Kiçki: Our Dreams and Targets Will Never End

Mr. Uğurhan Kiçki, who says that Ünimar has a trustworthy establishment and growth story, states that the journey that started 25 years ago with the dream of two highly enthusiastic people continues with the efforts of hundreds of people with the same excitement today. Uğurhan Kiçki says: “As Globelink Ünimar, we do not intend to be satisfied with our current position. Our dreams and goals will continue to grow”.

Founding Partner Mr. Uğurhan Kiçki, who is one of the architects of Globelink Ünimar’s strong structure in 25 years, states that Globelink Ünimar will continue to grow as long as it continues to dream and feel the same excitement, and shares the company’s quarter-century success story and expectations for the future sincerely.

Who is Uğurhan Kiçki, as the other architect of the strong structure established in 25 years?

I’ve loved working all my life. My career started when I was a student. My career, which started in high school by selling jewelry to French tourists in Cappadocia, continued with restaurant management and waitering at night. After graduating from Erenköy Primary School and Saint-Benoit French High School, I continued my undergraduate education at Marmara University Department of Labor Economics and Industrial Relations. After graduating from university, I entered corporate business life in Balnak Nakliyat through a friend of mine. Although it was a bit of a coincidence that I found a job in a logistics company, I would say that it was our choice with Cihan to establish a logistics company and to struggle to grow it even under the most difficult conditions.

The point you have now reached should undoubtedly make you say that you are glad about that choice. Well, how does it make you feel?

The first feeling I feel is pride… I am proud of what we have achieved and the point we have reached today. I am proud to see that we are one of the most important companies in the sector that leads the sector with its activities. It is a pleasure to yield the results of our labor and struggle. I look at the future more confidently. We have created a corporate structure with our teammates for years and this structure has made us more permanent as it differentiates us from our competitors in the sector.

We would like to hear your company’s organization story from you, as well…

When we laid the foundations of Ünimar in 1994, we were two, young, highly enthusiastic entrepreneurs. After the establishment of the company, it was just two of us for a long time. We were doing all the tasks ourselves from answering the phones to sales operations, from invoicing bills to delivery. In this period, we brought all the office items from our own houses from the office furniture we used to the typewriter we used for invoicing the bills. After Ms. Burcu Altaş, who currently works as the Human Resources Manager of our company, joined us, we, three people, continued to learn the sector and did all the work ourselves.

We heard about your story of calling your customers on the payphone when you were doing your military service; it was very interesting. Can we hear the details from you?

1995 was a tough period for Turkey’s economy. I wanted to do my military service since the markets were dull; however, I didn’t leave my job while I was doing my military service. I tried to continue some customer interviews that I started in civilian before joining the army on the payphone. I was staying outside on the weekends by admitting a friend’s address and spending two days trying to connect with new customers.

What was the dream or target you were after? Did you imagine the position you have reached today?

I have always believed that we would reach very good positions since the day our company was established. In order to reach this point, we have worked really hard day and night, always being honest and always keeping our promises to all our stakeholders. With all these factors coming together, we have become one of the reliable and respected companies in the sector. However, I can easily say that we do not intend to be satisfied with our current position. As Globelink Ünimar, our dreams and goals continue to grow. There’s no way it’s over because, at the point where your dreams and goals end, development and growth also end. At this point, existence becomes meaningless for companies and it becomes impossible to survive.

Where do you intend to take Globelink Ünimar in the future?

For the following period, we prioritize our goals to increase diversity with new services, in addition to the services we provide. As we all closely follow, today technology is going under a very fast transformation. One of our priorities as Globelink Ünimar is to integrate new technologies into our services. As in 25 years, investment in human resources will continue to be our priority in the future. In this context, we will continue to invest in technology and human in the coming period.

When you consider your establishment goals, how do you position yourself today?

With the vision we have created with Mr. Yusufi, I can happily define Globelink Ünimark, as a company that continues its development and growth as one of the leading companies in the logistics and supply chain sector in Turkey and in the world, which sustains its existence for many years thanks to its institutionalization, and which gives confidence to its customers, employees and all stakeholders. We are a company that continuously develops itself and has high energy. One of our goals was to be one of the first companies that come to mind when we talk about sea partial transportation. Today, as Globelink Ünimar, we have accomplished more than this goal. We are a company that continues to invest in human and technology, has offices in major ports of Turkey, provides employment to around 200 people, and has a say in the sector in the sea, air, land, and national distribution. With our partnership with CWT Globelink, we increased our international recognition. We continue our activities with an institutional structure without slowing down.

We cannot see self-managed property investment, which is common in the Turkish logistics sector, in Globelink Ünimar. What kind of strategy have you followed or do you follow?

Since the establishment of Ünimar, self-managed property investment has not been among our priorities. While providing our business partners with the services they demand, we prefer to act together with our stakeholders. From the past to the present, the priority for us was to invest in people. Each of our employees who are members of our family is a great value to us. The fact that all the opportunities we offer them are adopted by our employees proves that we are on the right track as well as it makes us happy.

It is very difficult to maintain the partnership structure, especially in rolling economies. We see that your partnership has strengthened in the last 25 years. What is the secret behind this?

The foundation of our partnership with Mr. Yusufi is based on the concepts of trust, love, and respect. We can easily say that the foundation of all healthy relationships around us from friendship to marriage is already based on these concepts. From my point of view, the words “in good times and in bad” and “for a lifetime” should also apply to partnerships in business. We saw this sense of trust in our partnership with CWT Globelink in 2011 and we continue to feel it. I hope that this cooperation will continue to contribute to our sector for many years.