The European Union is not something that will suddenly arrive in Bulgaria on January 1 2007 or on any other date. For many foreign businesses in this country, the union is already present in their operations.

This is in what the team of Orbit, the Bulgarian subsidiary of the Greek international forwarding and moving company Orphee Beinoglou, believes. The company has been operating for 11 years on the Bulgarian market. Involved in the forwarding business, Orbit is well experienced in handling both inbound and outbound cargo of any description, weight and volume. It provides advice to importers and exporters and assists with transportation, documentation and insurance.

Orbit has also obtained a leading position in the office and household moving industry, providing a full range of international and domestic relocation services. The company’s state-of-the-art storage facilities are available to its customers for long- or short-term use, and accommodate the different requirements for fine art storage and logistical operations.

In the past few years, Orbit has been adding more and more value-added services that are designed to cover whatever needs any business may have in Bulgaria.

Their complete solution is 3PL (third-party logistic). This complete care for the clients has led to some serious expansion of the company’s business in Bulgaria. In the past four to five years, Orbit has built its own highly technological warehouse facility next to Sofia Airport and is currently investing in the construction of a second larger one.

Maybe this is why Orbit does not fear the competition that lurks around every corner in the business, according to the company’s commercial director Ventsislav Dimitrov. Dimitrov is also quite confident that Orbit offers skills and professionalism that will help it deal with competition, or at least have a significant market presence and growth.

“Competition is serious even now, as many of the largest players in the shipping and forwarding sector, as well as movers, are already present in Bulgaria. But the name is not always a key factor. There are many examples of large global companies whose Bulgarian operations are far from being strong. It all depends on the professional skills and the motivation of each company’s team,” Dimitrov says.

And he also believes that all companies and individuals in Bulgaria should have the needed motivation to help the country succeed in the constant battle for investment and development.

Bulgaria’s unique and advantageous geographical location should be used, infrastructure developed and services brought to a new level, he says.

“Unfortunately we are lagging behind already, especially compared to other countries in Eastern Europe. Hungary has already become a logistical centre for many global companies, without even having the advantages of Bulgaria,” Dimitrov says.