Mesarija Prunk

Before the war, their enterprising grandfather sold meat to the Italians

The beginnings of the family business date back to 1928, when Avgust Prunk, grandfather of today’s director Marko Prunk, opened his butcher’s business. “At that time Postojna was part of Italy. He used to slaughter young heifers at home and transport meat to Trieste.” The family business continued during the war period, when Marko’s father worked as a butcher’s trainee in Senožeče. After the war, he was employed in a cooperative society in Sežana, which has since evolved into the well-known meat-producing company, Kras. He persisted there until 1967 when he decided to make a bold move and opened a small butcher’s and a slaughterhouse in his native village. “Only two years after it was opened, the butcher’s had to be closed as he fell ill. In 1972, I began to learn the butcher’s trade working at the butcher’s owned by my dad’s friend. My father did not show much enthusiasm for my career decision, because he knew what a difficult profession this was. I worked in the local butcher’s until 1989, when I decided to buy it. And thus, on 13 November 1990, I began my entrepreneurial journey,” says Marko, sharing his story.

Everyone must be satisfied with what goes into the bottle

Occasionally, some of his peers used to comment that their wine was of poor quality: “That was something I couldn’t understand, since my father always maintained that ours was the very best,” Stojan adds with a smile. At the time, all types of grapes were used for making wine, regardless of the quality. Today, things are very different: “We are very critical. Everyone must be happy with what goes into the bottle.” Everyone includes his five sons, who are symbolically depicted on the label of the Strune wines, showing the image of a violin with five strings. They are all involved in the family business, each in his own role. “I started selling peaches at a very early stage, when I really didn’t understand money that well. Nevertheless, I was a six-year old kid “left” at Trojane to sell peaches. All I knew was exactly how much I had to charge for the peaches,” recalls Stojan, who is now responsible for sales to the Balkans and China, of his experience.

Occasionally, some of his peers used to comment that their wine was of poor quality: “That was something I couldn’t understand, since my father always maintained that ours was the very best,” Stojan adds with a smile. At the time, all types of grapes were used for making wine, regardless of the quality. Today, things are very different: “We are very critical. Everyone must be happy with what goes into the bottle.” Everyone includes his five sons, who are symbolically depicted on the label of the Strune wines, showing the image of a violin with five strings. They are all involved in the family business, each in his own role. “I started selling peaches at a very early stage, when I really didn’t understand money that well. Nevertheless, I was a six-year old kid “left” at Trojane to sell peaches. All I knew was exactly how much I had to charge for the peaches,” recalls Stojan, who is now responsible for sales to the Balkans and China, of his experience.

The oldest son, Primož, is in charge of the warehouse and welcomes guests to the farm. Tomaž is in charge of the cellar and wine, as well as marketing for the UK, Germany and Belgium. Uroš cares for the vineyards and is very keen on using the latest equipment and machinery. He is also responsible for the organization of work. Nejc, a student of economy, is very helpful in promotional activities and through his studies, he brings new approaches to storage and distribution to the family business. Then there is Matjaž, Bachelor of Science in Viticulture and Enology, who used his newly-acquired knowledge to introduce modern techniques of  viticulture to the farm. His artistic inclination also contributes to modern video promotion. Together they contribute a great deal of added value to the final product. “We need to expand rural tourism and hospitality on the farm, and both these activities offer great potential. I believe that the organization is well on the way, but is not yet complete. It is not always easy to coordinate family and business life. It is normal that there are some misunderstandings; it is just how things are. I realize that there are better, less demanding jobs out there, but here you have your own product that you yourself created. You can stand in front of the brand and say: This is who I am and this is a source of satisfaction and pride to us and the very thing that drives us forward,” confirms Stojan.

The project must pay for itself

Marko’s main principle is that any investment must ensure a suitable return to maintain itself. He does not see borrowing in itself as being problematic;a company can grow only if you invest in it. “For each investment we plan, we expect to repay the loan within seven years. In any case, we make sure that the investment does not threaten the rest of the company, and we are constantly monitoring the performance of each individual project,” explains Marko of his entrepreneurial approach. Last year they had €17 million revenue; this year the plan is to generate over €20 million. Their plans include the acquisition of a plot in the industrial zone in Divača, where they intend to build a modern plant for cutting and processing fresh meat. “Because we are restricted in terms of space and power, over the next two to three years we are planning to transfer production to Divača. We need the space for the packing room, drying room and also premises for the administration and accounting, as we want them all to be in a single location. This will make everything more manageable,” explains Marko.

The Prunks: butchers, first and foremost

Today, Marko’s son Andrej is in charge of the business economics; however, as his father says, everyone does everything in a family business. At a very young age he already had a vision and a plan of what his career would be: a butcher, food technologist and an economist. At the age of 22, he became director of Postojnske mesnine, where he worked for four years, until he  directed his attention across the border to Trieste. “We know Italian guests and consumers well, as 80 years ago we used to export fresh meat to Italy. This is one of the reasons I suggested we open a butcher’s in Trieste and dad agreed wholeheartedly. I have been in Italy for five years now as a director of a subsidiary of Postojnske mesnine called Prunk Carni,” explains Andrej of his business.

Daughter Jana stayed at home and runs a butcher’s in Lokev, as well as a restaurant carved into the karst rock. The family is very proud of the restored ice house, one of the few preserved in the Karst, where they serve food and drinks to their guests. The Prunk family have huge respect for communication and in their opinion, this is of key importance to the  continued existence and success of a family business. “My son and I are constantly talking about the company. For example, today, he has already called me 10 times. While he is independent, he shares everything with me,” explains Marko of the family’s coordination of the business. Although he has the last word, they discuss all business decisions together and find the best solution. “Yes, we do have disagreements when opinions differ substantially, but this only lasts for a fleeting moment,” explains Jana and adds: “We are not just family members, we are also friends, colleagues, and everything else at the same time.”

Marko tells a story about how his father sent him to a shop when he was just a little boy: “He told me what to buy and insisted I went, although I told him I was afraid that I may not buy the right thing. Upon my return, he explained to me what I did right, and what I didn’t, and added: ‘Don’t worry. Next time you will fare much better.’” He says that he used the same approach when teaching his own children about the business and also getting them ready for life. Just like their father, Jana and Andrej are trying not to pressurize their children to join the family business. Nevertheless, they do feel that involvement of the younger generation in the company is very important.

Today, a butcher is regarded as a gentleman 

Andrej has been inspired by the Italian method of running a butcher’s: “The Italians are in fact gourmets. Even sales personnel are trained to present the products in a way that will attract customers. We want to promote this attitude also in Slovenia and thus, our butchers are sent for training in Italy. One of the biggest challenges in the next five years will be how to train people for the profession, because there is a lack of interest among the young.”  He is convinced that if necessary, they can find trained butchers in Italy and invite them to come to Slovenia. Slovenia has plenty of first-class raw materials, but staff need to learn how to present the products on a shelf in an appealing way that will attract customers and secure the sale. “Today a butcher is regarded as a gentleman, not as someone with swollen knuckles who works in cold rooms,” says Andrej, completing his thoughts, adding that in order to succeed, you first of all have to like your profession. “I enjoy working with meat. Managerial tasks, as well as other tasks that need doing in the company all bring me pleasure,” confirms Andrej.