BREWING A BETTER WORLD WITH ZAGORKA

ZAGORKA has a history of 122 years since the opening of the brewery in Stara Zagora. In 1994, the company joined the HEINEKEN global family. ZAGORKA is committed to developing its business sustainably and responsibly through its Sustainability Platform "Brew a Better World".

The company has a diverse high-quality portfolio of brands – Zagorka, Heineken®, Ariana, Birra Moretti, Amstel, Stolichno, Starobrno, and Apple Thief cider. ZAGORKA also offers alcohol-free drinks – Zagorka 0.0%, Heineken® 0.0, and Vibe by Ariana Radler 0.0%.

Olga Lavrenova has been the Managing Director of ZAGORKA since 2021. She aims at implementing the company mission to be the first choice of consumers, partners and employees and to produce the beers that Bulgarians love. She joined HEINEKEN in 2005 and has extensive international experience at various management positions in the company.

ZAGORKA has been part of HEINEKEN for 30 years. What changes has ZAGORKA undergone since then?

I believe the biggest changes that came with joining the HEINEKEN family were the investments that came with it and security regarding the future. We, as ZAGORKA, are proud of our rich history and of the opportunity to become part of another company with great history and the same mission for looking forward towards the future. For example, ZAGORKA launched the first advertisement of beer, also the first non-alcoholic beer Zagorka Vita, the first can and keg lines, and when it became part of HEINEKEN, was the first brewery in Bulgaria to open a Beer Museum and has certified collections, the brewery also has a Green warehouse built and designed under BREEAM and a solar park as well. So, you can imagine what this legacy gives – it makes us proud, but also is a huge responsibility to both dare and care.

Being part of HEINEKEN also gives us the benefits of experience and exchange of good practices, the innovations we launched are proof of our constant strive to lead and give a choice to our consumers. Last, but not least, we invest in our people and their development – many of our Bulgarian colleagues were acknowledged to continue their careers in different countries within HEINEKEN, either for short term assignments or longer, depending on the opportunity.

How are you going to mark the 30-year anniversary as part of HEINEKEN?

By creating moments in which people can spend good time together with our brands and innovations. This is what we do as a beer company, and beer is a social drink. Therefore, by creating different occasions to celebrate with our consumers, partners and employees throughout the year we'll also celebrate this anniversary. Specifically, we'll have a dedicated event in our brewery with partners and employees, which will afterwards continue with our Beerfest in Stara Zagora.

Let me also mark other unique events organized by us this year: for a third year in a row, we organized Piazza Birra Moretti festival with our Italian beer and different activities with which people could feel closer to Italy. With Heineken® we organized "11 meters to London", a unique experience for football fans at the Vasil Levski National Stadium. The world-famous Polish goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek faced 80 real hardcore football fans who took a penalty against him. One of them who scored, won a double ticket to the UEFA Champions League final in London.

We were part of many other events and festivals where people could enjoy our fresh beers and their non-alcoholic alternatives.

What is your strategy as a company, part of the most international brewer in the world, HEINEKEN?

Our EverGreen strategy is the one dedicated to our growth. From a business perspective, our mission to create the joy of true togetherness to inspire a better world means that we brew the brands that Bulgarians love; that we have a focus on our consumers and customers to provide the best quality; that we are preferred partner and also employer; and that we do everything in a responsible and sustainable manner.

At ZAGORKA for 10 years now we have been executing our sustainability strategy "Brew a Better World", which is focused in three spheres: social responsibility, environment, and responsible consumption.

Our support for the local community is shown through different initiatives: #Zelenodeistvie (#GreenAction) with our brand Ariana for cleaning and stocking of dams in Bulgaria. In "The Good Everywhere" with Zagorka Special we encouraged cultural tourism to show that in Bulgaria there are many beautiful places to be visited. During the upcoming Beerfest in Stara Zagora (4-8 September) that I already mentioned, we have a variety of experiences for the visitors, as well as socially responsible campaigns.

Regarding the environment, the focus is set toward Net Zero in our production by 2030. We do this through implementation of innovative practices, use of renewable energy, circularity and care for nature and water.

The responsible consumption topic is an engagement via which we take care of our consumers. We always give a choice through our non-alcohol portfolio, so that they can enjoy their favourite taste anytime and on every occasion. Our Heineken 0.0 campaign "When you Drive, Never Drink" focused on road safety is promoted during the Karting Endurance Championship in Bulgaria. Another aspect of responsible consumption is directed toward prevention of alcohol addiction, where ZAGORKA supports the National Helpline for Drugs, Alcohol and Gambling of Solidarnost Association with phone number 0888-99-18-66.

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