Latvia, Legislation, Lithuania, Markets and Companies, Mergers and take-overs

Gemaga Director and owner Gediminas Stanevicius told Vz.lt that Inteka was also producing tea for the leading retailers in the Baltic countries, including Maxima and Rimi.

The company employs 60 people, it produces around 200 tons of tea monthly. During the most successful years, the company's annual turnover exceeded EUR 5 million. Inteka is also a coffee and groceries wholesale trader.

According to "Firmas.lv" data, until mid-March this year Inteka belonged to the company's CEO Olegs Neboracko and the company Battika, which in turn belongs to Eduards Zoludevs and Romans Konontajs. The latest is also a member of Inteka board.

2011 was the best year in Inteka's history, when the company posted EUR 5.28 million in turnover and EUR 0.3 million in profit. In 2012, the company's turnover and profit reduced to, respectively, EUR 4.9 million and EUR 0.24 million, and on to EUR 4.18 million and EUR 0.2 million in 2013. The company's report for 2014 is not available yet.

According to Stanevicius, Inteka is not achieving its potential, and the company's output will be doubled as Inteka's products will also be exported to markets where Gemaga is represented – Lithuania, Estonia, Belarus, and Poland.

The talks with Latvian businessmen, who will continue to run Inteka, continued for one-and-a-half years, said Stanevicius. The Lithuanians officially acquired Inteka in mid-March.

Gemaga imports tea and coffee from India, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Malaysia and other countries, and sells its products in 22 countries, mostly in Eastern Europe. The Kaunas company has offices in Poland, Latvia and Russia. The main brands it represents are the Sri Lankan "Imperial Teas" tea Impra and coffee JFK Indian Instant Coffee.

Last year it was announced that Imperial Teas and Gemaga were planning to build a logistics center in Lithuania, from which tea would be distributed across Europe. Total investment in the project was estimated at USD 10 million. However, the project, which did begin, has now come to a halt, said Stanevicius. Although the plan has not been discarded, it is on hold now due to the rising euro and Russian ruble against the U.S. dollar, he explained.