Business news

18 Jun 2018

Belarus, UK to expand cooperation in woodworking

MINSK, 18 June (BelTA) – Belarus and the United Kingdom will ramp up cooperation in the woodworking industry, BelTA learned from the Belarusian timber, woodworking, pulp and paper industry concern Bellesbumprom.

The concern hosted a meeting for UK business people and top managers of Belarusian woodworking companies and furniture producers affiliated with Bellesbumprom. During the talks the British business people showed interest in various wood products from Belarus. In particular, high in demand on the UK market are upholstered furniture and garden furniture, street furniture for mansions, building structures, decking, various materials and elements for furniture production, as well as entire furniture sets.

Вellesbumprom’s head Yuri Nazarov noted that the UK market is of huge interest for Belarusian woodworking companies. “We see great potential there. Last year Great Britain imported $2 billion worth of lumber alone. Such products are supplied by our neighbors from the Baltic Sea states, Germany and Poland. In a number of cases, the goods sold in the UK are of Belarusian origin. In fact, you buy Belarusian products from the middlemen, while we suggest working directly with Belarusian manufacturers,” he emphasized.

“This is true. We know that the products we buy, for example, from Lithuania or Latvia are made from Belarusian materials, and we are happy with their quality. At the same time, we want to forge direct contacts and work directly with Belarusian suppliers. Therefore, we are here today. We want to tour Belarusian companies and establish cooperation with them,” Partner and UK Sales Director of Kullik & Rullmann AG Lawrence Webster said.

Right after the talks the British businessmen went on a study tour to the Belarusian companies. They are set to visit Molodechnomebel, Stroydetali (Vileika), Borisovdrev, and forestry enterprises in Vileika District and Borisov District.

The study tour will be followed by a business match-making session on 19 June that will bring together Belarusian and British businessmen who will discuss the details of their cooperation and outline joint projects.

The visit of the UK business delegation to Belarus was arranged with assistance of the Belarusian Embassy in the UK and the UK Timber Trade Federation to implement the agreements reached during the Timber Expo 2017 international expo in Birmingham where the Belarusian timber industry made its debut.