“A friend of mine who operated trips between Romania and Spain asked us to transport his passengers as his minibus broke down”. In 1999, access to EU states was not as easy as it is now, but the entrepreneur’s father luckily had a visa, being also a driver by training.
Subsequently, Ioan Sighiartau, together with his father and younger brother, decided to start a business in the transport field, on a fledgling market.
“As we already owned a minibus, no other major investments were necessary, and from the receipts we had in the last quarter of 1999, around 3,500 German marks per month, we managed to buy another minibus. In early 2000, we officially started the business and we operated two trips per week on the Romania-Spain route”.
Two years later, Sighiartau, who graduated the Faculty of Economic Sciences (Babes-Bolyai University of Cluj), gives up the marketing analyst position he has at Rombat Bistrita to develop his own business. The company’s first headquarters was opened in Sintereag locality, Bistrita-Nasaud.
“In the first years of activity, demand for our services grew constantly, allowing us to buy new minibuses. In 2001, we already operated with four minibuses and we had a 32-person transport capacity and a year later we bought the first Mercedes-Benz coach and started expanding our fleet, officially setting up Tabita Tour company,” says Ioan Sighiartau.
He recounts the company leased coaches from other transporters during crowded periods. “We correctly anticipated the high potential of the passenger transport market. In 2002 we set up Filadelfia Marfa, delivering freight with 22-ton trucks”.
In 2007, the company carried out the biggest and most important investment since set up, namely the construction of the central headquarters of Bistrita, on a 4,500-sqm area, its own mini boarding terminal for international trips and a coach wash center. Filadelfia Turism was set up the same year, selling travel packages and plane tickets. Meanwhile, Filadelfia Turism has grown into a tour operator on destinations such as Israel, Bulgaria, Greece and Turkey.
In 2010, Tabita Tour opened its own coach service unit in Bistrita-Nasaud and in 2011 set up DirektAsig Filadelfia Broker de Asigurare, specialized in selling all types of insurance, as well as in brokerage services.
Amid the rising number of passengers, Posta Tabita Tour was created, securing the transport of luggage surplus.
At present, the Bistrita-based transporter particularly operates on destinations such as Spain, where it developed a 23-agency network, Italy (2 agencies) and France (one agency in Nice). In 2013, the company launched charter coach trips on various destinations. In Romania, the company has 37 agencies.
About his relationship with banks, Sighiartau says it has always been a good one. “Ever since 2006, when we modernized our fleet, we accessed credit lines. We have a clearly-defined investment plan, involving annual investments of above EUR1 million and we obviously need banking support”.
On the other hand, Sighiartau is disappointed the Romanian state is not friendly with the business environment.
For 2014, the company has earmarked over EUR2.5 million to acquire new coaches, develop a passenger boarding terminal and buy an ERP system.
Tabita Tour has a 61-coach fleet, with 37 operating on international routes and 24 domestically. The fleet is totally worth over RON42 million (around EUR10 million). In 2014, Tabita tour also started an almost EUR1 million investment in a passenger boarding terminal in Arad. The project will be 40% implemented this year and the rest next year.
“We will further expand the agency network and we’re readying to tap new market. The focus will still be on passenger transport and the development of charter trips for Filadelfia Turism. We also want to develop Filadelfia Marfa and will invest to expand the truck fleet and structure our logistic network,” said the entrepreneur of Bistrita referring to Filadelfia group’s development plans.
The group currently employs 419 people.
Sighiartau believe starting a business from scratch in this field or a new field would be challenging for anybody willing to invest, considering the current economic context. “The moment you start and the novelty you bring are crucial for the development of a business”.
(English version by Catalina Apostoiu)