“Although Serbia’s fiscal system is of a much better quality than many solutions in the region, there is still room for improvement, and we’re ready to help with advice and experience”
The announced introduction of the online system in fiscalisation leads us to expect a continuation of our good cooperation with the Government, in order to find the best solutions for the state and the economy, says Nataša Marković, General Manager of Galeb Company.
Your company was first private enterprise to be registered in SFR Yugoslavia. Which areas are you active in today?
– Our company has been operating for more than 40 years on the territory of Yugoslavia, but also further afield. I think that’s primarily so because we are a family firm based on traditional values.
We are present in the sectors of trade, production and services. Times have changed, and Galeb has increasingly expanded its wings in line with the needs of the market. We manufacture metal packaging and accessories, as well as signaling and safety devices for the rail sector, but our best-known products are primarily from the field of business electronics and fiscal devices, and those include fiscal cash registers and printers, as well as complete POS solutions for retail, hospitality and services, which are recognised for their reliability on the markets of 26 countries.
After 40 years of successful work, what is your market position like today in Serbia and abroad?
– Galeb is one of the leading companies in Serbia’s sector of medium-sized enterprises, which forms the backbone of the part of the Serbian economy that is locally-owned. We survived sanctions, bombing and the floods of 2014, when our entire production facilities and warehouses were flooded. We managed to rise from the ashes like a phoenix and, with the help of employees, the local government in Šabac and the Government of Serbia, restore production.
Exports have grown each year, so in 2018, alongside existing markets, sales on new markets are expected, in Europe, but also in Africa. Unusual experiences, as well as having functioned in the state in four different forms, helped us to create a recognisable brand that can survive even the most difficult circumstances for the economy. Our hope is that, with our new marketing plan, we will be able to achieve our goals in the next four years.
Our fiscal cash registers and printers, as well as complete POS solutions for retail, hospitality and services, which are recognised for their reliability on the markets of 26 countries
How would you evaluate the current state of the fiscal system in Serbia? What expectations do you have of the long-awaited online fiscalisation?
– The fiscal system in Serbia is being mentioned often lately, and Galeb, as the biggest manufacturer of fiscal devices in Serbia, often receives questions about this. We consider that the system is good and of a better quality than many in the region, but also that there is room for improvement. We are pioneers of fiscalisation in Serbia; we have participated actively in setting up the system for many foreign projects, and are willing to actively assist with advice and experience.
Long-awaited ‘online fiscalisation’ is specific in and of itself, just by combining those two words. Specific solutions have yet to be suggested. ‘Online’ has wide-ranging significance and offers many potential solutions, and we are ready to help with concrete suggestions and recommendations. A mistake is often made by associating “online” in this sense with the Croatian model, which proved to be extremely poor.
We expect to continue our good cooperation with the Government, so in terms of new solutions for fiscalisation we are open to every form of cooperation and innovation, in order to reach the optimal model for the state and for the economy. Only if we row in unison, with our oars pointed in the same direction and at the same tempo, can we count on prosperity.