STANDARD FURNITURE SERBIA d.o.o. (SFS) from Cuprija produces solid wood furniture and furniture parts for its sole customer- the Swedish company IKEA. Standard Furniture Serbia operates in accordance with the internal IKEA standards, which include the strictest requirements in environmental protection, social and working conditions, and the procurement of products, goods, and services. In the race with global competition, in order to ensure the desired product quality, our company follows a comprehensive process of wood processing.
SFS adopted a policy of strict control of input raw materials (exclusively FSC certified), from the processing of primary wood, through final processing to varnishing. As a result, SFS’s products are competitive on the global market. Our products currently include kitchen boards, rolling pins, leg sets, wardrobe hangers, and kitchen shelves. SFS sells over 4 million pieces of final products annually in all 460 IKEA department stores worldwide.
Year of establishment:
2007
Location:
Cuprija
Founder and owner:
DACCOMET AG
Business information
| 2021 | 2015 | 2010 | 2005 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full-time employees | 406 | 156 | 31 | / |
| Turnover (EUR) | 8 m | 3.5 m | 400,000 | / |
| Export (EUR) | 7.4 m | 3.3 m | 400,000 | / |
PRODUCTS/SERVICES
COMPANY DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURIAL STORY
The forerunner of SFS is a craft shop from Paracin that was engaged in interior design at the beginning of 2000. In 2004 it started cooperating with the Swedish IKEA. The crucial moment in the company’s development is March 2011 when the majority stake was taken over by the Swiss company DACCOMET AG from Zurich. Following the takeover SFS’s management is professionalized, internal organisation rearranged, over 1 million euros are invested and 100 jobs were created in the first year following the recapitalisation. November 2017 is the moment when DACCOMET AG becomes a 100% owner and starts a new investment cycle. Since then about 3 million euros have been invested from our own sources. The introduction of new products was our response to customer requirements and was backed by technological innovations and upgrades. Compared to 2 products 31 staff and 400,000 euros annual turnover in 2010, today’s range consists of 20 different products 440 employees and an annual turnover of over 8 million euros. Our biggest challenge, which is also our best practice – is the ability to continuously introduce the knowledge and values required by IKEA. As the only IKEA’s supplier from Serbia we have been exposed to the tough global competition for 18 years and we successfully stood the test of time.
CONTRIBUTION TO SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
SFS’s own initiative resulted in a new department in the dual education system within the Technical School in Cuprija, a profile operator for furniture production. This was realised through PKS (The Serbian Chamber of Economy) and the Ministry of Education. The department was launched in the school year 2021/2022. We have successfully enrolled our first students, who weekly perform the practical part of their schooling in SFS’s production plant. We are also actively conducting campaigns in order to promote the woodworking profession among young people and we are preparing for the admission of new students for the next school year.
We have also initiated a project aimed to introduce renewable energy sources i.e. installing solar panels and using biomass to cogenerate electricity in our internal power plant. By doing so we want to directly reduce CO2 emissions.
Our company is proud to say that women are represented in the gender structure with 65%. Furthermore, our production staff is being promoted to positions of supervisors and managers, and can also enter the highest management of the company.
