Divided firm eyes foreign partners
Güncelleme Tarihi:
by Aram Ekim Duran - Referans
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Ocak 28, 2009 00:00
ISTANBUL - Two out of three companies founded after Turkey’s Ulusoy Holding was divided into three following a family dispute are attempting to minimize the impact of the global economic crisis with the help of foreign partners
Two out of three new bosses at Turkey’s Ulusoy Holding have announced they are establishing foreign partnerships for their new projects.
After a family dispute, the 71-year-old company was divided into three. The holding was founded by Hacı Mehmet Bahattin Ulusoy and managed by his sons and nephews for three generations, but was fragmented last October due to "problems in institutionalization."
The holding, which operates in various industries, including transportation, tourism, construction and automotive, was divided between two siblings, Saffet and Yılmaz Ulusoy and their nephew Alican Ulusoy.
The members of the Ulusoy family recently announced they had become engaged in foreign partnerships, hoping to reduce the impact of the global financial crisis. Yılmaz Ulusoy, who decided to focus on the energy sector by founding Yılmaz Ulusoy Holding, has announced a partnership with a British firm, without revealing the name of the company.
Young entrepreneur
Alican Ulusoy, who, at 31 years old, is one of the youngest bosses in the business world, has decided to focus on the logistics sector and launched Ulusoy Uluslararası Yatırım Holding on Oct. 15. The new holding was formed by 10 companies that used to operate in the logistics sector under Ulusoy Holding’s umbrella. Over the weekend, Alican Ulusoy announced his decision to partner with Ziegler, a Belgium-based logistics firm.
Due to health issues, Saffet Ulusoy, the oldest of the Ulusoy family and a pioneer in transportation, transferred a substantial proportion of his business to his son Haluk Ulusoy. Aiming to focus largely on passenger transportation, Haluk Ulusoy abstains from expressing his future plans for the time being.
Delaying investments
Speaking about investment plans for his Yılmaz Ulusoy Holding, which was formed by 15 companies, Yılmaz Ulusoy said over the weekend he decided on a more "slow and sure" investment plan. Only a month ago he revealed plans to invest nearly $100 million. "We have postponed our investment plans another two years. We will first get our feet on the ground. After 50 years of experience, I know I cannot behave impulsively in this time of crisis," he said.
"Our energy projects have priority during this period, as there are significant energy concerns all around the world, including Turkey. We will first ramp up our solar energy investments."
The holding is also preparing for ambitious projects in tourism. Having launched plans to construct a hotel with an 850-bed capacity in Istanbul’s Merter district, Ulusoy said: "We aim to complete the bureaucratic process for the hotel in seven to eight months. But it may take three years for the hotel to start operating. It is not possible to manage everything alone in this period. We may work with a foreign partner both in construction and management of the hotel."
Alican Ulusoy, whose holding managed to attain 20 percent growth in just three months, is also determined to survive the crisis with a foreign partner, just like his uncle. Regarding the partnership with Ziegler, he said: "Ziegler reaps over 2 billion euros in turnover. The company also has a storage area of 1 million square meters. The partnership has actually helped us become a holding in a global scale."
He also noted the number of employees in the holding has risen from 400 people to 500 people since Oct. 15.
"It is a source of pride to create job opportunities for 100 people amid this crisis. We aim to create further job opportunities for 250 people this year. We aim for 100 percent growth within the next three years," he said.
After a family dispute, the 71-year-old company was divided into three. The holding was founded by Hacı Mehmet Bahattin Ulusoy and managed by his sons and nephews for three generations, but was fragmented last October due to "problems in institutionalization."
The holding, which operates in various industries, including transportation, tourism, construction and automotive, was divided between two siblings, Saffet and Yılmaz Ulusoy and their nephew Alican Ulusoy.
The members of the Ulusoy family recently announced they had become engaged in foreign partnerships, hoping to reduce the impact of the global financial crisis. Yılmaz Ulusoy, who decided to focus on the energy sector by founding Yılmaz Ulusoy Holding, has announced a partnership with a British firm, without revealing the name of the company.
Young entrepreneur
Alican Ulusoy, who, at 31 years old, is one of the youngest bosses in the business world, has decided to focus on the logistics sector and launched Ulusoy Uluslararası Yatırım Holding on Oct. 15. The new holding was formed by 10 companies that used to operate in the logistics sector under Ulusoy Holding’s umbrella. Over the weekend, Alican Ulusoy announced his decision to partner with Ziegler, a Belgium-based logistics firm.
Due to health issues, Saffet Ulusoy, the oldest of the Ulusoy family and a pioneer in transportation, transferred a substantial proportion of his business to his son Haluk Ulusoy. Aiming to focus largely on passenger transportation, Haluk Ulusoy abstains from expressing his future plans for the time being.
Delaying investments
Speaking about investment plans for his Yılmaz Ulusoy Holding, which was formed by 15 companies, Yılmaz Ulusoy said over the weekend he decided on a more "slow and sure" investment plan. Only a month ago he revealed plans to invest nearly $100 million. "We have postponed our investment plans another two years. We will first get our feet on the ground. After 50 years of experience, I know I cannot behave impulsively in this time of crisis," he said.
"Our energy projects have priority during this period, as there are significant energy concerns all around the world, including Turkey. We will first ramp up our solar energy investments."
The holding is also preparing for ambitious projects in tourism. Having launched plans to construct a hotel with an 850-bed capacity in Istanbul’s Merter district, Ulusoy said: "We aim to complete the bureaucratic process for the hotel in seven to eight months. But it may take three years for the hotel to start operating. It is not possible to manage everything alone in this period. We may work with a foreign partner both in construction and management of the hotel."
Alican Ulusoy, whose holding managed to attain 20 percent growth in just three months, is also determined to survive the crisis with a foreign partner, just like his uncle. Regarding the partnership with Ziegler, he said: "Ziegler reaps over 2 billion euros in turnover. The company also has a storage area of 1 million square meters. The partnership has actually helped us become a holding in a global scale."
He also noted the number of employees in the holding has risen from 400 people to 500 people since Oct. 15.
"It is a source of pride to create job opportunities for 100 people amid this crisis. We aim to create further job opportunities for 250 people this year. We aim for 100 percent growth within the next three years," he said.