volumes rose by 1.7% during February – with a 3.4% rise to the rest of the world but a more static picture for the EU. In value terms, UK exports to the rest of the world increased by 4%, while overall UK goods exports increased by 0.9%. Aircraft exports to France, and mechanical machinery exports to Germany were noticeable areas of improvement. 

Services 

On UK services trade, after removing inflationary effects, imports rose by 0.5% in February with exports rising by 0.4%. A similar picture emerged for the actual values over the same period. 

In an unprecedented culinary event, the Italian restaurant Da Vittorio, awarded with three stars from the culinary bible “Michelin” and Come Prima, repeatedly awarded by the World Culinary Awards joined efforts to offer an incomparable gastronomic experience in the prestigious Kempinski Hotel Grand Arena Bansko. 

The event took place on 29 March at the Come Prima restaurant in an elegant setting with a five-course menu in a harmonious combination of Italian and Bulgarian culinary traditions, curated by the acclaimed chefs: Chef Enrico-Chicco Cerea and Chef Nikola Todorov. The five-course Michelin menu began with Bergamo-style olives, offering a glimpse of the legendary culinary contribution of team Da Vittorio, accompanied by parmesan nibbles. The two “amuse-bouche” dishes, combined with Billecart-Salmon Blanc de Blanc Grand Cru set start off the evening.  

For a complete culinary triumph, each dish of the exclusive Bulgarian-Italian menu was paired with the precise wine from BNK, trusted partners of Kempinski Hotel Grand Arena Bansko. The three-star menu continued with a first course of tuna spaghetti with Bagna Cauda sauce and pistachio crumble, followed by green asparagus with sweet-and-sour marinade, yoghurt sorbet and sorrel. Appetisers were served with La Scolca Etichetta Nera Cortese Gavi dei Gavi wine. The middle course was presented with a “Chateau d’Esclan Estate” Rosé and had two components as well: risotto with guinea fowl ragout and foie gras and Black Sea turbot with morel mushroom, Ossetra caviar and ramson foam. For the main course, accompanied by Elegia Primitivo di Manduria Reserva, slow-cooked milk lamb was served with glazed baby vegetables, potato muslin and marsala essence. The end of the culinary spectacle was the serving of cannoncini- filled with rich velvety pastry to the tables of each attendee by the chefs: Chef Enrico-Chicco Cerea and Chef Nikola Todorov.

All this turned the evening into an unforgettable experience through the meticulously crafted dishes, each showcasing the pinnacle of culinary artistry and flavor.

On 9 April we had the pleasure to partner with Kambourov & Partners to deliver a seminar on the topic of ”Intellectual property tips and tricks for SMEs”.  

Guests had the chance to learn how to identify and protect the IP assets of an SME, how to reduce the costs for protection of IP benefiting from the EU’s SME Fund, how to protect the software assets of an SME, and many more followed by a lively discussion. 

We would like to thank you speakers Yana Todorova and Mario Arabistanov for the insightful presentations and for sharing their expert knowledge with us. 

In case you missed the event you can find the presentations below. 

• No overall improvement in business conditions in Q1 2024 as measured by investment, sales and cashflow.      
• Levels of business confidence remain unchanged, with 56% of UK businesses expecting an increase in turnover in the next twelve months. 
• Аlmost half of firms are expecting the price of their goods or services to rise. 
  
• Interest rates continue to slowly decline as a concern for businesses.
  
• Hospitality sector continues to struggle disproportionately, with 39% of these firms reporting a decrease in their cash flow, compared with 28% of respondents overall. 
  

The BCC’s Quarterly Economic Survey – the UK’s largest and longest-running independent business survey – shows most firms reporting no improvement in investment levels, sales or cashflow in the first quarter of 2024. After a slight rise in Q4, levels of business confidence have remained static. For the second quarter in a row, 56% of businesses say they are expecting an increase in turnover over the next year. 

With inflation likely to remain volatile over the coming months – the data also reveals that more firms expect hikes in their own prices, with staffing costs being the main pressure. The survey, conducted between 12 February and 12 March, of over 4,800 firm across the UK – 92% of whom are SMEs (fewer than 250 employees) – also reveals business performance across different sectors varies considerably. 

No improvement in overall business conditions  

The percentage of respondents reporting increased domestic sales stayed at 36%, the same level as Q4. Likewise for the second quarter in a row, 22% reported a decrease and 42% said sales had remained constant. But there were significant sectoral differences. 44% of professional service firms said they had seen a boost in sales, whereas only 27% of logistic companies and 29% of retailers saw an increase.   

Business confidence remains unchanged 

56% firms expect to see their turnover increase over the next 12 months – the same as Q4 2023. Only 14% of respondents are expecting to see their financial situation worsen in the year ahead, 29% expect things to remain the same.  Profitability confidence has remained static, with 48% of companies saying they expect profits to increase in the next year. That compares to 47% in Q4. 21% of respondents believe their profits will fall.  

Most firms still not increasing investment 

Economic headwinds continue to impact heavily on business investment. The majority of firms say they haven’t increased the amount of new plant, machinery and equipment they’ve  bought or rented. Only 24% reported an increase in investment (the same as Q4), while 60% said levels had remained the same, 16% reported a decrease. There are large sectoral disparities in investment levels. 28% of hospitality sector firms say they have decreased investment, while 30% of manufacturing businesses have increased investment. 

Many firms expect their prices to rise 

Although inflation has slowed significantly in recent months, almost half of firms are expecting the price of their goods or services to rise. 46% of respondents are predicting an increase (compared with 47% in Q4), 51% think prices will stay the same, and just 3% are anticipating a decrease.  

Labour costs are cited as the main cost pressure across all businesses. For the second quarter running, 68% of responding firms say they are under pressure to raise prices  because of staffing costs. Some sectors are feeling this pressure more than others, with 77% of hospitality firms and 76% of manufacturers citing it as a key driver.  

Interest rates continue to decline as a concern 

While inflation remains firms’ biggest concern, business worries about interest rates continue to gradually fall. 35% of businesses say they are concerned about the cost of borrowing, compared with 39% in Q4. These figures remain high compared with the pre-Covid trend. 

David Bharier, Head of Research at the British Chambers of Commerce said: 

“The latest results from the QES provide further evidence that the UK economy is trapped in a low-to-no growth state.  

“Although business confidence remains buoyant at the start of the year, most SMEs are still not reporting any tangible improvement to business conditions. 

“The lack of investment among most SMEs is a real concern. Inflation, skills shortages, and an almost endless list of new trade barriers with the EU, coupled with a lack of clear direction on infrastructure and technology investment at the government level, have led to paralysis for many businesses.

“The increased percentage of firms expecting price rises is also a reflection of global conflicts and the introduction of further import costs. 

“As we head towards an election, businesses will need to see a clear long-term plan for investment and innovation from politicians.” 

Shevaun Haviland, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce said: 

“Our results are a timely reminder of the challenges businesses are facing across the UK.  

“We desperately need to see SMEs investing again. Government moves on rate relief, planning reform and full expensing are welcome – but they haven’t yet shifted the dial.  

“The recent rise in the national living wage is good news for millions of employees. But it comes at a time when labour costs pressures for business are already very high.

 Firms need room to breathe as they strive to pay staff fairly.   

“In this election year it’s vital that politicians remain laser focused on helping businesses invest, develop and grow. We encourage all parties to study our findings and understand

 the reality for SMEs in communities up and down the country”.