Istanbul becomes management hub

Turkish Daily News / December 17, 2007

Many foreign companies have declared Turkey a base to reach Turkic
Republics, the Middle East, Africa and Balkans. And these companies say
they are satisfied with the decision they have made and they find
Turkey*s human resources qualified

NECLA YILMAZ

ISTANBUL * Referans


Turkey's young population and central location have made it a popular
base for international companies looking to do business on three
continents.
    While the government hopes to turn Istanbul into an international
financial center, the city has already become regional headquarters to a
slew of foreign firms eyeing markets as far afield as Russia, the
Balkans, the Turkic Republics, the Middle East and North Africa.
*There is a considerable increase in the number of the international
companies that have made Turkey their regional base,* said Mustafa
Alper, secretary general of the International Investors Association
(YASED). *Almost all of the world*s biggest 500 companies have
offices in Turkey.*
Alper expects hard numbers on this trend, gleaned from a member
survey, to be available around the New Year, he said.
Consumer products giant Proctor & Gamble (P&G) moved to Istanbul more
than a decade ago. The city serves as headquarters for operations in
Turkey, the Caucasus, the Central Asian republics, and, since last year,
Israel.
*It excites us to manage a dynamic, ever-growing market with a strong
crew,* Hayrünnisa Aligil, foreign relations director for Procter and
Gamble (P&G) Turkey, recently told the business daily Referans.
Valued at $11 billion, P&G now operates in 23 countries,
Benetton, which entered Turkey in 1985 as the country*s first
international ready-to-wear company, uses the country as a base for
doing business in Turkmenistan, Georgia, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and
Kyrgyzstan. Its Istanbul office also supplies products to all the Middle
East.
*We are located at a key point geographically and have a young,
disciplined, professional corporate team,* said Benetton Turkey
Managing Director Zeynep Selgur.  *That has made us into a regional
base.*
Conglomerate BASF * which boasts chemical, plastics, agricultural and
several other sectors * in 2005 joined its Turkish headquarters and
Dubai branches here under the roof of Business Center Turkey, Middle
East & North Africa. The country*s motivated, skilled and efficient
work force influenced the company*s decision to strike roots in
Istanbul, as did Turkey*s dynamic market, offering high growth
potential in many sectors, said BASF CEO Gerhard W. Schwarz.
BSH, which has become Turkey*s largest foreign-held appliance firm,
has managed its Middle East and Caucasus sales, marketing and post-sale
services from Turkey since 1999.
*BHS is constantly investing in Turkey, increasing employment and
exporting half of our production,* said company CEO Norbert Klein.
Unilever*s Turkish holdings, valued at YTL 100 million, are
indicators of its faith in the Turkish economy, said local company
spokesman Ebru Şenel Erim. The Istanbul office*s vast market ranges
from Iran, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Armenia, Georgia,
Tajikistan and Azerbaijan in the East to Macedonia, Albania, Moldova,
Romania, Kosovo and Bosnia in the West.
International transport and logistics company DHL Express has been
operating in Turkey since 1981. The company, which also has holdings in
the textile, automotive, banking and high technology sectors, intends to
make Turkey a regional hub in the upcoming years, in keeping with
business growth.

Turkish Daily News