'Baltena' Elevated

By Mahtot Teka
mahtot@ethionet.et

It was a just a regular family owned shop where they sold cereals, pulses and spices. Five years ago the owners realized the trend of life changing. The woman was not anymore a stay - at - home and in charge of preparing food items. So, they saw the opportunity to sell prepared and packed ‘baltena' items and thought that the business of it could be lucrative. That is how Selam Baltena, owned by Ato Solomon Geleta, started.

However its early days weren't that easy. “When we first started, selling packed 'baltena' items wasn't as such known. People didn't buy ‘baltena' items because they didn't think they were good and even healthy … we had a huge problem convincing people (about our products) … so we told our first customers to return any product they had bought if they found anything wrong with it… Slowly people started to get used to it. And then other people started to follow suit in the business after they had seen our success,” elaborates Ato Daniel Geleta, finance and administration head.

Now Selam Baltena has established itself as a household name. Whether you are throwing a party or just preparing your daily meal it provides all the items you need. Its products are categorized as ‘baltina' items such as chili and spices such as ginger powder . (Log onto their website) The establishment has a medium - sized preparation plant located in Kolfe. It employs 140 skilled workers out of which almost 90% are women. “In our culture the skilled manpower we get in the business is mostly women,” says Ato Mekonnen explaining the current situation. All employees are supposed to know various jobs. There is no specialization on a certain job. And when they are hired they are given written and practical tests to make sure they have the skills.

All items go through different processes and time for careful preparation that ranges from three days to more than a week. And they are prepared in small amounts. Ato Mekonnen explains why. “We provide fresh ‘baltena items'. No product is kept in storage for more than few days because if an item stays for long time, it looses its taste…” And also in many of the products salt, which has a preserving quality, is added as one of their ingredients. Their use of fresh raw materials helps to achieve freshness of the products. But because of that, prices for their products fluctuate according to the prices of the raw materials on the market.

Picture this: a pack of “shiro” powder on which its ingredients and manufacture date are printed. That is quite a progress for “shiro”! Well, that is how all Selam Baltena products are packed; with list of all ingredients and manufacture date printed on. Ato Mekonnen promises that their next step is to make their packaging more attractive. Their products are packed in different amounts, from as small as a quarter of a kilo to any amount ordered by customers.

Selam customers are individuals, hotels, shops and supermarkets. It also exports through brokers and on direct orders. At the shops and supermarkets, their products sell out fast. “If they somehow didn't sell within the expected time these products are collected from the shops and supermarkets and burnt," says Ato Mekonnen. And the shops and supermarkets get fresh products in return. "… because it is about health. You need to think of it like your own… and if you want your business's success to last, the product you provide needs to be healthy …” (This is a good lesson for the snatch and run businesses in Addis!) But these days, according to him, because Selam Baltina is getting ever popular, all their products sell out fast. And by the way, the establishment gives free transportation service from the preparation plant.

Selam Baltena also owns and runs a small, 24 hours shop in Merkato where they sell their own products. “No shop was open at night in Merkato when we started it …" says Ato Mekonnen. You might wonder who buys from a ‘baltena' shop at night, “People who are going abroad come at anytime and shop. Also people holding parties come to our shop if they run out of something," he explains.

The establishment seems to be proud of the quality of its products but at the same time they are keen to get feedback from individual customers or shops. So, there is a questionnaire given to all customers. “We get feed back from our customers and do what we need to do according to their needs.”

A pioneer, Selam Baltena, has inspired others to enter the same business, whose demand, the Vice Manager says that, they are not even able to satisfy yet. “Competition is very good. Without competition there is no progress. Products improve as a result of competition. …competition makes you work hard to find the skill that will enable you to dominate your competitors,” concludes Ato Mekonnen.