'International business is not as complicated as it seems'

With the right focus and a pragmatic attitude, Trivec grew into an international player in a niche market. Most of its sales now come from abroad. Ynbusiness helped the Frisian company further professionalize its export process.

On just any Friday morning director Branko Westra is relaxing on the phone with a German client. Behind him, a colleague answers a technical question in English. Further on, someone else is calling, this time in Dutch. At the same time, three languages echo through Trivec's modern and spacious premises.

An internationally operating company, that much is clear. Here, in the Frisian town of Sumar, machines are made that find their way all over the world. From Germany to Uruguay and from Lithuania to the United States.

Branko has been at the helm of the company since 2004. He grew up in Dokkum, in a real entrepreneurial family. His grandfather had a bicycle wholesale business, his parents a cheese store. At home, entrepreneurship mainly meant: continuing, even when things got tough. You grow up with it," he says. 'If I got out of bed in the morning and didn't feel well, my mother would often say: first put your clothes on and see how you feel then. That did shape me, I think.'

Coincidence or not, exactly at age 34 something interesting came his way. It started with a phone call from his uncle Piet Geertsma. He wanted to take over VEC, an abbreviation of Van der Vechte Equipment Centre, and asked if Branko would join him. Founded in 1974, the company sold, among other things, flushing systems that allowed paint shops, painting companies, carpentry factories and schools to separate and reuse waste water from paint after a paint or spray job.

"I did see potential in that," Branko looks back. 'Paint contamination was a growing problem at the time, and the flushing installation offered a sustainable and reliable solution.' And so Branko and Piet acquired VEC in 2004. As the brand-new entrepreneurs got to know the paint industry better, they saw more and more opportunities. Companies working with coatings needed more than just rinsing systems. They also needed machines to apply and finish those coatings better and more efficiently.

Traditionally, VEC was only sporadically active internationally. Even in the first phase after the takeover this remained the case. 'When we received the first requests from Belgium and I had to go there, I thought that was quite a step,' Branko smiles. 'Going out with the Peugeot Partner and spending the night somewhere. It was an adventure.

The real international breakthrough came in 2012. The company had developed a small rolling machine that allowed parquet producers to finish parquet completely to size. The machine caught on and gave Trivec a major global boost. 'Suddenly we were approached by customers from all over the world,' Branko says. 'At that time we decided to change the name VEC to Trivec. That sounds better abroad and moreover, the name immediately says something about how we stand in the competition. Tri, which means three in Latin, symbolizes the cooperation between the customer, the manufacturer and our company. In that connection lies our strength.

Over the years, Trivec has continued to expand its activities. New applications for all stages of the coating process were regularly developed for various industries. The company now has sixteen employees and the majority of its turnover comes from abroad. 'International business is not as complicated as it seems,' says Branko. 'You just have to know your way around and it takes a lot of doing. But once you know how it works and are helped to walk the path, it's not too bad.'

In the following years, Wessel helped Trivec in various areas to optimize and professionalize the export process. Among other things, he alerted Branko to the existence of the SIB scheme, a Dutch subsidy for SMEs to cover costs in internationalization, such as market research, coaching, trade fair participation and export training. He also put the company in touch with the network of Netherlands Business Support Offices (NBSOs), Dutch government trade offices abroad that support companies with their international plans. It enabled Trivec to pick up local knowledge in those countries and make valuable connections.

Trivec deliberately operates in a niche. The company does not want to compete with large Italian or German machine builders, but continues to focus on customized solutions to complex problems. That said, there are challenges. For example, the investment market for machines is currently difficult and the parquet market in particular is changing because of alternatives such as PVC.

Entrepreneurs in the province of Fryslân can contact:

Wessel de Vries
E. wesseldevries@ynbusiness. nl
T. +31 6 11 26 59 90

Entrepreneurs in the province of Drenthe can contact:

Han Smidt
E. han@ikbendrentsondernemer. nl
T. +31 6 20 82 76 77

Entrepreneurs in the province of Groningen can contact:

Han Smidt
E. hansmidt@grobusine ss.nl
T. +31 6 20 82 76 77

NOM portfolio companies can contact: