The local dried fruit brand "Skiji" appeared on the market in 2015 and offers customers dried fruits of mandarin, orange, lemon, kiwi, and other fruits. In an interview with BM.GE, the co-founder of "Skiji" Mako Tsirekidze talked about the brand's challenges and future plans. According to her, the brand is working on introducing the HACCP standard to enter the international market.
"The introduction of the "HACCP" standard will allow our products to enter the international market. We are starting to work to bring our product to international exhibitions. The export market will give us a sense of stability. Also, we work on corporate gift orders, which is a very creative, responsible and pleasant process for us. Our goal is to have a different, distinctive and memorable offering every year," she added.
According to Mako Tsirekidze, this year the brand had to increase the price of its products, the reason was the increased price of raw materials, utility bills and bank loan services.
"We had to increase the price of the products by about 15%. In addition to the raw materials, the utility bill has become more expensive, and since we are introducing the HACCP standard, it is associated with considerable costs. The productivity of the enterprise is small, it has not increased significantly, it is a family niche, and the product quality and production technology have become the European standard," says the founder.
"Skiji" was established in 2015 with an investment of GEL 5,000. The enterprise is located in the village of Khidistavi, Chokhatauri Municipality, Guria. The company's raw materials are made with 100% local fruits. At this stage, in addition to family members, 7 people are employed in the company.
