Construction and repair materials company Nova prepares for entering the EU market

Roofing materials, traffic barriers, polyethylene tanks, plasterboard and reinforced plastic profiles – this is a non-exhaustive list of items manufactured by the construction and repair materials company Nova.

A group of five friends founded Nova in 2006 as a company engaged in selling imported goods. As time passed, the founders set the ultimate goals of replacing imports with local products. They have succeeded, as the goods produced by their Batumi- and Tbilisi-based facilities have replaced some imports and even go for export.

“We decided to produce the goods that we previously imported from other countries, so we established production facilities in Georgia to offer goods to our customers at more affordable prices,” says Edisher Khimshiashvili, Nova General Director.

The company started by producing roofing materials, and continued with plasterboards and polyethylene water tanks. Recently Nova has become the first Georgian company to manufacture garbage containers.

The success brought about the need for expansion, and after Tbilisi, the company opened an enterprise in Batumi, thus amplifying the industrial potential of the seaside tourist city. Today the Batumi-based enterprise is the largest manufacturer of construction and repair materials in the South Caucasus, producing more than 400 items.

Alongside with meeting the domestic demand, Nova decided to export its goods, which required developing the production further and complying with relevant standards. The company has achieved these with the support of EU-funded DCFTA adaptation program and Advice for Small Business (ASB) project.

Through the cooperation with the European Union and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Nova has created 30 new jobs and introduced European environmental and safety standards.

“We appreciate the support we got from the EU and our cooperation with the EBRD. The company received a loan in the amount of €3 million from which we could also get a 15% cashback. We reinvested the cashback in production development, and this helped us meet the European standards,” says Edisher Khimshiashvili. He notes that apart from the loan, EBRD’s assistance included involvement of international expertise that helped Nova to improve its production. Furthermore, EU assistance helped the company obtain certificates that would allow them to diversify their exports and enter the EU market.

Nova has lived up to its environmental commitments too by processing and utilizing polyethylene waste and using energy efficient equipment at its enterprises.

“The company’s policy is aimed at creating energy efficient and environmentally friendly production. Our task is to recycle all waste and re-process it into goods for ourselves and for our customers. Also, by using energy efficient equipment, we reduced utility costs by about 15% and tried to minimize our environmental impact,” Nova General Director said.

Apart from the enterprises in Batumi and Tbilisi, Nova has warehouses and three mega-centers in Tbilisi, Batumi and Kutaisi. Besides, the company represents a number of exclusive brands of construction and repair materials in Georgia. Despite the crisis caused by the COVID 19 pandemic, Nova has numerous plans and is going to invest approx. GEL 20 million in the development of its production. It plans to expand further the retail trade by establishing mega-centers in all regions of Georgia.

Yet, Nova’s main focus remains the EU market and the founders hope that they could be soon able to offer their products to European customers.