Unique wholesale complex in the region - China trade center Zmaj, worth 25 million euros, opened in Zemun

China trade center Zmaj, which brings a new concept of wholesale trade to the region, was officially opened today at the additional surface area of 25,000 square meters. The complex built on 5.5 ha of land and situated at the intersection of Belgrade-Novi Sad and Belgrade-Nis highways cost Diplon company 25 million euros, which is the biggest greenfield investment in Serbia so far. The China center will employ 500 people and it will comprise between 250 and 300 wholesale units.

The total surface of the center is 40,000 square meters. It currently has 70 tenants from 6 countries, 65% of which are Chinese companies that import the goods from that country.

- The new wholesale concept based on the all-at-one-place idea enables the exhibiting of goods, sale on the spot or via order, storing, etc. Also, by exhibiting at one place, the tenants from the same branch generate the development of trade, primarily in the fields of textile, footwear, clothing, household items, toys, furniture. This center provides foreign companies with the possibility of selling goods to domestic companies, while minor buyers get the chance to choose between several suppliers from the same branch at one place. Such type of trading stimulates the export of goods to the region, enables small traders to exit from the gray zone of operations and, thus, create new jobs and positively affect the development of the domestic economy - Dejan Bulatovic, the Executive Director of China trade center Zmaj, said at the presentation of the complex.

As he explained, 3,000 stores are currently supplied with the goods from TC Zmaj, and that number is expected to grow to about 20,000 in the following period. The aim of TC Zmaj is to bring as many companies from the region as possible.

- A special convenience for the tenants is the fact that the center comprises 500 units that can be rented separately or merged, depending on the needs of individual companies. Each unit consists of two parts - showroom and storage space – Bulatovic explains.

He points out that the center offers the tenants very favorable conditions for their operations.

- The rental fee is 10 euros per square meter for the showroom, while 5 euros per square meter needs to be paid for the storage space. The complex also comprises a post office, a bank office, an exchange office, IT companies, transportation companies, travel agencies, restaurants, coffee shops. There is also a parking lot with 800 spaces for tenants and visitors – says the Executive Director of TC Zmaj.

Bulatovic says that Zmaj excellently cooperates with the companies whose production units are situated outside Belgrade.

- Their goods in our center are available to larger number of buyers, which affects the growth of the volume of sales of the manufacturers from the provinces and not the volume of the production itself.

- The center was created by the Chinese architects in association with Serbian planners. Many domestic companies participated in the construction of the complex, and all the construction deadlines were met. Gipon, Elektromonting, Fiber Veling, Elektrogradnja, Febro Plan are only some of the companies with which we have been cooperating - says Bulatovic.

In the central part of the complex, which is spatially organized as a square, the Chinese culture will be promoted and that is where the entertainment contents for the tenants and visitors of the center will be organized.

- Upon the estimate of the market potentials, we have decided to invest in Serbia because we recognized its position of the regional leader and the wholesale development center - said Zo Hajing, the owner of and director of TC Zmaj.

Ren Yi, the economic-trade adviser within the Embassy of the People's Republic of China, said that the investment in CTC would create the opportunities for further development of the economic relations between China and Serbia, as well as for the creation of numerous business opportunities and the development of cooperation between Serbian and Chinese companies.

New facility within Zmaj complex

As the Executive Director of CTC Zmaj announced, the construction of a commercial building worth 7 million euros is in the pipeline for the third phase.

- The project should be finished by the end of the year, while the construction should commence in mid-2011. With that four-floor building, we will supplement the contents we offer to the tenants as special conveniences. The building will comprise, among the rest, a gym, a spa center, conference rooms, etc. - Bulatovic points out.

S.O.