We gave featured business leaders of the issue the final word in answering “What trends do you forecast impacting your industry in 2023?”
Trond Håkon Schaug-Pettersen, CEO, Salmon Evolution
“We are seeing very strong demand and think that the salmon category has the potential to multiply many times over the coming decades. The challenge is the supply side where conventional farming is pushing the biological limits as to how much it’s possible to produce in a sustainable way. We are 100 percent confident that land-based salmon farming is part of the solution in providing the planet with much-needed additional high-quality proteins in the years to come.”
László Békefi, General Manager, Coca-Cola HBC Hungary
“According to the majority of forecasts, 2023 will be a challenging year for the Hungarian economy and for all business actors. As per the recent data of the leading domestic economic research company, the Hungarian GDP may fall by 1–1.5 percent within the next year, mainly driven by the slowing domestic demand. We are already seeing the change in consumption trends.
“We also need to face several external circumstances affecting our business. All the raw materials used to make our products have become significantly more expensive. Sugar, concentrate, carbonic acid, and even coffee. The purchase price of raw materials for packaging has also increased, along with energy and transport costs due to the rising cost of fuels. In addition, the national currency (forint) has weakened compared to the largest currencies, which further impacts the company’s operations. We have little control over these external circumstances, so we are dealing with what we can.
“We are at a time when it is of paramount importance that the entire value chain – from suppliers, manufacturers to trading partners – works more closely than ever to ensure the competitiveness of the industry and the highest level of service to consumers.”
Majid Al-Kharoosi, Managing Director, Oman Tower Company
“Rolling out 5G could impact the company’s business positively as it requires more sites to be constructed and made available for all service operators. On the other hand, the Fourth Industrial Revolution could also create value to the company by adding more equipment to the towers which could generate more revenue.
“Additionally, moving ahead with our new smart tower which contains several solutions like installing telecom equipment, public WiFi, IoT, digital advertising, statistic advertisement, a mini data centre, and electric vehicle charging, could impact the company’s business and revenue completely.”
