| Type | Privately held company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Agricultural machinery, automotive, parts and venture capital |
| Founded | 1937 |
| Website | www.uzelcorp.com, www.uzeltraktor.com |
Uzel Group (sometimes abbreviated to Uzel) is an agricultural machinery manufacturer. Formally founded in 1937 with a heritage going back to the middle of the nineteenth century, the Group is one of the oldest industrial groups with Turkish origins. With its head office in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Uzel is an international firm present in over 75 countries.
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The roots of Uzel Group reach back to 1864 when the Uzel family began making and selling phaetons in the city of Rousse in Bulgaria, which was then part of the Ottoman Empire. Uzel’s hand-built phaetons prove popular, and are shipped and used all over the empire. In 1937, the foundations of the Uzel Group are laid in Turkey. Ibrahim Uzel, the founder and the first Chairman of the Uzel Group, sets up a sole proprietorship in Bursa(ancient Prusa) and begins making leaf springs for motor vehicles. In 1961, Ibrahim Uzel’s dream of building a vehicle is realised with the production of the company’s first agricultural tractors. The Company builds its first diesel engine in 1964.
In 1997, 15 % of the shares of a subsidiary of the Group, Uzel Makina, were listed both in Istanbul and London Stock Exchanges in an IPO coordinated by Morgan Stanley. In 2005, in order to align itself with global competitive conditions, Uzel relocates its headquarters to Amsterdam in the Netherlands. Same year, the company acquires Gebrüder Holder GmbH, one of Europe’s oldest and most reputable tractor makers. A regional distributorship agreement is signed with Kverneland, a leading name in the global market for agricultural implements, to take another step on Uzel's goal of becoming a full-line agricultural machinery provider for its customers worldwide. Advanced-technology implements go on sale under the Uzel-Kverneland name. Implement and combine harvester production lines commence operation.
Argentum, the venture capital arm of Uzel, acquires the Century 21 master franchise license from Realogy (NYSE: H) for Germany, Croatia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, Azerbaijan and Hungary in 2006, becoming the first Turkish company to undersign such an achievement in Europe.
By 2006, the Group had expanded its products to over 75 countries and operating in a few different industries so a major reorganisation was undertaken, and the Group was divided into three Strategic Business Units: Agri (tractors, combines, cotton harvesters, sprayers, implements), Auto (engines, suspension systems, auto parts, defence systems, motorcycles, leaf springs) and Argentum (real estate, hospitality, franchising, technology).
In 2007, Uzel was successful in buying 51% of the Ursus Tractor Factory, manufacturer of the Ursus brand of tractors, and a former Massey Ferguson licensee.[1]
By 2007, Uzel was one of ten largest tractor companies in the world with six manufacturing facilities and three major brands.
However, by 2010, Uzel has gone through a major overhaul and had given up its Holder and Ursus brands. The Company has leaner operations and decided to continue with a single brand strategy and concentrates on Uzel brand worldwide.
* Tractors * Combines * Cotton Harvesters * Sprayers * Implement
* Diesel Engines * Leaf Springs * Suspension Systems * Auto Parts * Defence Systems
* Real Estate
* Technology
Vidzone
* Franchising
Century21 Turkey
Century21 Eurasia
* Hospitality
The Pucic Palace, Dubrovnik
L'Ambiance Hotel, Bodrum
In 2007 Uzel has been awarded with the prestigious Palladium Balanced Scorecard Hall of Fame Award. This award is given to top-performing organisations for execution excellence of strategy through the use of the Balanced Scorecard. Created by Drs. Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton, current Hall of Fame members include some of the most admired entreprises in the world. Uzel is the first company to receive this award in the agricultural machinery sector in the world, as well as the first company with Turkish origins.