Moraru Tudorel, Excel Manufacturing investor: “The pandemic was a severe blow to the global economy. We are very cautious and offer conditions at workplaces to provide continuity and consistency in our business in spite of any crises”

How has the COVID-19 pandemic affected you?

In the beginning of the quarantine, we stopped manufacturing disposable overalls. We resumed producing other goods, in particular, protective suits and masks, because from now on, these masks will be the things we need to get used to. We are quite flexible, we have reoriented immediately. We taught our staff to use any sewing machines.

We intended to bring some high-performance mask making machines allowing two persons to make 150 masks per minute. We have suppliers ready to deliver equipment and raw materials. We could manufacture about 4-5 million masks per month, yet Moldova does not have any market for such amounts, and exporting masks is not allowed. Therefore, we are currently oriented towards exporting protective overalls.

At the same time, we would like to expand our production, manufacturing disposable tablecloths from special materials. The countries where tourist services are likely to resume will need dozens of millions of such products.

In the new situations, how could the state support investors?

There some cases of work not registered formally in Moldova. In my opinion, both people and the state lose from it, and investors lose, too.

All the money our company staff receives is transferred via cards. Only salaries provide monthly taxes of over two million lei to the budget. Our employees have a 30% bonus for coping with the targets, paid vacations, and all the benefits a legal employment provides. At the same time, we have job offers for 500 prospective employees, whereas positions at the factories operating illegally are filled. The question is: why do we have no one to hire for the salary of 6000-7000 lei while other companies which pay2000 lei according to the documents are full of staff?

The principles of transparency are the principles Western economies are based upon. They are also an “export” product.

First and foremost, we bring technologies and attitudes. Working principles are intended to increase labor productivity and quality, respectively, and automatically increase income. The difference between an investor who arrives and rents some premises and an investor who arrives, buys, and develops them is significant. In fact, a foreign investor who rents the premises can pay no attention to the state and the people – he may take his suitcase and leave at any moment. Yet an investor who arrives and invests, buys some real estate and develops it into a prosperous business is a responsible one, I guess: he is a strategist with long-term business plans.
The investors try to change the rules based on the international standards. Our company is audited approximately 20 times a year, because many customers we work with, each brand, send us at least one social and one technical audit. That means they visit and control the factories at least twice a year.

They verify the salaries we pay and the working conditions we offer. They check whether we respect labor safety, fire protection, non-discrimination rules, etc. They do private interviews with people. They ask them how about the management and whether they are OK with the labor conditions. If we failed to comply with these rules, we could get sanctioned or, in the worst case, the agreement could be dissolved.

What are investment prospects in the Republic of Moldova in the new conditions?

As to current prospects, a lot of the companies we keep in touch with have changed their perspectives on China and Asia in general. They decided it was much better not to put all their eggs in one basket. Japan, for instance, currently has a budget of more than $ 700 million to allocate to the countries which intend to develop technologies or manufacture using Japanese technologies, replacing those purchased in China.

What are your forecasts for business development after the COVID-19 pandemic?

In the market where we work, we have no fear related to the demand. The workforce is the most important issue. Our enterprise may be full of orders today and get closed tomorrow because only one employee who contracts COVID-19 can come; this is why we are very cautious and offer conditions at workplaces to provide continuity and consistency in our business in spite of any crises.

The series of interviews "Foreign investors vs. COVID-19" are part of the gratitude campaign addressed to all foreign investors in the Republic of Moldova who during the pandemic demonstrated a high sense of social responsibility, an example model of employee care and proactivity in reconceptualizing the business . Campaign launched by The Moldovan Investment Agency with the support of the ‘Economic Policy Advice to the Moldovan Government’ project, implemented by GIZ Moldova with the financial support of the German and Swiss Governments.