Viktorija Grižienė, the general manager at RETAL Baltic Films, comments that the latest developments in the global business environment have not changed the company’s strategic or investment plans, and the results for the first half of this year is positive.
“Last year, we launched a new line of films and closures and this year we see these investments working – production capacities are on the rise, and financial results are positive, including profitability. This year, we are modernising one of our older film lines, and over the course of this year, we plan a 35 per cent increase in film production capacities, albeit that due to global circumstances, closure capacity might remain at the levels of 2019,” Grižienė says.
According to Grižienė, during the pandemic, there has been a notable rise in the films for food segment, but the market is uncertain, with fluctuations particularly in the closures segment, with consumers choosing larger containers, and weakened tourism reducing demand.. On the other hand, having donated some of its materials to the production of protective face shields during the pandemic, currently, RETAL Baltic Films already has sizeable international commercial contracts in this field.
This year, RETAL Baltic Films plans to conclude the 4.5 million-euro administrative, warehousing and laboratory building development project that launched last year, with an enhanced product portfolio part of its ambitions. The company also plans to increase the scale of its educational activities.
“The pandemic has reminded consumers of the advantages of plastic packaging, but we are faithful to our commitments in sustainability. For some time now, we have had the capacity to produce all our films production from 100 per cent recycled PET, which customers appreciate. Nevertheless, in pursuing the goals of circular plastic economy, responsible consumer behaviour and state action are gaining ever more importance. Suitable sorting, collection and recycling of plastic helps to not only reduce environmental pollution but also offers producers more sustainable and appealing raw materials,” Grižienė states.
Based on audited data, in 2019 RETAL Baltic Films reached a 45.7 million-euro turnover, which was a reduction of 4.7 per cent compared to the previous year. The company’s profit remained identical to its results in 2018 and reached 1.78 million euros. The production produced by the company also hardly changed over the past year and reached 22.9 thousand tonnes.
In August, RETAL Baltic Films changed its legal name from RETAL Baltic. This change reflects the continuous business expansion, specialisation and reinforcement of the company's two fast-developing product areas: caps & closures, and PET films. Now that RETAL Baltic Films' caps & closures and films businesses represent two independent profit centres, each with their own development strategies, this change in name reflects the company's focus going forward.
RETAL Baltic Films is part of the international group Retal Industries Ltd., which produces the highest quality of polyethene terephthalate (PET) packaging solutions, including preforms, closures, containers and food-film. RETAL exports its production to more than 60 countries around the world.
