Mebor, d. o. o.

Dad, I’ll build you a saw!

The Mebor family business was founded in 1991, spontaneously and as a result of emerging local needs. However, the story began a few years earlier when Boris’s father, who was involved in wood-cutting, needed a new saw. “He had an old saw, and when it no longer met his requirements, he began to look for something better to replace it. My husband saw an opportunity and seized it. As he was interested in mechanical engineering, he decided to build a saw for his father. He built the first machine in his own workshop and kept improving it and adding to it continuously. As he found the entire process thoroughly enjoyable, he was constantly coming up with new, innovative ideas,” explains Marinka, remembering the early 1980s.

It wasn’t long before a neighbor asked for a new saw to be built and slowly but steadily, demand spread throughout Slovenia. “I took time in developing my first prototype; while it kept evolving continuously, the concept remained the same for a very long time. The idea caught on, as it stood out from the competition. While some of my competitors left the business, I continued to follow my own ideas, making the saw a little more robust, which seemed to be exactly what the market was looking for,” proudly reflects Boris. The married couple grew together with the company and met some challenges along the way. “While my husband spent long days and weekends assembling the machines, I was at home with the children. Time was scarce and precious, but it was worth it. Today, we are proud of what we have achieved,” affirms Marinka, who has always been the backbone of the family as well as the business, being in charge of documentation and administration.

Boris’s brother, a turner, also helped in the family business and together they kept improving the machines. “We have always followed our own concept, not taking much notice of what others were doing,” points out Boris. Soon after the establishment of the business, they turned their focus to foreign markets: Croatia and Austria.

A large family all over Europe

Boris and Marinka built the family business from scratch, ensuring its growth and development. “With time, we began to employ the first welders and production workers. The next family member to join the business was my brother, who first worked in production, but later took on a role in development. Our eldest son Uroš, who had accompanied me on my visits to clients since he was very young, followed and joined the team. Later, a need arose for a developer to help my brother who was involved in designing. Today, three employees are working as developers in addition to Uroš, who is also the Head of Production,” says Boris, describing the process of employment and expansion. Marinka is proud to point out that the sons joined the business of their own free will: “Uroš, the eldest, has always enjoyed mechanical engineering, and he was determined to join the company from an early age. Simon’s interests lie in languages and marketing; however, he has been involved in various projects within the company since his school years. Our third son, Gregor, who is currently studying mechanical engineering, is also keen to join the family team.”

Today, the company has 40 employees, from whom innovative ideas are always welcome and suitably rewarded. Another of the pillars of this family business’s success is maintaining external associates. “We are present in more than 50 countries worldwide, including Austria, France, Germany and Hungary, plus others, where we have more than 20 representatives who also offer local service of the machinery. We ensure support and training to all our service teams at our own facilities, as we believe this to be the best way to ensure sales. The best product advertisement is availability of local, high quality service, assembly and spare parts for the Mebor machines,” confidently asserts Boris.

The Mesec family believe firmly that their employees should always see the rewards of the company’s success. It is the employer who is responsible for the employees by ensuring they have work and receive fair payment for it. Furthermore, Boris believes it is important to contribute to the community by investing in it and promoting its development. “We help local societies with sponsorship, cooperate with schools and provide internships for the young. A metalworker will probably have to look far and wide to learn the skills that they can learn in our company. Here, he or she can become familiar with the entire production process, from a single screw to the finished product. If they are willing to learn, there is plenty of opportunity right here,” Boris declares.

The company goals are also the family goals

In addition to its many advantages, the family business also has its weaknesses, as it is very difficult to separate private life from business. Nevertheless, despite the close involvement in business and work, the benefits of a family business are numerous. “One of the advantages is the fact that we all pursue the same, or at least a similar goal and can respond to issues quickly; we don’t need to organize meetings as any issues and plans are discussed regularly, sometimes even at lunch. The company is part of our lives and we are happy to be involved in its success and development. The company goals are very personal goals,” says Uroš.

Everybody in the Mesec family is aware of the importance of their own brand and innovation. According to Uroš, they are continually striving to develop new and advanced technologies, while preserving their identity, and as Simon says, closely monitoring customer demands and market needs. “It is what guides us: customer requests and market demands decide which machines will be developed and which problems need to be solved, all of which creates new, innovative ideas and solutions. Our close involvement in sales and development generates new ideas and solutions for our customers and drives innovation. We always strive to offer our buyers a complete solution in one place, even if it means that we need to develop a solution in order to meet the client’s expectations,” emphasizes Simon.

Large corporations do not instill a great sense of belonging and often find it difficult to react quickly, which is something family businesses are required to excel at. Sincerity and hard work are two of the foundations of the Mebor family business. “My parents taught me that in order to succeed, one has to work smart and hard. Our family always communicates openly and we all share our thoughts with each other. We believe that in the long run, it is best to resolve any issues as they arise and the same is true for sales. We must provide accurate information and offer advice which is in the interests of the customer. Short-term, this can reflect in lower sales; however, in the long run it works out better for us and the customer. If we make sure that the customer is satisfied, success is ensured. This is our basic goal and we adhere to it at all times,” explains Simon of his marketing mentality.

Last year the company grew by 17%

The future goal of the family is to continue their successful work. Their concepts are recognized all over the world, and companies often try to copy them. In 2016, the family business had around €9 million in revenue, and due to rapid growth they are dealing with the consequences. “Growth is a big challenge for us because we need to increase production. This in turn results in bottlenecks that must be eliminated. Unfortunately, it takes time to increase production but we certainly do our best to take on all the orders. Last year we grew by 17% and on average, our annual growth ranges from about 5% to 10%,” explains Uroš of their nice headache.

The family aim to follow trends and maintain the high quality of their machines. While horizontal band saws are their flagship product, they are currently developing other machines, including the highest productivity sawmill lines, in order to extend their product range. In addition, they are looking for potential new markets. “While Europe remains our main market, it is South America and Africa that offer the greatest potential. By penetrating the Asian market, we are slowly becoming global,” says Mebor’s Director, describing their ambitions.