A Slovenian company Kolektor: Its development and evolution into a multinational enterprise

Abstract

Kolektor is a Slovenian company producing commutators, small components of motors. It was established in 1963 and came to cooperate with a West German company in 1968. It endeavored to absorb advanced technology from the partner, concentrate on education of its own employees and improve the quality of its products by investment in R&D, in the early 1980s its technological level finally surpassed that of the ‘teacher’. This is a rare case in which a newly established firm has grown into a multinational enterprise within a short period. This paper presents its history and discusses secrets to its success.

Keywords

• Kolektor
• Slovenia
• commutator
• market niche
• multinational enterprise