Staff Reporter
Islamabad
As Pakistan and Turkey are fostering deeper socio-economic ties as brotherly Islamic nations, the largest Turkish enterprise Koç Holding has expressed its commitment to further expand its heavy investments and operations in Pakistan. The Chief Commercial Officer of Arçelik, a subsidiary of Koç Holding in Turkey, Can Dinçer participated in the Pakistan-Turkey Business & Investment Forum, recently chaired by the President of Turkey in Islamabad.
Can Dincer stated that “Since 2016, we have gained a very strong foothold in one of the world’s most promising markets, Pakistan and further built on the strengths of Dawlance. We are very proud to see that Dawlance and Arçelik grow together as part of a larger and global organization. Arçelik operates across a vast geography spanning from Europe to Middle East and Africa to Asia and is progressing steadily on a global path. We have successfully transferred our technology know-how and innovation capabilities and invested in Dawlance to develop the business. In 2020, our plan is to introduce competitive pricing model in all categories to better response to the needs of the changing demands while using the distribution channels effectively. Our main objectives are to expand our experience stores and e-commerce platforms and increase small-medium potential dealers. At Arçelik, sustainability is at the very core of our business model in line with our vision ‘Respecting the World, Respected Worldwide’. We focus on developing environmental friendly products increasing, energy efficiency in our global manufacturing network and contribute to the societies’ social innovation projects. I’m very proud to say that Pakistan will hopefully be one of the contributors to this vision.”
Koç Holding is the largest holding company in Turkey, with a successful history of over 60 years. Today, it is the only Turkish company ranked in the Fortune Global 500 list, as Koç Holding has established industry-leading portfolios in the automotive, electronics, finance and energy sectors, while employing over 92,500 people around the world. Arçelik is a subsidiary of Koç Holding and the parent company of Dawlance. It is a leading Player in the Home-Appliances Industry which has the biggest Research & Development network with 20 R&D and design centers, including one R&D center in Karachi, Pakistan. Over the years, Arçelik has expanded its production-base, by establishing 23 manufacturing facilities in 9 countries, while its products are exported and sold in approx. 150 countries. Environment-Protection and employee well-being are among the primary focuses of the group.
The Chief Executive Officer of Dawlance – Umar Ahsan Khan thanked Can Dinçer, Chief Commercial Officer of Arçelik, for his visit to Pakistan and stated that: “Since Arçelik’s acquisition, Dawlance has gained tremendous competitive advantages in Pakistan, as Arçelik has made large scale investments in the company, to enhance the product quality and design, in upgrading the manufacturing facilities to global standards and in developing state of the art R&D facilities to drive innovation. New production lines to manufacture Automatic Washing Machine and Water Dispensers have been set up, while Dawlance also began exporting CE Certified Water-Dispensers to Europe. With the vision of putting Dawlance on global arena, we are now implementing a strategy to expand our exports to other countries.”
Dawlance has achieved large manufacturing capabilities owing to its 3 factories. It is also expanding its largest Sales and Service network, which already comprises of 1800+ dealers across Pakistan. Dawlance has recently inaugurated an Experience Store in Peshawar, offering complete range of products to consumers. In future, it plans to establish more experience stores in other cities too, a similar approach in both Arçelik and Dawlance is the dynamic structuring of distribution channel, which is an important part of its growth strategy.
The key to Pakistan’s progress is the deployment of advanced technologies and Arçelik is known for undertaking extensive research and development activities, enabling enrichment and innovations in its wide range of products that perform well beyond the consumers’ expectations, by fulfilling the evolving needs of our consumers. The Turkish and Pakistani governments must continue to work together, offering more incentives for large scale joint-ventures and public-private partnerships for the business communities.
