Preparing for the latest wave!

The opening up to the rest of the world in the 1990s changed their dimensions. The 2000s were characterized by branding and corporate mergers and acquisitions. The point we have reached today, that is to say the latest trend, is for advances in many sectors. The features that will make their mark on this era are concepts such as acquisitions abroad, consolidations, R & D, mobility and digitalization. Here are the latest trends and expectations in the main sectors which provide the life blood for the economy...
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COMPETITION IS INCREASING
Sabancı Holding Energy Group Head Selahattin Hakman is one of the names that come to mind whenever anyone mentions the energy sector... He believes that the market is in its “third phase”. Hakman summarizes the current period and what it will bring as follows: “Until the 1990s, everything was done by the state. Then there were investments using the Build-Operate and the Build-Operate-Transfer models. In 2001, the creation of the Energy Markets’ Board (EPK) heralded the beginning of a period of liberalization. During this period, which can describe as the third phase, the sector has been growing and developing with an electricity market which is fully competitive and functional. When this phase is complete, which will take three to four years, Turkey will have a more competitive structure. The share of autoproduction and companies which produce freely, which currently stands at 35 percent, will rise to 70-75 percent. I also expect some consolidation in the sector.”

OPENING UP TO THE REST OF THE WORLD
Kiğılı is one of the companies which has grown with the clothing sector and itself experienced every phase through which it has passed. Kiğılı CEO Hilal Suerdem says that the clothing sector is currently in its fourth phase. This phase has two main characteristics. The first is “the customer is king” concept and the second is “opening up to the world”. Suerdem made the following evaluation: “In the phase we are in at the moment, it is the consumer who has the sole say. Now brands are trying to become the consumers’ favorites. Products are being shaped by consumer preferences. Brands which are able to provide quality, suitable prices and fashion secure their place amongst the favorites. At the conclusion of this phase, brands will have learned to give greater importance to offering quality products at a suitable price. Design capabilities will develop.”~

BANKS "INTEGRATING"
Garanti Bankası General Manager Ergun Özen says that: “If we take the 1990s as the starting point, we can say that to date banking has gone through three main periods” and he describes the fourth phase as “integrated customer banking”. Özen said the following: “In this new phase, our source of revenue will be derived from consolidated customer relations. In this context, we have started to offer our customers integrated solutions not just for their financial needs but for their entire lives. In this period, customer relations management (CRM) will take on a different, broader meaning. The customer will be the core focus of the business and being able to make a positive contribution not just to customers’ banking transactions but to their entire lives will become important.”

MOBILITY OFFENSIVE
The GSM sector in Turkey goes back 18 years. But during this relatively short period it has very rapidly passed through a number of phases. Starting with voice communications, the sector has passed five important thresholds. Turkcell CEO Süreyya Ciliv believes that the sector is currently in its fifth phase. Ciliv describes developments as follows: “Now we have become key to other sectors. Because the concept of mobility has changed the ways of doing business in every field. Companies which integrate mobile communications solutions into their ways of doing business are one step ahead. In fact, the mobile internet era is only just beginning. We forecast that this wave will continue for a much longer period. Mobile internet, intermachine Communications and cloud technology will remain important in the medium and long term.”

THE BRANDING PROCESS
To date, the jewelry sector has passed through two important phases. Goldaş CEO Sedat Yalınkaya says that these are production-based investments and the export era. “”Now we are in the third phase, which is characterized by investments in branding,” he says and continues: “We are in the branding phase, which started in the mid-2000s. We see that during the branding phase it is investments in branches and stores which come to the fore, This process brings innovations for both the brands and the customers. I believe that this process has also given a boost to the retail sector. As it continues, we shall undergo a restructuring which shall see us integrated with the rest of the world. The country’s economy will benefit as a result.”

THE PROCUREMENT WAVE
Teknosa General Manager Mehmet Nane divides technology retailing into three eras. “We can describe the first as ‘entering the market’ and the second as ‘locomotive growth’ during the second half of the 2000s,” says Nane and continues as follows: “At the moment we are experiencing a wave of consolidation. At Teknosa we say, ‘if someone is selling then we are buying’. During this phase, the sector will continue to record double digit growth. In 2012, total expenditure will reach $11 billion. In Europe, per capita expenditure on technology products is €360. In Turkey it is around €120. We think that the Turkish market has the potential to grow considerably. In the future, companies will give importance to usefulness and functionality and those which can diversify these kinds of products will have an edge.”