文/品牌之声
Which brand will Tatarstani choose when picking up home appliances this year?
According to foreign media reports, in the first nine months of this year, Chinese manufacturers of household appliances are gaining more and more Russian consumer’s favor. To meet the growing market demand, a complete and powerful supporting industry chain is indispensable - Kamasteel, is an important part of this industry chain.
"The output of cooperation between Kamasteel and Chinese manufacturers of household appliances is increasing every year, and Chinese manufacturers’ local operations are expanding. Currently, we are jointly developing freezers and other new products in the hope of taking a bigger share of the Tatarstani home appliance market in the future," Zhai Yugui, general manager of Kamasteel told Forbes China.
According to reports, Kamasteel was founded in 2019 and is located in Nizhnekamsk, Tatarstan. In addition to providing appliance shell plates for Chinese manufacturers of household appliances, the company's main products include color-coated plates for civil construction.
Zhai Yugui, General Manager of Kamasteel
Into the colorful world of color coated steel plate
In April 2019, Kamasteel held an opening ceremony at the Pioneer Industrial Park (PIP) in Nizhnekamsk.
The ceremony had originally invited the President of the Republic of Tatarstan, Rustam Minnikhanov, as the main guest. However, due to an urgent meeting with high command, he was not able to be there on time. Nevertheless, he managed to visit Nizhnekamsk the day before without the media.
Other guests included First Deputy Prime Minister Rustam Nigmatullin, Mayor of Nizhnekamsk Aydar Metshin, and of course Kamasteel's Founder Nie Wei and General Manager Alevtina Kuzmina.
Kamasteel Opening Ceremony
Zhai Yugui also attended the ceremony. He studied in Chelyabinsk. After that, he has been engaged in international trade for many years, and has worked and studied in many regions such as Primorsky Krai, Irkutsk Oblast and Tyumen Oblast. Today, both he and Kamasteel have put down roots in Tatarstan.
"We have been engaged in the building materials business here for many years, and we believe that there is still a lot of room for expansion of color coating so we finally decided to settle in Tatarstan after visiting several cities," Zhai Yugui revealed.
The Pioneer Industrial Park was built on the site of a brick factory that had been out of production for over 10 years. After renovation, it is now a modern production and office complex, and the presence of Kamasteel has certainly added a splash of color.
Kamasteel's production facilities
Kamasteel is equipped with state-of-the-art production facilities, including a continuous coating process monitoring system, to ensure product quality. These facilities allow Kamasteel not only to cut panels lengthwise and crosswise, but also to color coat panels in a variety of colors according to Ral or Pantone, as well as to process unique decorative and textured coatings.
The coated steel sheets produced by Kamasteel are colorful, durable and easy to cut, and can be used in a wide range of scenarios for roofing, building facades, gutters, appliances, awnings, fences and many other applications. In addition, the environmentally friendly coatings used by Kamasteel are also SGS certified, ensuring customers' peace of mind.
Employee of Kamasteel
Promoting the colorful development of Sino-Tatarstani trade
In the first half of 2023, the Republic of Tatarstan's trade with China amounted to nearly $1.5 billion, RIA Novosti reported. This figure is already very close to the $1.6 billion in trade between the two sides for the whole of 2022, which was 58 percent higher than in 2021. This shows that trade relations between the two sides have been growing closer in recent years and are gaining momentum.
Tatarstan is one of the most developed federal subject, a bridge connecting the European and Asian parts, rich in natural resources and strong in industry. It is worth mentioning that Tatarstan is a friendly province with China's Sichuan and Shandong provinces. As a Tatarstani - Chinese joint venture, the Chinese investor in Kamasteel is the Shandong BAIKAL Group, which owns 99.8% of Kamasteel's shares.
"We are very satisfied with Tatarstan's attention to foreign investment and the speed of work advancement, they are efficient and have a serious and responsible attitude, and we feel very kind and relieved," Zhai Yugui commented.
Inside the Kamasteel plant
Over the years, Tatarstan's investment environment has maintained a top position in the area, showing a strong potential for development. At present, a number of Chinese companies are cooperating here. Zhai Yugui believes that with more and more large Chinese companies settling in Tatarstan, the supporting processing industry in which it is located will also usher in more development opportunities, especially in the field of home appliances and automobiles.
For Chinese enterprises and investors who choose here, Tatarstan not only provides good policy support, but also takes the initiative to help Chinese enterprises to solve all kinds of difficulties encountered in the process. Zhai Yugui said, "It is true that investing in foreign countries will encounter many difficulties, but as long as you choose the right region, believe in the local government, understand the market clearly, and at the same time go about it with a firm belief and on the ground, you will be able to climb up the ladder!"
In the future, Kamasteel plans to further expand its business to other markets. We believe that in the near future, more Chinese companies will come to Tatarstan to promote the colorful development of Sino-Tatarstani trade together with Kamasteel.
(All images in the text courtesy of Kamasteel)
Disclaimer: The information in this publication is provided by the interviewees. It does not reflect the editorial opinions of Forbes China.
To find out more about Tatarstan, please add Invest Tatarstan Official Weixin or Weibo https://weibo.com/investtatarstan
