GE.MA.R srl

Feelings that fly

Whether for carnival, for children’s birthday parties or for company presentations and promotion campaigns, balloons are standard equipment for almost every event or festivity. Available in an almost unlimited range of colours and shapes, they add atmosphere to every party and impressively highlight the CI of a company. The GE.MA.R Group from Casalvieri in Italy is the European leader for balloons made of Latex and ranks among the five biggest players in its industry worldwide. With roots dating back to 1900, the company is a pioneer of the market and a synonym for reliable, high-quality products.

The activities of GE.MA.R focus on the production and printing of balloons made of latex. To round off its portfolio, the company offers a choice of accessories, such as pumps or closures.

“Today, we are the only Italian company that still produces the balloons itself and inhouse,” says Vice President and Technical Director Genesio Rocca. “Most of our competitors have outsourced their production to facilities or partners abroad. Also, we use only ecological raw material.”

Every day, GE.MA.R produces between six and eight million balloons in 40 different shapes and sizes and in more than 60 different colours. In five shifts, 24 hours and seven days a week, the company processes around 5,000 t of Latex.

In order to ensure a constant top quality level and the greatest efficiency possible, GE.MA.R uses state-of-the-art technologies. “Our products have a high recognition value,” says Sales and Marketing Director Gloria Veta. “For example, the shape of our balloons is unique. Most of the others are round; ours are rather oval.” The company launches several new products every year.

In order to enhance its activities in the decoration sector, GE.MA.R recently initiated the Accademia del Palloncino Italiano (academy for Italian balloons). Together with professional decorators, the company demonstrates decoration possibilities, offers IBalloon courses and invites sales partners from all over the globe for training.

“This year, we are going to launch several new prints for the decoration market,” says Ms. Veta. “We only entered the decoration sector six years ago. Today, we are one of the leading players and well-known among decorators.”

GE.MA.R mainly sells to supermarket chains and to retailers, as well as to specialised sellers. The company also supplies the advertising market via agencies. “In the last ten years, we took one of the most important steps in our company history,” says Ms. Veta. “We stringently invested in our name, our brand and our global footprint. In addition to this, we enhanced our export activities and consequently invested in technological innovations for our production.”

With 75% of the overall business volume, GE.MA.R achieves the major share of its annual turnover through export activities. Of these, around 35% fall to Europe. The rest comes from markets abroad. GE.MA.R focuses on Western Europe, followed by Eastern Europe, Africa and Central Asia.

Rather young markets of the balloon specialists are North America, where the company is currently undergoing a certification process for its products in order to enter the market in 2012, as well as South America. Here, GE.MA.R cooperates with a sales partner in Venezuela. In addition to this, the company is currently developing the Australian Market.

The balloon professionals regularly showcase their latest innovations at international trade fairs. A major event is the 'Spielwarenmesse' in Nuremberg. Today, the GE.MA.R group unites GE.MA.R Srl, responsible for products and sales, Gpack focusing on the packaging, and GE.MA.R Printing for the printing of the products. The group employs a staff of 120 and generated an annual turnover of around 24 million EUR in 2011.

“Even against the background of the crisis, we have been able to constantly realise growth rates within the last years,” says Mr. Rocca. Besides its head office in Casalvieri, the company runs a sales office in Poland and the Karaloon subsidiary in Germany.

“We have always invested in innovations,” the vice president explains the sustainable success of the company. “Our customer service is excellent, and we support direct and personal customer relationships. We offer our clients everything they need involving balloons, so to speak turnkey solutions which are tailor-made to their needs and requirements. It is our goal to cover all balloon-related fields. Thanks to our medium size, we are able to take on urgent orders, too. Last but not least, we enjoy such an excellent reputation thanks to the undisputed quality and reliability of our products. And, at the end of the day, we are a typical Italian company, and we are determined to stay true to our values and traditions. My Father is the president of the company. My mother is responsible for human resources and my wife for sales and marketing. We think and act oriented to the longterm and if necessary, we are able to take decisions quickly.”

Innovations and investments will stay at the top of the com pany’s agenda in the coming years. GE.MA.R aims to develop new markets, mainly in North America and in the Oriental region.

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